Sage Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings in Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC

Key Points

• Sage Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 7.6% in Q4, selling 78,430 shares and ending the quarter with 955,548 shares worth $19.33 million, which represents 12.8% of Sage's portfolio and is its third-largest holding.
• Ares Capital declared a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share (ex-dividend March 13, payable March 31), implying a $1.92 annual payout and a ~10.7% yield with a dividend payout ratio around 103%.
• The company posted Q4 EPS of $0.50 (in line with estimates) on $793 million of revenue (slightly below expectations); analysts expect $2.19 EPS for the fiscal year and the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $21.38.

Sage Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC - Free Report) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 955,548 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 78,430 shares during the quarter. Ares Capital comprises 12.8% of Sage Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Sage Advisors LLC owned about 0.13% of Ares Capital worth $19,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. City Holding Co. raised its holdings in Ares Capital by 444.4% during the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,225 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. SWAN Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital during the third quarter worth $27,000. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital in the third quarter worth $31,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital in the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Capital in the second quarter valued at $36,000. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Capital Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of Ares Capital stock opened at $17.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70. Ares Capital Corporation has a 1 year low of $17.59 and a 1 year high of $23.42. The firm has a market cap of $12.87 billion, a PE ratio of 9.63 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.02.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. Ares Capital had a net margin of 42.56% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The firm had revenue of $793.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $795.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.55 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.7%. Ares Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ARCC. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $21.38.

Insider Transactions at Ares Capital

In other news, CFO Scott C. Lem purchased 5,186 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.29 per share, with a total value of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,463 shares in the company, valued at approximately $761,241.27. This trade represents a 15.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel acquired 12,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.13 per share, with a total value of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,765. This represents a 44.64% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Ares Capital Company Profile

Ares Capital Corporation NASDAQ: ARCC is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm's flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ARCC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC - Free Report).

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.