Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) Shares Sold by Bruni J V & Co. Co.

Bruni J V & Co. Co. reduced its position in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,379,947 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 18,242 shares during the period. Ares Capital comprises about 3.2% of Bruni J V & Co. Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Bruni J V & Co. Co.’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $28,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 3,836,573 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $80,338,000 after acquiring an additional 63,999 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in Ares Capital by 4.6% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 885,406 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $18,540,000 after purchasing an additional 38,559 shares in the last quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Ares Capital by 151.4% in the second quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 45,698 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $952,000 after purchasing an additional 27,523 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Ares Capital by 32.5% in the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 211,797 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $4,435,000 after buying an additional 52,007 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 681,724 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $14,275,000 after buying an additional 29,786 shares in the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of Ares Capital stock opened at $21.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.01 billion, a PE ratio of 8.34 and a beta of 1.01. 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 Co. has a 52 week low of $19.32 and a 52 week high of $22.05. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.01.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The investment management company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.01). Ares Capital had a net margin of 53.71% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The company had revenue of $755.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $770.45 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. Ares Capital’s revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.86%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 73.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARCC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group upgraded Ares Capital to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. B. Riley raised their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Compass Point upgraded Ares Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.86.

Ares Capital Profile

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.