Ares Capital Corporation · ARCC · FY2025 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2025
Ares Capital Holds Core Earnings Steady as Portfolio Expands
The call’s evidence supports a measured resilience case: stable core earnings, dividend coverage and portfolio expansion point to ongoing operating capacity, while credit quality, spread pressure and funding decisions remain important tests. It does not establish a forward return outcome.
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensusMarket reaction
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Transcript intelligence
What changed
Compared with the prior quarter’s reported dip in core earnings amid lower portfolio yields, management described core earnings as stable at $0.50 per share and emphasized sequential portfolio growth. The call also highlighted realized gains and a planned role in a large private-credit LBO; these are distinct from recurring core earnings.
Guidance delta
Transcript analysis characterizes management’s guidance sentiment as maintained. No quantified change to earnings or other forward guidance is supplied in the analysis.
Key takeaways
- Core earnings were reported at $0.50 per share and covered the $0.48 dividend.
- The portfolio expanded to $27.9 billion, with average investment concentration reported at 0.2%.
- Management cited $6.5 billion in liquidity and no debt maturities through year-end.
- Net realized gains were $117 million for the quarter; distinguish these gains from recurring core earnings.
Management priorities
- Expand commitments with incumbent borrowers and broaden the middle-market pipeline.
- Continue capital raising through notes, revolving-facility expansions and ATM equity issuance.
- Maintain dividend payouts with spillover income as a support.
- Develop strategic vehicles including SDLP and Ivy Hill.
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Analyst 52W Price Targets
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted previous close from FN2's market snapshot as of Nov 3, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UBS | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Oct 29, 2026 |
| Truist Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jul 30, 2026 |
| Keefe, Bruyette & Woods | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Jul 30, 2026 |
| JP Morgan | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 2, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Equal Weight | Overweight | Downgrade | Jun 12, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Apr 29, 2026 |
| Citizens | Market Outperform | Market Outperform | Maintain | Apr 22, 2026 |
| JMP Securities | Market Outperform | Market Outperform | Maintain | Jul 31, 2025 |
| B. Riley Securities | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Jul 30, 2025 |
| Raymond James | Market Perform | Outperform | Downgrade | Feb 6, 2025 |
| Oppenheimer | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | May 2, 2024 |
| Citigroup | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jul 26, 2023 |
| Janney Montgomery Scott | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Dec 3, 2021 |
| Wedbush | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Apr 29, 2021 |
| Barclays | Equal Weight | Overweight | Downgrade | Dec 10, 2020 |
| Janney Capital | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Oct 27, 2020 |
| B of A Securities | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Apr 13, 2020 |
| Compass Point | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Apr 2, 2020 |
| BMO Capital | Outperform | Market Perform | Upgrade | Aug 19, 2019 |
| Keefe Bruyette & Woods | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 4, 2016 |
| National Securities | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Jun 28, 2016 |
| Jefferies | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Feb 25, 2016 |
| Macquarie | Outperform | Neutral | Upgrade | Oct 1, 2015 |
| DA Davidson | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Sep 29, 2015 |
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Sep 3, 2015 |
| Keefe, Bruyette& Woods | Outperform | Market Perform | Upgrade | Jun 17, 2015 |
| BB&T Capital | Hold | Buy | Downgrade | May 4, 2015 |
| Sterne Agee | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Aug 20, 2013 |
| Bank of America | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | Mar 4, 2013 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Nov 6, 2012 |
| Stifel | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Nov 6, 2012 |
| Ladenburg Thalmann | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 8, 2012 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted previous close $19.42. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo | Finian O'Shea | $19 | $19.07 | -2.2% | Jun 12, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Analyst unavailable | $23 | $20.8 | +18.4% | Oct 29, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo | Finian O'Shea | $21 | $20.57 | +8.1% | Oct 29, 2025 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $21 | $19.44 | +8.1% | Oct 14, 2025 |
| Capital One Financial | Analyst unavailable | $22.5 | $19.1 | +15.9% | Oct 10, 2025 |
| JMP Securities | Analyst unavailable | $23 | $22.66 | +18.4% | Jul 31, 2025 |
| B.Riley Financial | Sean-Paul Adams | $23.5 | $22.54 | +21.0% | Jul 30, 2025 |
| JMP Securities | Devin Ryan | $22 | $20.89 | +13.3% | Jul 30, 2024 |
| UBS | Doug Harter | $22 | $21.07 | +13.3% | Jul 18, 2024 |
| RBC Capital | Kanneth Lee | $22 | $21.3 | +13.3% | May 23, 2024 |
| Citigroup | Analyst unavailable | $22 | $20.02 | +13.3% | Feb 8, 2023 |
| J.P. Morgan | Analyst unavailable | $20.5 | $20.04 | +5.6% | Feb 8, 2023 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $21.5 | $19.8 | +10.7% | Apr 27, 2022 |
| Hovde Group | Bryce Rowe | $21 | $19.8 | +8.1% | Apr 27, 2022 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $23 | $21.81 | +18.4% | Apr 25, 2022 |
| Jefferies | John Hecht | $24 | $20.5 | +23.6% | Oct 26, 2021 |
| Barclays | Mark Devries | $20 | $18.64 | +3.0% | Jul 29, 2021 |
| Wedbush | Henry Coffey | $21 | $18.04 | +8.1% | Apr 29, 2021 |
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Start freeCompany context
Snapshot as of publicationAres Capital Corporation (ARCC) operates as a Business Development Company (BDC), delivering diverse financing solutions predominantly to middle-market enterprises. The firm's expertise lies in facilitating various corporate actions, including funding acquisitions, recapitalizations, and leveraged buyouts. It also extends mezzanine debt, assists with corporate restructurings, and provides crucial rescue financing, in addition to offering growth capital and general refinancing options. ARCC primarily targets investments in companies within the basic and growth manufacturing, business services, consumer products, healthcare (both products and services), and information technology service sectors. Opportunistically, it also explores prospects in industries such as restaurants, retail, oil and gas, and the broader technology space. Geographically, ARCC maintains a broad reach across the United States. Its New York office oversees investments in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, and Southwest regions.…
Historical context
All ARCC earningsFinancial Services peers this season
Latest reports in the same sector| Company | Quarter | EPS surprise | Market move | Headline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CBOE Cboe Global Markets, Inc. | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +5.8% | +6.8% | Cboe posts strong Q3 as options growth and new products advance |
| NWG NatWest Group plc | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +2.0% | -9.0% | NatWest maintains guidance as Q3 growth and capital remain strong |
| ERIE Erie Indemnity Company | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +2.1% | +5.3% | Erie pairs resilient demand initiatives with thin underwriting margins |
Latest beats and misses
Who reports nextBeat on EPS
- TSEMFY2026 Q3 · November 2, 2026+7.5% EPS-6.7% move
- CLXFY2027 Q1 · November 2, 2026+44.9% EPS+2.2% move
- AAPLFY2026 Q4 · November 2, 2026+3.0% EPS-1.8% move
- PLTRFY2026 Q3 · November 2, 2026+8.3% EPS-3.1% move
- ETRFY2026 Q3 · November 2, 2026+14.5% EPS-0.2% move
- OFY2026 Q3 · November 2, 2026+5.7% EPS+1.1% move
Missed on EPS
- VRTXFY2026 Q3 · November 2, 2026-1.2% EPS-1.0% move
- PEGFY2026 Q3 · November 2, 2026-3.4% EPS+0.1% move
- RYAAYFY2027 Q2 · November 2, 2026-0.3% EPS+2.9% move
- GLPIFY2026 Q3 · October 29, 2026-11.5% EPS-1.3% move
- LYBFY2026 Q3 · October 30, 2026-1.2% EPS+5.0% move
- CCJFY2026 Q3 · October 30, 2026-101.4% EPS-7.9% move
Get the ARCC recap when the next report posts
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Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-11T10:29:34.698584+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-26T00:37:55.686058+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-11-03T11:00:51.468578+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-11-03T11:00:51.465673+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-11-03. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.