StockNews.com Upgrades Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) to Hold

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

ARES has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ares Management from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Ares Management from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $155.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Ares Management from $184.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Management has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.36.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of Ares Management stock traded up $1.10 on Tuesday, reaching $175.05. 825,711 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,163,388. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market cap of $54.80 billion, a PE ratio of 80.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $166.67 and its 200-day moving average is $150.83. Ares Management has a one year low of $107.69 and a one year high of $180.38.

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. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $833.58 million. Ares Management had a return on equity of 19.89% and a net margin of 12.51%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ares Management will post 4.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In related news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 30,465 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.16, for a total transaction of $5,366,714.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,375,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,220,000. This trade represents a 2.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider David B. Kaplan sold 30,680 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.16, for a total transaction of $5,404,588.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 666,030 shares of company stock valued at $109,779,010 over the last 90 days. 41.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Management

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Ares Management by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,301,709 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $982,058,000 after buying an additional 63,851 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Ares Management by 58.5% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,058,394 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $674,183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,867,933 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in Ares Management by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,826,479 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $596,318,000 after purchasing an additional 187,184 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Ares Management by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,678,177 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $600,830,000 after purchasing an additional 18,773 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ares Management by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,950,451 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $459,580,000 after purchasing an additional 175,627 shares during the period. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ares Management Company 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.