Ares Capital Corporation vs Datadog Inc — how do they compare? Ares Capital Corporation trades at $19.95 (market cap $14.35B), while Datadog Inc trades at $246.6 (market cap $93.64B). The key difference: Datadog Inc is far larger — about 6.5× Ares Capital Corporation's market cap, and Ares Capital Corporation pays a 9.61% dividend while Datadog Inc pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| ARCC | DDOG | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $14.35B | $93.64B |
Sector | Financials | Technology |
52-Week High | $22.68 | $288.15 |
52-Week Low | $17.45 | $102.62 |
Dividend Yield | 9.61% | — |
Enterprise Value | — | $89.93B |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
ARCC trades at $20.01, up 1.99% today, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages but neutral oscillators. Recent earnings show Q2 2026 EPS of $0.47, slightly below the $0.4731 estimate, continuing a trend of minor misses. Revenue declined to $1.51B in 2025 from $1.7B in 2024, with net income margin at 81.77%. The stock offers a high dividend yield, with consistent payouts highlighted in recent news.
Outlook is mixed: strong analyst buy consensus (75%) and a stable dividend history support income investors, but declining revenue and tight dividend coverage pose risks. Price target consensus is $19.63, below the current price, suggesting limited upside. Macro risks in private credit, per WSJ on August 9, 2026, add caution.
Datadog (DDOG) trades at $233.93, up 2.02% today, but remains bearish technically with resistance near $244. The company reported strong Q2 2026 earnings, beating EPS estimates with $0.65 versus $0.583 expected, and raised full-year revenue guidance to $4.45B-$4.47B. However, the stock faces pressure from high valuations, with a P/E of 467.86, and concerns over decelerating bookings growth from a major AI customer.
Outlook is mixed: robust revenue growth and AI momentum support long-term potential, but premium valuation and near-term usage volatility pose risks. Analyst consensus is bullish with an $288.55 price target, though insider selling and technical weakness suggest cautious near-term sentiment. Investors should balance growth prospects against execution risks and market expectations.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
Ares Capital Corp is a United States-based closed-ended specialty finance company. Its investment objective is to generate both current income and capital appreciation through debt and equity investments. The company focuses on investing primarily in U.S. middle-market companies with investment opportunities as well as in larger companies. Its portfolio comprises of first lien senior secured loans, second lien senior secured loans, and mezzanine debt (subordinated unsecured loan), which may include equity components that are diversified by industry and sector. The company may invest in preferred and common equity investments to a lesser proportion. Its revenue mainly consists of interest and dividend income received from the investment made.
Read more on ARCC →Datadog is a cloud-native company that focuses on analyzing machine data. The firm's product portfolio, delivered as software-as-a-service, allows a client to monitor and analyze its entire IT infrastructure. Datadog's platform can ingest and analyze large amounts of machine-generated data in real time, allowing clients to utilize it for a variety of different applications throughout their businesses.
Read more on DDOG →