BankPlus Trust Department Makes New $1.76 Million Investment in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 80,155 shares of the investment management company's stock, valued at approximately $1,755,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Horizon Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Ares Capital by 56.8% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,510 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 909 shares during the period. Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its position in Ares Capital by 92.6% in the fourth quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 2,889 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 1,389 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ARCC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. B. Riley boosted their price objective on Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.94.

Ares Capital Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARCC traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $23.12. 3,071,694 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,306,107. The company's 50 day moving average is $22.77 and its 200 day moving average is $21.77. Ares Capital Co. has a one year low of $19.32 and a one year high of $23.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.52 billion, a PE ratio of 9.44 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.30%. Ares Capital's payout ratio is currently 78.37%.

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.