Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Sells 16,952 Shares of Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. trimmed its position in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 47.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 18,643 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 16,952 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $373,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in Ares Capital by 411.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,952 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,570 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in Ares Capital by 137.2% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 2,142 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC grew its stake in Ares Capital by 59.3% in the 4th quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC now owns 2,351 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 875 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Ares Capital in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARCC opened at $20.78 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $20.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.01. Ares Capital Co. has a 12-month low of $17.53 and a 12-month high of $20.86. The firm has a market cap of $12.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.78 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The investment management company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $707.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $669.78 million. Ares Capital had a net margin of 58.22% and a return on equity of 12.50%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.68 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.24%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 71.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on ARCC shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. B. Riley lowered shares of Ares Capital from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $21.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $21.00 target price on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.80.

Ares Capital 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.