Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC Holdings Lowered by Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 124,180 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 35,158 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $2,535,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ARCC. City Holding Co. lifted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 444.4% in the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,225 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Capital during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. CNB Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the second quarter valued at $36,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the second quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the second quarter valued at $38,000. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel bought 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $20.39 per share, with a total value of $265,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 28,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $570,920. This trade represents a 86.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of ARCC opened at $20.18 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $14.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.09 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s fifty day moving average is $20.32 and its 200-day moving average is $21.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Ares Capital Corporation has a 12 month low of $18.26 and a 12 month high of $23.84.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. Ares Capital had a net margin of 45.16% and a return on equity of 10.08%. The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $766.48 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.58 earnings per share. Ares Capital’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARCC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 19th. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.25.

Ares Capital Company Profile

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm’s flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.