Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Stock Price

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) had its target price decreased by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $197.00 to $152.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 11.14% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $187.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Ares Management from $221.00 to $201.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Ares Management from $217.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, JMP Securities upgraded shares of Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to a “market outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.40.

Ares Management Price Performance

ARES stock traded down $0.97 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $136.77. 735,803 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,371,550. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $157.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.06. Ares Management has a one year low of $110.63 and a one year high of $200.49. The company has a market cap of $43.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.32.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. Equities analysts forecast that Ares Management will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ares Management

In other news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 110,845 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total value of $16,978,128.65. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,400,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,438,000. The trade was a 7.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 78,933 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.02, for a total transaction of $14,998,848.66. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $218,523,000. This represents a 6.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 329,113 shares of company stock valued at $54,409,915. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Ares Management by 67.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 162 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Ares Management by 104.8% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new stake in Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.