Platform Technology Partners Grows Position in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Platform Technology Partners raised its position in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,450 shares of the investment management company’s stock after buying an additional 867 shares during the quarter. Platform Technology Partners’ holdings in Ares Capital were worth $601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ARCC. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ares Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $421,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 938,635 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $20,547,000 after buying an additional 53,229 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,289,000. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Capital during the fourth quarter worth about $215,000. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated purchased a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the fourth quarter worth about $310,000. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of ARCC opened at $22.74 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.69 billion, a PE ratio of 8.75 and a beta of 1.01. Ares Capital Co. has a 52-week low of $19.32 and a 52-week high of $23.84. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a net margin of 53.71% and a return on equity of 12.06%. Equities research analysts predict that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARCC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.94.

About Ares Capital

Ares Capital Corporation is a business development company specializing in acquisition, recapitalization, mezzanine debt, restructurings, rescue financing, and leveraged buyout transactions of middle market companies. It also makes growth capital and general refinancing. It prefers to make investments in companies engaged in the basic and growth manufacturing, business services, consumer products, health care products and services, and information technology service sectors.