Jennison Associates LLC Boosts Stake in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,635 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 999 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $2,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 1.4% in the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 6,392 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,070,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Ares Management by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 21.0% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 559 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Ares Management by 40.0% during the second quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 350 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 10.8% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,073 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $143,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ARES opened at $175.52 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Ares Management Co. has a 12 month low of $107.69 and a 12 month high of $176.83. The company has a market capitalization of $54.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.88, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $163.69 and its 200 day moving average is $149.21.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The asset manager reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.01. Ares Management had a return on equity of 19.89% and a net margin of 12.51%. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $833.58 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 4.06 EPS for the current year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 171.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on ARES. TD Cowen increased their price target on Ares Management from $184.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Ares Management from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Ares Management from $176.00 to $174.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $172.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $136.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $166.36.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider David B. Kaplan sold 19,262 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.74, for a total transaction of $2,826,505.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 81,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,928,054.38. The trade was a 19.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ryan Berry sold 57,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.74, for a total value of $8,092,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 456,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,276,239.48. This trade represents a 11.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 651,628 shares of company stock valued at $102,226,989. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ares Management Company Profile

Ares Management Corporation operates as an alternative asset manager in the United States, Europe, and Asia. The company's Tradable Credit Group segment manages various types of investment funds, such as commingled and separately managed accounts for institutional investors, and publicly traded vehicles and sub-advised funds for retail investors in the tradable and non-investment grade corporate credit markets.