Weiss Ratings Reaffirms "Hold (C)" Rating for Ares Management (NYSE:ARES)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "Hold (C)" rating for Ares Management (NYSE:ARES), while multiple other analysts have issued varying ratings and adjusted target prices for the stock.
• As of midday trading, Ares Management's shares increased by $4.90 to $148.53, with the stock having a market capitalization of $48.53 billion.
• Insider activity shows that Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold over 128,000 shares, while insiders collectively sold approximately 2.59 million shares in the past three months.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Tuesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on ARES. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $189.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, September 29th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $196.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Cfra Research raised shares of Ares Management to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $181.31.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ARES traded up $4.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $148.53. 972,514 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,653,463. Ares Management has a 1 year low of $110.63 and a 1 year high of $200.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $174.36 and a 200 day moving average of $167.32.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The asset manager reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 15.81%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Ares Management will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 128,837 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.30, for a total value of $22,971,637.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have sold 2,590,000 shares of company stock valued at $464,430,639. 0.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Management

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Ares Management by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 190 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management in the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Ares Management by 3,262.5% in the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 269 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

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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