Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Stock Price Down 7.1%

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) shares fell 7.1% to $157.63, with trading volume down 22% from average levels. Analysts have mixed ratings, with Barclays lowering its price target to $217 and Wells Fargo raising it to $215. The company reported Q4 earnings of $1.23 per share, missing estimates. A quarterly dividend of $1.12 will be paid on March 31, up from $0.93. Insiders sold significant shares recently, and hedge funds have adjusted their holdings, with some increasing their stakes.

Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 7.1% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $156.44 and last traded at $157.63. Approximately 914,425 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average daily volume of 1,166,112 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.76.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

ARES has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on Ares Management from $224.00 to $217.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Ares Management from $207.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded Ares Management from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Ares Management from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $166.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Ares Management from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $176.17.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on ARES

Ares Management Stock Down 6.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $47.85 billion, a PE ratio of 75.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50-day moving average of $182.70 and a 200 day moving average of $169.84.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 11.35%. Equities research analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. This is a boost from Ares Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Ares Management's payout ratio is presently 183.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 69,809 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.01, for a total transaction of $11,239,947.09. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 30,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,861,052.91. This represents a 69.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ryan Berry sold 5,443 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.14, for a total value of $980,502.02. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 247,771 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,633,467.94. This represents a 2.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 353,906 shares of company stock valued at $61,598,317 over the last ninety days. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 67.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 162 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ares Management by 104.8% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 170 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Ares Management Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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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Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Stock Price Down 7.1% - Should You Sell?