Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $17.57 and last traded at $17.5450, with a volume of 4604900 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARCC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.38.

Ares Capital Trading Down 2.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.58 billion, a PE ratio of 9.43 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $19.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.70.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 9.89% and a net margin of 42.56%.The firm had revenue of $793.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $795.20 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.55 earnings per share. Ares Capital’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.0%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 103.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ares Capital news, CFO Scott C. Lem acquired 5,186 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.29 per share, with a total value of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,463 shares in the company, valued at $761,241.27. This represents a 15.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel purchased 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.13 per share, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,765. This represents a 44.64% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ares Capital

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. City Holding Co. lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 444.4% during the third quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,225 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Palladiem LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. SWAN Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Sankala Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, NBT Bank N A NY acquired a new stake in Ares Capital during the third quarter worth about $31,000. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Capital Company Profile

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm’s flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.