Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 1,409 Shares of Ares Management Corp (NYSE:ARES)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Ares Management Corp (NYSE:ARES) by 24.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,109 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 1,409 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. RMR Wealth Builders bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Ares Management during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $145,000. 70.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Shares of NYSE ARES opened at $35.06 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.27. Ares Management Corp has a 52-week low of $20.20 and a 52-week high of $41.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.23. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $33.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.04.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The asset manager reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $411.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $369.82 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 5.60% and a return on equity of 15.52%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.35 EPS. Analysts forecast that Ares Management Corp will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.56%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.81%.

In related news, insider Bennett Rosenthal sold 268,697 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.81, for a total transaction of $9,353,342.57. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider R. Kipp Deveer sold 8,274 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.81, for a total transaction of $263,195.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,368,527 shares of company stock worth $48,088,366 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 151.62% of the company’s stock.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 price target (up from $41.00) on shares of Ares Management in a report on Friday, February 14th. Credit Suisse Group lifted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Ares Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $39.45.

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.

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