Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) Shares Down 2.1% - Time to Sell?

Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) fell 2.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $19.49 and last traded at $19.43. 1,921,001 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 52% from the average session volume of 3,980,726 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.84.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ARCC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ares Capital from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ares Capital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.81.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $13.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.23 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $22.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.21.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a net margin of 50.90% and a return on equity of 11.54%. On average, research analysts predict that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital's payout ratio is 78.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 11,291 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its position in Ares Capital by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 73,741 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 7,236 shares during the period. Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Ares Capital by 1.0% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 115,744 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $2,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,149 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 178,153 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $3,923,000 after purchasing an additional 15,650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter worth about $252,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.38% of the company's stock.

About Ares Capital

Ares Capital Corporation is a business development company specializing in acquisition, recapitalization, mezzanine debt, restructurings, rescue financing, and leveraged buyout transactions of middle market companies. It also makes growth capital and general refinancing. It prefers to make investments in companies engaged in the basic and growth manufacturing, business services, consumer products, health care products and services, and information technology service sectors.