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Ares Capital Corporation Declares Fourth Quarter Dividend of $0.35 Per Share and Announces September 30, 2010 Financial Results

^{Published on 2010-11-04 15:15:34 - Market Wire}
 

NEW YORK--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Ares Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCC) announced that its Board of Directors has declared a fourth quarter dividend of $0.35 per share, payable on December31, 2010 to stockholders of record as of December15, 2010.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2010 FINANCIAL RESULTS

Ares Capital also announced financial results for its third quarter ended September30, 2010.

HIGHLIGHTS

Financial

(dollar amounts in millions, except per share data)

(1) Ares Capital Corporation acquired Allied Capital Corporation on April1, 2010.

(2) Basic and diluted Core EPS (excluding professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition) is a non-GAAP financial measure. Core EPS (excluding professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition) is the net per share increase (decrease) in stockholdersa™ equity resulting from operations less professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition, realized and unrealized gains and losses, any incentive management fees attributable to such realized gains and losses and any income taxes related to such realized gains. Basic and diluted GAAP EPS is the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Ares Capital believes that Core EPS provides useful information to investors regarding financial performance because it is one method Ares Capital uses to measure its financial condition and results of operations. The presentation of this additional information is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliation of basic and diluted Core EPS (excluding professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition) to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure is set forth in Schedule 1 hereto.

• Total fair value of portfolio investments:
  • September30, 2010: $4.1 billion (including $1.7 billion acquired in the Allied Acquisition)
  • September30, 2009: $2.0 billion
• Net assets per share:
  • September30, 2010: $14.43
  • September30, 2009: $11.16
• Stockholdersa™ equity:
  • September30, 2010: $2.8 billion
  • September30, 2009: $1.2 billion
• Dividends declared per share:
  • Third quarter 2010: $0.35
  • Third quarter 2009: $0.35

Portfolio Activity

(dollar amounts in millions, except as otherwise indicated)

(3) Includes exits of $99.1 million of commitments acquired as part of the Allied Acquisition.

(4) Includes 95 investments acquired as part of the Allied Acquisition.

(5) Computed as (a)annual stated interest rate or yield earned plus the net annual amortization of original issue discount and market discount earned on accruing debt included in such securities, divided by (b)total debt and income producing securities at fair value included in such securities.

(6) Computed as (a)annual stated interest rate or yield earned plus the net annual amortization of original issue discount and market discount earned on accruing debt included in such securities, divided by (b)total debt and income producing securities at amortized cost included in such securities.

OPERATING RESULTS

For the quarter ended September30, 2010, Ares Capital reported GAAP net income of $128.4 million or $0.67 per share (basic and diluted). Net investment income for the third quarter was $71.2 million or $0.37 per share (basic and diluted). Net realized and unrealized gains were $57.2 million or $0.30 per share (basic and diluted).

Net income can vary substantially from period to period due to various factors, including the recognition of realized gains and losses and unrealized appreciation and depreciation. As a result, quarterly comparisons of net income may not be meaningful.

As of September30, 2010, total assets were $4.4 billion, stockholdersa™ equity was $2.8 billion and net asset value per share was $14.43.

In the third quarter of 2010, Ares Capital made $511.8 million in new commitments across four new portfolio companies and 15 existing portfolio companies. In these new transactions, nine private equity sponsors were represented. In total, as of September30, 2010, 86 separate private equity sponsors were represented in the Ares Capital portfolio. In these new transactions, 10 investments were in non-sponsored transactions. Of the $511.8 million in new commitments made during the quarter, approximately 45% were made in first lien senior secured debt, 2% in second lien senior secured debt, 8% in senior subordinated debt, 41% in subordinated notes of Senior Secured Loan Fund LLC (the aSenior Secured Loan Programa) to fund investments by the Senior Secured Loan Program and 4% in equity/other securities. Of these commitments, 48% were in floating rate debt securities all of which contain interest rate floors. During the third quarter, significant new commitments included:

• $128 million in first lien senior debt of a health plan management provider;
• $57 million in subordinated notes of the Senior Secured Loan Program to fund an investment in a specialty apparel manufacturer, together with a direct investment by Ares Capital of $25 million in first lien senior debt of this manufacturer;
• $74 million in first lien senior debt and senior subordinated debt of a broadband communications services provider;
• $49 million in subordinated notes of the Senior Secured Loan Program to fund an investment in a full-service global contract research organization focused on late-stage pharmaceutical clinical trials, together with a direct investment by Ares Capital of $11 million in senior subordinated debt and equity of this entity;
• $34 million in subordinated notes of the Senior Secured Loan Program to fund an investment in a business-to-business wholesale distributor of first response fire protection equipment and related parts, together with a direct investment by Ares Capital of $3 million in equity of this wholesale distributor; and
• $34 million in subordinated notes of the Senior Secured Loan Program to fund an investment in a healthcare information technology and business solutions provider.

The fair value of Ares Capitala™s portfolio investments at September30, 2010 was approximately $4.1 billion, including $3.3 billion in debt and income producing equity securities. The $4.1 billion of portfolio investments (excluding cash and cash equivalents) were comprised of approximately 37% in senior secured debt securities (31% in first lien assets and 6% in second lien assets), 29% in senior subordinated debt securities, 10% in the Senior Secured Loan Program, 17% in equity/other securities, 6% in collateralized loan obligations and 1% in commercial real estate. As of September30, 2010, the weighted average yield of debt and income producing securities at fair value was 12.90%(5)(13.10% at amortized cost(6)) and 25.6% of the Companya™s investments at fair value were in floating rate debt securities.

President Michael Arougheti commented, aWe are pleased with the growth in our quarterly core earnings per share driven by significant new investment activity and improved credit performance. Our strong quarterly GAAP earnings of $0.67 per share include net investment gains of $0.30 per share, reflecting higher asset values and improved investment performance from both the core ARCC and legacy Allied portfolios. We continued to make progress rotating and repositioning the legacy Allied portfolio during the third quarter. We exited or received repayment on approximately $99 million in primarily non-core investments at a small gain, including a reduction in thelegacy Alliedportfolioa™s non-accruing investments.a

Mr.Arougheti continued, aOur balance sheet remained solid at quarter end with a net debt to equity ratio of 0.51 times and with debt capacity and cash of over $590 million, subject to leverage and borrowing base restrictions. Our third quarter investment pace and our strong backlog and pipeline reflect favorable market conditions andwhat we believe is our enhanced competitive position followingtheAllied acquisition.a

PORTFOLIO QUALITY

Ares Capital Management LLC, our investment adviser, employs an investment rating system to categorize our investments. In addition to various risk management and monitoring tools, our investment adviser grades the risk of all investments on a scale of 1 to 4 no less frequently than quarterly. This system is intended primarily to reflect the underlying risk of a portfolio investment relative to our initial cost basis in respect of such portfolio investment (i.e. at the time of acquisition), although it may also take into account under certain circumstances the performance of the portfolio companya™s business, the collateral coverage of the investment and other relevant factors. Under this system, investments with a grade of 4 involve the least amount of risk to our initial cost basis. The trends and risk factors for this investment since origination or acquisition are generally favorable, which may include the performance of the portfolio company or a potential exit. Investments graded 3 involve a level of risk to our initial cost basis that is similar to the risk to our initial cost basis at the time of origination or acquisition. This portfolio company is generally performing as expected and the risk factors to our ability to ultimately recoup the cost of our investment are neutral to favorable. All investments or acquired investments in new portfolio companies are initially assessed a grade of 3. Investments graded 2 indicate that the risk to our ability to recoup the cost of such investment has increased materially since origination or acquisition, including as a result of factors such as declining performance and non- compliance with debt covenants; however, payments are generally not more than 120 days past due. An investment grade of 1 indicates that the risk to our ability to recoup the cost of such investment has substantially increased since origination or acquisition, and the portfolio company likely has materially declining performance. For debt investments with an investment grade of 1, most or all of the debt covenants are out of compliance and payments are substantially delinquent. For investments graded 1, it is not anticipated that we will be repaid in an amount equal to our full initial cost basis. For investments graded 1 or 2, our investment adviser enhances its level of scrutiny over the monitoring of such portfolio company.

Each investment acquired in the Allied Acquisition was assessed a grade of 3 (i.e., the grade we generally assign a portfolio company at acquisition) upon its initial acquisition on April1, 2010, reflecting the relative risk to our initial cost basis of such investments. Ares Capital grades the investments in its portfolio each quarter and it is possible that the grade of certain of these portfolio investments may be reduced or increased over time.

As of September30, 2010, the weighted average grade of the investments in our portfolio (excluding investments acquired in connection with the Allied Acquisition), the investments in our portfolio acquired in connection with the Allied Acquisition and the investments in our portfolio as a whole were each 3.0.

As of September30, 2010:

• 2.2% of our investments (excluding investments acquired in connection with the Allied Acquisition) at amortized cost (0.2% at fair value) were on non-accrual status;
• 5.3% of our investments acquired in connection with the Allied Acquisition at amortized cost (5.0% at fair value) were on non-accrual status; and
• 7.5% of the investments in our portfolio as a whole at amortized cost (or 5.2% at fair value) were on non-accrual status.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

As of September30, 2010, Ares Capital had $134 million in cash and cash equivalents and $1.6 billion in aggregate principal amount of debt outstanding ($1.5 billion in carrying value). Subject to leverage and borrowing base restrictions, Ares Capital had approximately $495 million available for additional borrowings under its existing credit facilities as of September30, 2010.

During the three months ended September30, 2010, we increased the size of the amended and restated senior secured revolving credit facility (aRevolving Credit Facilitya) by an aggregate amount of $60 million under the aaccordiona feature, bringing the total amount available for borrowing under the Revolving Credit Facility as of September30, 2010 to $810 million.

DIVIDEND

For the three months ended September30, 2010, Ares Capital declared a dividend on August5, 2010 of $0.35 per share for a total of $67.3 million. The record date was September15, 2010 and the dividend was paid on September30, 2010.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

On October21, 2010, we issued $200 million of senior unsecured notes that mature on October15, 2040 (the a2040 Notesa) and may be redeemed in whole or in part at our option at any time or from time to time on or after October15, 2015 at a par redemption price of $25 per security plus accrued and unpaid interest. The principal of the 2040 Notes will be payable at maturity. The 2040 Notes bear interest at a rate of 7.75% per year payable quarterly commencing on January15, 2011. Total proceeds from the 2040 Notes, net of underwritersa™ discount and offering costs, were approximately $193 million. Ares Capital used the net proceeds of this offering to repay outstanding indebtedness under its Revolving Credit Facility.

As of November3, 2010, we had made new investment commitments of $128 million, all of which were funded, since September30, 2010. Of these new investment commitments, 61% were in investments in subordinated notes of the Senior Secured Loan Fund, 29% were in first lien senior secured debt, 2% were in second lien senior secured debt, and 8% were in equity securities. Of the $128 million of new investment commitments, 66% were fixed rate with a weighted average yield at amortized cost of 15.2% and 31% were floating rate with a weighted average spread at amortized cost of 6.2%.

As of November3, 2010, we had exited $146 million of investments since September30, 2010. Of these investments, 33% were in first lien senior secured debt, 37% were in senior subordinated debt, 17% were in second lien senior secured debt and 13% were in equity investments. Of the $146 million of investments, 30% were in fixed rate investments with a weighted average yield at amortized cost of 17.4%. Of the remaining investments, 54% were in floating rate investments with a weighted average spread at amortized cost of 6.7%, 3% were investments on non-accrual status and 13% were non-interest earning. Of the $146 million of investments exited since September30, 2010, $66 million were investments acquired as part of the Allied Acquisition, including $4 million that were on non-accrual status. Additionally, we recognized net realized gains of approximately $19 million on the investments exited that were acquired as part of the Allied Acquisition.

In addition, as of November3, 2010, we had an investment backlog and pipeline of $180million and $310million, respectively. We may syndicate a portion of these investments and commitments to third parties. The consummation of any of the investments in this backlog and pipeline depends upon, among other things: satisfactory completion of our due diligence investigation of the prospective portfolio company, our acceptance of the terms and structure of such investment and the execution and delivery of satisfactory transaction documentation. We cannot assure you that we will make any of these investments or that we will syndicate any portion of such investments and commitments if made.

WEBCAST / CONFERENCE CALL

Ares Capital will host a webcast/conference call on November4, 2010, at 11:00p.m. (ET) to discuss its financial results for the third quarter ended September30, 2010. PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBCAST LINK LOCATED ON THE HOME PAGE OF THE INVESTOR RESOURCES SECTIONOF OUR WEBSITE FOR A SLIDE PRESENTATION THAT COMPLEMENTS THE EARNINGS CONFERENCE CALL.

All interested parties are invited to participate via telephone or the live webcast, which will be hosted on a webcast link located on the home pageof the Investor Resources section of our website at [ http://www.arescapitalcorp.com ]. Please visit the website to test your connection before webcast. Domestic callers can access the conference call by dialing (866) 843-0890. International callers can access the conference call by dialing +1 (412) 317-9250. All callers are asked to dial in 10-15 minutes prior to the call so that name and company information can be collected. All callers will need to reference aAres Capital Corporationa and Elite Entry #2402864 to join the conference. For interested parties, an archived replay of the call will be available one hour after the end of the conference through November19, 2010 to domestic callers by dialing (877) 344-7529 and to international callers by dialing +1 (412) 317-0088. For all replays, please reference conference passcode #445047. An archived replay will also be available on a webcast link located on the home pageof the Investor Resources section of our website.

ABOUT ARES CAPITAL CORPORATION

Ares Capital is a closed-end, non-diversified management investment company that has elected to be regulated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. With offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Washington, D.C., Ares Capital is a specialty finance company that provides integrated debt and equity financing solutions to U.S. middle market companies. Ares Capital invests primarily in first- and second-lien loans and mezzanine debt, which in some cases includes an equity component. To a lesser extent, Ares Capital also makes equity investments. Ares Capital is externally managed by Ares Capital Management LLC, an affiliate of Ares Management LLC, a global alternative asset manager and a Securities and Exchange Commission registered investment adviser. As of September30, 2010, Ares Management LLC had approximately $37 billion of committed capital under management.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements included herein or on the webcast/conference call may constitute aforward-looking statements,a which relate to future events or our future performance or financial condition. These statements are not guarantees of future performance, condition or results and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results and condition may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those described from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Ares Capital Corporation undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made herein or on the webcast/conference call.

AVAILABLE INFORMATION

Ares Capital Corporationa™s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, press releases, earnings releases and other financial information are available on its website at [ www.arescapitalcorp.com ].

(1)Basic and diluted Core EPS (excluding professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition) is a non-GAAP financial measure. Core EPS (excluding professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition) is the net per share increase (decrease) in stockholdersa™ equity resulting from operations less professional fees and other costs related to the Allied Acquisition, realized and unrealized gains and losses, any incentive management fees attributable to such realized gains and losses and any income taxes related to such realized gains. Basic and diluted GAAP EPS is the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Ares Capital believes that Core EPS provides useful information to investors regarding financial performance because it is one method Ares Capital uses to measure its financial condition and results of operations. The presentation of this additional information is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP.