Analysts Set Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) Price Target at $158.93

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $159.7333.

ARES has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ares Management from $143.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $165.00 to $131.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th.

Ares Management Stock Up 7.9%

Ares Management stock opened at $138.16 on Thursday. Ares Management has a fifty-two week low of $95.80 and a fifty-two week high of $195.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.23. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $124.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $123.39. The stock has a market cap of $45.57 billion, a PE ratio of 63.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The asset manager reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. Ares Management had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 25.47%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ares Management will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 247.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quilter Plc raised its stake in shares of Ares Management by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 704,069 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $113,799,000 after acquiring an additional 37,366 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ares Management by 1,033.1% in the 4th quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 28,272 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,570,000 after buying an additional 25,777 shares during the last quarter. Osprey Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Ares Management by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Osprey Private Wealth LLC now owns 64,530 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $10,430,000 after buying an additional 13,165 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 20.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,050,425 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,210,530,000 after acquiring an additional 4,373,955 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 169.3% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 26,526 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,287,000 after acquiring an additional 16,677 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

About Ares Management

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.