Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 13,745 Shares of Ares Management Corporation $ARES

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ares Management Corporation (NYSE:ARES) by 24.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,008 shares of the asset manager’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,745 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Ares Management were worth $11,477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the third quarter worth $40,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Ares Management during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the third quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, AlphaCentric Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management in the fourth quarter valued at $62,000. 50.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARES has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ares Management from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. UBS Group set a $148.00 price objective on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research raised shares of Ares Management from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $146.00 price objective (down from $147.00) on shares of Ares Management in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $140.00 to $112.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.56.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of ARES stock opened at $135.24 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $121.15 and a 200-day moving average of $134.54. The company has a market cap of $44.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.23 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Ares Management Corporation has a one year low of $95.80 and a one year high of $195.26.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The asset manager reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. Ares Management had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 22.14%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.09 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Ares Management Corporation will post 6.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Ares Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 251.16%.

Ares Management Profile

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions across credit, private equity and real estate. The firm originates and manages capital across a range of strategies including direct lending, syndicated and special situations credit, private equity buyouts and growth investments, and real estate equity and debt. Ares serves institutional investors, insurance companies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and high‑net‑worth clients through both commingled funds and bespoke managed account structures.

Within credit, Ares offers strategies spanning leveraged loans, structured credit, opportunistic and distressed debt, and specialty finance, with an emphasis on underwriting, portfolio construction and active asset management.