Payden & Rygel Sells 7,700 Shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES)

Payden & Rygel lessened its stake in shares of Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES - Free Report) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 122,200 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 7,700 shares during the quarter. Ares Management accounts for 1.9% of Payden & Rygel's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Payden & Rygel's holdings in Ares Management were worth $21,633,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aviva PLC raised its position in shares of Ares Management by 388.9% in the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 113,274 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $20,053,000 after purchasing an additional 90,105 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at $9,366,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in Ares Management by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 463,805 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $82,107,000 after acquiring an additional 55,641 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth about $144,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $305,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.03% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ARES. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Ares Management from $216.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Ares Management from $221.00 to $201.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Ares Management from $187.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Ares Management from $217.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Management has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $166.07.

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Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ARES traded down $4.33 during trading on Thursday, hitting $138.04. The company had a trading volume of 2,308,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,359,061. Ares Management Co. has a 52 week low of $110.63 and a 52 week high of $200.49. The business's 50-day moving average is $160.22 and its 200 day moving average is $169.26. The company has a market cap of $43.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.46, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 fiscal year.

Ares Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $1.12 dividend. This is a positive change from Ares Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. Ares Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 183.25%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Michael J. Arougheti sold 110,845 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.17, for a total transaction of $16,978,128.65. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,400,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $214,438,000. This represents a 7.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 78,933 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,150,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $218,523,000. This represents a 6.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 329,113 shares of company stock worth $54,409,915. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ares Management 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.