Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Sees Strong Trading Volume After Dividend Announcement

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. 4,684,182 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 11% from the previous session’s volume of 4,213,276 shares.The stock last traded at $22.67 and had previously closed at $23.81.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.43%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, B. Riley raised their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.79.

Ares Capital Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $14.71 billion, a PE ratio of 8.71 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.49.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a net margin of 53.71% and a return on equity of 12.06%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ares Capital

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 909 shares during the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 92.6% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 2,889 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 1,389 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its stake in Ares Capital by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at about $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

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.