Quantbot Technologies LP Buys 2,580 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES) by 13.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,213 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,580 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $3,755,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ares Management by 5.6% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 5,404 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $335,858,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Ares Management by 9.0% during 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 acquiring an additional 679,462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Ares Management by 134.1% in the fourth quarter. Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. now owns 10,300 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,842,000 after acquiring an additional 5,900 shares in the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Management Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of Ares Management stock opened at $147.95 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $46.67 billion, a PE ratio of 72.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $175.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.86. Ares Management Co. has a 1 year low of $125.23 and a 1 year high of $200.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.12). Ares Management had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.64%. Equities research analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Ares Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. Ares Management’s payout ratio is presently 183.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 78,933 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.02, for a total transaction of $14,998,848.66. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,523,000. This represents a 6.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ashish Bhutani acquired 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $141.33 per share, with a total value of $1,413,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 22,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,237,163.65. This represents a 77.49 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 218,268 shares of company stock worth $37,431,786. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARES has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on Ares Management from $224.00 to $217.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Ares Management from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $166.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ares Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $215.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.83.

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.