Ares Capital Corporation vs Lumen Technologies Inc — how do they compare? Ares Capital Corporation trades at $18.75 (market cap $13.48B), while Lumen Technologies Inc trades at $6.74 (market cap $6.93B). The key difference: Ares Capital Corporation is the larger of the two by market cap, and Ares Capital Corporation pays a 10.22% dividend while Lumen Technologies Inc pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| ARCC | LUMN | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $13.48B | $6.93B |
Sector | Financials | Media |
52-Week High | $23.25 | $11.83 |
52-Week Low | $17.45 | $3.70 |
Dividend Yield | 10.22% | — |
Enterprise Value | — | $18.56B |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Ares Capital (ARCC) trades at $18.78, up 2.01% on the day, with a bearish technical signal but strong analyst support. The stock shows a P/E of 11.52 and P/B of 0.96, trading below the consensus price target of $20.58. Recent earnings have missed expectations, with Q2 2026 results pending, while revenue declined to $1.51B in 2025 from $1.7B in 2024. A dividend of $0.48 is scheduled for payment on June 30, 2026, supporting income appeal amid mixed sentiment.
ARCC presents a value opportunity with a high dividend yield and undervaluation relative to analyst targets, but faces headwinds from earnings misses and a bearish technical outlook. Risks include revenue volatility and competitive pressures in the BDC space, though institutional buy ratings suggest confidence in recovery potential. Investors should weigh income stability against growth challenges.
LUMN trades at $6.73, down 0.3% on the day, with a bearish technical signal but oversold RSI readings. The company reported a net loss of -$1.74B for 2025, though revenue remains substantial at $12.40B. Recent news highlights the acquisition of Alkira to bolster AI-era networking capabilities and cost-saving initiatives targeting $1B annually by 2027. Debt levels are high at $17.49B long-term, but leverage is trending downward.
The outlook is mixed: positive catalysts include strategic acquisitions and cost reductions, but persistent losses and high debt pose significant risks. Analyst consensus is cautious with a Hold rating predominating, though the $8.25 price target suggests modest upside potential from current levels.
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 →With 450,000 route miles of fiber, including over 35,000 route miles of subsea fiber connecting Europe, Asia, and Latin America, Lumen Technologies is one of the United States' largest telecommunications carriers serving global enterprises. Its merger with Level 3 further shifted the company's operations toward businesses (over 70% of revenue) and away from its legacy consumer business. Lumen offers businesses a full menu of communications services, providing colocation and data center services, data transportation, and end-user phone and internet service. On the consumer side, Lumen provides broadband and phone service across 37 states, where it has 4.5 million broadband customers.
Read more on LUMN →