Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) CEO Michael J. Arougheti Sells 25,843 Shares

Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 25,843 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.16, for a total transaction of $4,423,287.88. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 167,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,705,414.76. This represents a 13.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ARES opened at $175.46 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $163.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.13. Ares Management Co. has a 52 week low of $107.69 and a 52 week high of $176.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.93 billion, a PE ratio of 80.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The asset manager reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.01. Ares Management had a return on equity of 19.89% and a net margin of 12.51%. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $833.58 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.83 EPS. Analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 4.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Ares Management’s payout ratio is presently 171.43%.

Institutional Trading of Ares Management

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ARES. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Ares Management by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 8,488 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,129,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 118.2% during the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 2,400 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its holdings in Ares Management by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 65,325 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $8,693,000 after buying an additional 1,345 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Ares Management during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,995,000. Finally, Natixis grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 401.4% in the first quarter. Natixis now owns 10,273 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 8,224 shares during the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on ARES. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Ares Management from $136.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $172.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $176.00 to $174.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Ares Management in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.36.

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.