Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $1.89 Million Stake in Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its stake in Ares Management by 65.4% in Q3, selling 22,340 shares and leaving 11,812 shares valued at about $1.889 million.
• Company insiders increased positions recently — Director Ashish Bhutani bought 10,000 shares at $126.61 (now owns 34,071) and Director Judy D. Olian bought 480 shares — pushing insider ownership to 36.86%.
• Ares raised its quarterly dividend to $1.35 (annualized $5.40) for a yield of 4.6%, despite a very high payout ratio of about 319.5%.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its stake in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 65.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,812 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 22,340 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Ares Management were worth $1,889,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 190 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Ares Management in the third quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp bought a new position in Ares Management during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In related news, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $126.61 per share, for a total transaction of $1,266,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 34,071 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,313,729.31. The trade was a 41.54% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Judy D. Olian purchased 480 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $124.43 per share, with a total value of $59,726.40. Following the acquisition, the director owned 29,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,699,801.62. This represents a 1.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 36.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ARES shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Ares Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $182.00 to $155.00 in a report on Friday, February 6th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $224.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $222.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised Ares Management from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $157.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $182.67.

Ares Management Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of Ares Management stock opened at $116.13 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.96 billion, a PE ratio of 68.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.55. The company's fifty day moving average price is $147.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $157.41. Ares Management Corporation has a 52-week low of $106.02 and a 52-week high of $195.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Ares Management had a return on equity of 19.04% and a net margin of 9.41%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.55 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a positive change from Ares Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Ares Management's payout ratio is currently 319.53%.

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.

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