Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Given New $215.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $207.00 to $215.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 13.07% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on ARES. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Ares Management from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Ares Management from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $176.00 to $174.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $176.17.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ARES traded up $0.49 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $190.14. 186,186 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,040,935. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market cap of $59.53 billion, a PE ratio of 87.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.18. The business’s fifty day moving average is $183.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.17. Ares Management has a one year low of $125.23 and a one year high of $200.49.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a net margin of 12.51% and a return on equity of 19.89%. As a group, analysts predict that Ares Management will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 20,048 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.44, for a total value of $3,356,837.12. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 229,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,503,162.88. This trade represents a 8.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ryan Berry sold 14,357 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.16, for a total transaction of $2,586,557.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 233,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,015,834.24. The trade was a 5.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 555,838 shares of company stock valued at $96,785,773. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ARES. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Ares Management by 6.5% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,417 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $10,195,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 682,985 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $106,436,000 after purchasing an additional 36,476 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 31.2% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,750 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,545,000 after purchasing an additional 5,404 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Ares Management by 9.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,244,179 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,284,773,000 after buying an additional 679,462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Ares Management by 134.1% in the 4th quarter. Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. now owns 10,300 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,842,000 after purchasing an additional 5,900 shares during the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Management Company Profile

Ares Management Corporation operates as an alternative asset manager in the United States, Europe, and Asia. The company's Tradable Credit Group segment manages various types of investment funds, such as commingled and separately managed accounts for institutional investors, and publicly traded vehicles and sub-advised funds for retail investors in the tradable and non-investment grade corporate credit markets.