Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Purchases 53,229 Shares of Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC - Free Report) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 938,635 shares of the investment management company's stock after buying an additional 53,229 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.15% of Ares Capital worth $20,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ARCC. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,289,000. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $215,000. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $310,000. Financial Advocates Investment Management boosted its stake in Ares Capital by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 20,913 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 2,450 shares during the period. Finally, Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 45,348 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $993,000 after acquiring an additional 1,739 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.38% of the company's stock.

Ares Capital Price Performance

ARCC stock traded up $0.19 on Friday, hitting $23.27. 3,785,709 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,598,560. Ares Capital Co. has a 1-year low of $19.32 and a 1-year high of $23.84. The stock has a market cap of $15.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.50 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $22.48 and a 200-day moving average of $21.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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, analysts forecast that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.25%. Ares Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARCC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley upped their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped 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. Wells Fargo & Company reduced 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 note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ares Capital has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.94.

Ares Capital Company Profile

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.