NFSG Corp Sells 112,149 Shares of Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC

NFSG Corp decreased its position in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 68.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,621 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 112,149 shares during the period. NFSG Corp’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $948,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ARCC. Cornerstone Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 151,144 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 5,201 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its stake in Ares Capital by 64.8% during the first quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 18,919 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 7,438 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Ares Capital during the first quarter worth approximately $228,000. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. bought a new stake in Ares Capital in the first quarter worth approximately $7,433,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Ares Capital by 0.6% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 315,183 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $5,605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.38% of the company’s stock.

Ares Capital Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:ARCC opened at $18.79 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $18.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.03. The firm has a market cap of $13.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40. Ares Capital Corporation has a 52-week low of $17.40 and a 52-week high of $23.42.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The investment management company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.01). Ares Capital had a net margin of 37.30% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The firm had revenue of $763.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $778.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ares Capital Corporation will post 1.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.2%. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 117.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on ARCC. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective (down from $20.00) on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Friday, June 12th. B. Riley Financial dropped their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.60.

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.