SlateStone Wealth LLC Reduces Holdings in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

SlateStone Wealth LLC trimmed its stake in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 217,066 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 11,160 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $4,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ARCC. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ares Capital in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Ares Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Ares Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. lifted its position in Ares Capital by 92.6% during the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 2,889 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389 shares during the period. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its position in Ares Capital by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. 27.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARCC opened at $21.28 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $22.88 and a 200 day moving average of $21.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.69 and a beta of 1.00. Ares Capital Co. has a 12-month low of $19.32 and a 12-month high of $23.84.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The investment management company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.03). Ares Capital had a net margin of 50.90% and a return on equity of 11.54%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Ares Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARCC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ares Capital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.94.

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.