Ares Management’s (ARES) Outperform Rating Reaffirmed at Oppenheimer

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reissued by research analysts at Oppenheimer in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $146.00 price target on the asset manager’s stock, down from their previous price target of $147.00. Oppenheimer’s price objective points to a potential upside of 20.50% from the company’s previous close.

ARES has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Zacks Research cut Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price objective on Ares Management from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wolfe Research set a $210.00 price objective on Ares Management and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Ares Management from $188.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Ares Management from $140.00 to $112.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $166.06.

Ares Management Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of ARES traded up $2.16 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $121.16. 2,292,478 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,713,475. The stock has a market cap of $39.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $110.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.48. Ares Management has a 12 month low of $95.80 and a 12 month high of $195.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. Ares Management had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 22.02%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.09 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Ares Management will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ares Management

In other news, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $126.61 per share, with a total value of $1,266,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 34,071 shares in the company, valued at $4,313,729.31. This trade represents a 41.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy D. Olian bought 480 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $124.43 per share, with a total value of $59,726.40. Following the acquisition, the director owned 29,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,699,801.62. This trade represents a 1.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ares Management

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ARES. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Ares Management by 20.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,050,425 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,210,530,000 after buying an additional 4,373,955 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth $396,165,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,489,004 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $883,716,000 after purchasing an additional 1,963,460 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,705,599 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $922,196,000 after purchasing an additional 1,187,174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 40,652.1% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 807,300 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $130,484,000 after purchasing an additional 805,319 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company’s stock.

About Ares Management

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.