Empowered Funds LLC Acquires 11,178 Shares of Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Key Points

• Empowered Funds more than doubled its Ares Management stake in the first quarter, purchasing 11,178 additional shares to hold 20,921 shares valued at approximately $2.28 million. Institutional investors collectively own 50.03% of ARES.
• Ares reported quarterly earnings of $1.29 per share, narrowly beating estimates, while revenue rose 5.8% year over year to $1.43 billion. The company also declared a $1.35 quarterly dividend, equal to a 3.9% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $159.73, despite shares opening at $140.04 after a reported 2.0% decline.

Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 114.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,921 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 11,178 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Ares Management were worth $2,282,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ARES. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Ares Management by 20.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,050,425 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $4,210,530,000 after purchasing an additional 4,373,955 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,705,599 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $922,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,187,174 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,489,004 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $883,716,000 after acquiring an additional 1,963,460 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,257,710 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $688,176,000 after acquiring an additional 14,516 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Ares Management by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,009,291 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $437,417,000 after acquiring an additional 169,598 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Ares Management Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:ARES opened at $140.04 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $46.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Ares Management Corporation has a 12-month low of $95.80 and a 12-month high of $195.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $124.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $122.99.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The asset manager reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Ares Management had a return on equity of 25.47% and a net margin of 10.63%.The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 16th. Ares Management's payout ratio is currently 247.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ARES. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Ares Management from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ares Management from $143.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Ares Management from $140.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Ares Management in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $159.73.

Ares Management Profile

Ares Management Corporation NYSE: ARES is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source