Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) is Naviter Wealth LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Naviter Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 21.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 973,272 shares of the investment management company’s stock after purchasing an additional 174,989 shares during the quarter. Ares Capital accounts for approximately 3.9% of Naviter Wealth LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Naviter Wealth LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Ares Capital worth $19,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in Ares Capital by 411.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,952 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,570 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in Ares Capital by 137.2% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 2,142 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC raised its position in Ares Capital by 59.3% in the 4th quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC now owns 2,351 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 875 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Ares Capital in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARCC traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $20.87. 1,777,989 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,524,787. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $20.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.02. The firm has a market cap of $12.66 billion, a PE ratio of 7.78 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Ares Capital Co. has a 52 week low of $17.53 and a 52 week high of $20.94.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The investment management company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.03. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 12.50% and a net margin of 58.22%. The company had revenue of $707.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $669.78 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.20%. Ares Capital’s payout ratio is 71.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. B. Riley lowered Ares Capital from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $21.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 8th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ares Capital from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ares Capital presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.80.

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.