Antony P. Ressler Sells 174,258 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) Stock

Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 174,258 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.89, for a total value of $23,505,661.62. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of ARES stock traded down $1.38 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $133.78. 1,808,951 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,013,585. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $132.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.19. The company has a market cap of $41.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.17. Ares Management Co. has a 12-month low of $77.97 and a 12-month high of $139.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The asset manager reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $862.71 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 21.01%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Ares Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 155.65%.

Institutional Trading of Ares Management

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARES. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Rise Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 73.9% in the fourth quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 240 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 210.5% in the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 354 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $112.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Ares Management from $119.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Ares Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $122.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.09.

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.

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