Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Grows Position in Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) by 24.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 109,891 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,307 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $17,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of Ares Management by 29.6% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 34,036 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $5,895,000 after purchasing an additional 7,776 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC grew its position in Ares Management by 30.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 4,388 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $760,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the last quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Ares Management during the 2nd quarter valued at about $161,774,000. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC raised its holdings in Ares Management by 6.7% in the third quarter. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC now owns 159,898 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $25,566,000 after buying an additional 10,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Ares Management in the third quarter worth about $2,254,000. Institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In other news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 56,257 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.26, for a total value of $8,846,975.82. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 590,000 shares of company stock worth $90,653,808. 36.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARES has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Ares Management in a report on Monday, September 29th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Ares Management in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $156.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on Ares Management from $218.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group started coverage on Ares Management in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $201.00 price target for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Ares Management from $188.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.14.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of ARES opened at $175.85 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $161.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.41. The firm has a market cap of $57.48 billion, a PE ratio of 75.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Ares Management Corporation has a 1-year low of $110.63 and a 1-year high of $200.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The asset manager reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.05. Ares Management had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 11.72%.The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ares Management Corporation will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 17th were paid a dividend of $0.8438 per share. This represents a $3.38 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 17th. Ares Management’s payout ratio is currently 192.27%.

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.