Romano Brothers AND Company Raises Position in Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC)

Romano Brothers AND Company increased its position in shares of Ares Capital Co. (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 2.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 303,362 shares of the investment management company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,246 shares during the quarter. Ares Capital makes up about 0.9% of Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $6,316,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lincoln National Corp raised its holdings in Ares Capital by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 17,665 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Baron Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Ares Capital by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Baron Financial Group LLC now owns 18,366 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $368,000 after buying an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ares Capital by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108,577 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,175,000 after buying an additional 557 shares during the period. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors boosted its position in Ares Capital by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 12,787 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Certuity LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ares Capital by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 18,491 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the period. 27.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ares Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARCC traded up $0.04 during trading on Friday, hitting $20.84. The stock had a trading volume of 4,955,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,597,313. Ares Capital Co. has a 12-month low of $18.55 and a 12-month high of $21.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.14 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.51.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The investment management company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $701.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $703.85 million. Ares Capital had a return on equity of 12.37% and a net margin of 62.77%. The company’s revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.56 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ares Capital Co. will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Ares Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ARCC has been the topic of several research reports. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Ares Capital from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ares Capital from $21.50 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $22.00 price objective on shares of Ares Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $21.00 price objective on shares of Ares Capital in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.50.

Ares Capital Company 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.