Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) Given New $160.00 Price Target at UBS Group

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) had its price target lifted by stock analysts at UBS Group from $156.00 to $160.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the asset manager’s stock. UBS Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 20.94% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Ares Management in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Ares Management from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ares Management from $119.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Ares Management from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Ares Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $122.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.17.

Ares Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ARES traded down $1.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $132.30. 434,521 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,014,731. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $133.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $118.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Ares Management has a 52 week low of $77.97 and a 52 week high of $139.48.

Ares Management (NYSE:ARES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The asset manager reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $862.71 million. Ares Management had a net margin of 13.06% and a return on equity of 21.01%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. Analysts predict that Ares Management will post 4.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ares Management news, Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 174,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.89, for a total transaction of $23,505,661.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 175,152 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.56, for a total value of $23,393,301.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Antony P. Ressler sold 174,258 shares of Ares Management stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.89, for a total value of $23,505,661.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,046,464 shares of company stock valued at $139,774,698 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 47.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ares Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Ares Management in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Ares Management in the third quarter worth $27,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ares Management during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ares Management by 73.9% during the fourth quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 240 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Ares Management by 210.5% in the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 354 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. 50.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ares Management Company 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.