Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Makes New $789,000 Investment in Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,380 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Ares Management by 104.8% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 170 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC lifted its stake in Ares Management by 125.6% in the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 264 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on ARES. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Ares Management from $221.00 to $201.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Wolfe Research set a $193.00 target price on shares of Ares Management and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Ares Management from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Citizens Jmp raised shares of Ares Management from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Ares Management from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.94.

Insider Transactions at Ares Management

In related news, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.37, for a total transaction of $6,774,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 85,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,396,450. The trade was a 32.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider David B. Kaplan sold 33,145 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.12, for a total transaction of $5,472,902.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 873,145 shares of company stock worth $146,204,353 over the last three months. 36.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ares Management Stock Down 0.5%

Ares Management stock traded down $0.89 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $168.93. The stock had a trading volume of 1,233,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,420,287. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 99.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.38. Ares Management Corporation has a 12-month low of $110.63 and a 12-month high of $200.49. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $162.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $166.66.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The asset manager reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $951.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $914.00 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 9.73% and a return on equity of 16.29%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.80 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 263.53%.

About Ares Management

Ares Management Corporation operates as an alternative asset manager in the United States, Europe, and Asia. The company's Tradable Credit Group segment manages various types of investment funds, such as commingled and separately managed accounts for institutional investors, and publicly traded vehicles and sub-advised funds for retail investors in the tradable and non-investment grade corporate credit markets.