Werlinich Asset Management LLC Acquires Shares of 38,030 Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC

Werlinich Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 38,030 shares of the investment management company’s stock, valued at approximately $772,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. City Holding Co. boosted its stake in Ares Capital by 444.4% during the third quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,225 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. SWAN Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. NBT Bank N A NY purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ares Capital by 201.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 1,764 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ares Capital

In other Ares Capital news, CFO Scott C. Lem bought 5,186 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.29 per share, for a total transaction of $100,037.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $761,241.27. This represents a 15.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Kort Schnabel bought 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $19.13 per share, for a total transaction of $239,125.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 40,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,765. The trade was a 44.64% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of ARCC opened at $18.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The business has a fifty day moving average of $19.50 and a 200 day moving average of $20.17. The company has a market cap of $13.06 billion, a PE ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 0.59. Ares Capital Corporation has a 52-week low of $17.59 and a 52-week high of $23.42.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The investment management company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50. Ares Capital had a net margin of 42.56% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The business had revenue of $793.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $795.20 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ares Capital Corporation will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 103.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ARCC shares. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.38.

Ares Capital Company Profile

Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that specializes in providing debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC, Ares Capital offers investors access to a diversified portfolio of tailored credit investments, including senior secured loans, unitranche financing, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The firm’s flexible capital structures are designed to support companies seeking growth capital, refinancing or strategic acquisitions.

Through its credit platform, Ares Capital focuses on originations, underwriting and portfolio management across a range of industries, with a particular emphasis on sectors such as healthcare, technology, industrials and business services.