Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $22.6250.

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group lowered their price target on Ares Capital from $22.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Ares Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, October 19th. Finally, JMP Securities set a $23.00 price target on Ares Capital and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of ARCC opened at $20.57 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.03 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. Ares Capital has a 52-week low of $18.26 and a 52-week high of $23.84.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 44.94%.The business had revenue of $658.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $766.48 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Ares Capital will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.3%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 93.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Capital

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. City Holding Co. increased its position in shares of Ares Capital by 444.4% during the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,225 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new position in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Ares Capital by 320.7% during the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,628 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,241 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.