Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Shares Acquired by Zhang Financial LLC

Zhang Financial LLC grew its position in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 70.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,049 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 2,088 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC's holdings in Ares Management were worth $740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ARES. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ares Management by 104.8% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 170 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Elequin Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC lifted its stake in Ares Management by 125.6% in the first quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 264 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Management

In other news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 182,108 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.07, for a total value of $30,971,107.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 350,684 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,640,827.88. This represents a 34.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.37, for a total transaction of $6,774,800.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 85,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,396,450. This trade represents a 32.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 898,990 shares of company stock valued at $148,835,332 in the last three months. 36.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on ARES shares. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Ares Management from $221.00 to $201.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Ares Management from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Oppenheimer downgraded Ares Management from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. JMP Securities upped their target price on Ares Management from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. 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 MarketBeat, Ares Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.94.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ARES traded down $4.26 during trading on Friday, hitting $166.55. 1,143,306 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,431,400. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $156.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.23. Ares Management Co. has a 52-week low of $110.63 and a 52-week high of $200.49. The company has a market cap of $54.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The asset manager reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $951.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $914.00 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Ares Management's payout ratio is 263.53%.

Ares Management Profile

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.