Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) Shares Sold by West Oak Capital LLC

West Oak Capital LLC decreased its position in shares of Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,600 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. West Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 1.2% in the third quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 43,609 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $913,000 after buying an additional 531 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC raised its position in Ares Capital by 35.3% in the third quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 14,704 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $308,000 after acquiring an additional 3,840 shares in the last quarter. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $243,000. FLC Capital Advisors boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 28,899 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 9,683 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 30,749 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $644,000 after purchasing an additional 2,184 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARCC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group raised shares of Ares Capital to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Compass Point upgraded Ares Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.71.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

ARCC stock opened at $21.65 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.41 and a beta of 1.01. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $20.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Ares Capital Co. has a 12 month low of $18.55 and a 12 month high of $21.84.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The investment management company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 12.24% and a net margin of 59.76%. The business had revenue of $755.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $714.27 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.87%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.75%.

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.