Ares Capital Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders acquired 14,321 put options on the company. This is an increase of 199% compared to the average daily volume of 4,788 put options.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ARCC opened at $22.18 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.17. Ares Capital has a 1-year low of $19.32 and a 1-year high of $22.43. The stock has a market cap of $14.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.53 and a beta of 1.01.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The investment management company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.01). Ares Capital had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 53.71%. The business had revenue of $755.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $770.45 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Ares Capital will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.66%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Capital

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ARCC. Asset Dedication LLC bought a new position in Ares Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the third quarter worth $28,000. nVerses Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 88.9% during the 2nd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Ares Capital by 56.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,510 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 909 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter worth about $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ARCC shares. B. Riley boosted their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ares Capital from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.29.

Ares Capital Company 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.