Ares Capital Corporation $ARCC Shares Purchased by Sunbelt Securities Inc.

Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its stake in Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCC) by 37.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 228,982 shares of the investment management company’s stock after acquiring an additional 62,352 shares during the quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc.’s holdings in Ares Capital were worth $4,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rivernorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Ares Capital during the first quarter worth $5,754,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Ares Capital by 101.4% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 78,137 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,408,000 after purchasing an additional 39,334 shares during the period. Enstar Group LTD increased its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 2.4% during the first quarter. Enstar Group LTD now owns 363,351 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $6,548,000 after purchasing an additional 8,396 shares in the last quarter. Evercore Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ares Capital by 6.2% during the first quarter. Evercore Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,121,008 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $56,241,000 after purchasing an additional 182,651 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Ares Capital by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 378,669 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $6,824,000 after purchasing an additional 66,329 shares during the last quarter. 27.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Ares Capital from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on Ares Capital from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Ares Capital from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $19.00 price target (down from $20.00) on shares of Ares Capital in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ares Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.60.

Ares Capital Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARCC opened at $19.04 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Ares Capital Corporation has a 52 week low of $17.40 and a 52 week high of $22.93.

Ares Capital (NASDAQ:ARCC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The investment management company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. The firm had revenue of $768.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $770.19 million. Ares Capital had a net margin of 37.30% and a return on equity of 9.85%. On average, equities analysts predict that Ares Capital Corporation will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ares Capital 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.