Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $1.15 Million Investment in Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 10,500 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $1,146,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ares Management by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 10,360 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,519,000 after buying an additional 5,579 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Ares Management by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,344 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $197,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in Ares Management by 42.7% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,197 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $909,000 after acquiring an additional 1,853 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in Ares Management by 15.3% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,902 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Ares Management by 708.2% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 493 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the period. 50.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of ARES stock opened at $116.72 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $122.94 and its 200 day moving average is $130.41. Ares Management Corporation has a 1-year low of $95.80 and a 1-year high of $195.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.23 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $38.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.29, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.51.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. Ares Management had a return on equity of 22.14% and a net margin of 10.54%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.09 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Ares Management Corporation will post 6.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Ares Management’s payout ratio is presently 251.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ARES. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Ares Management from $144.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Ares Management from $188.00 to $144.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Ares Management from $178.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ares Management presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.12.

Ares Management Profile

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.