Ares Capital Corporation vs Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg. Co. Ltd. — how do they compare? Ares Capital Corporation trades at $19.95 (market cap $14.35B), while Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg. Co. Ltd. trades at $424.66 (market cap $1.91T). The key difference: Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg. Co. Ltd. is far larger — about 133.1× Ares Capital Corporation's market cap, and Ares Capital Corporation pays the higher dividend (9.61%). Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| ARCC | TSM | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $14.35B | $1.91T |
Sector | Financials | Technology |
52-Week High | $22.68 | $477.57 |
52-Week Low | $17.45 | $227.33 |
Dividend Yield | 9.61% | 0.91% |
Enterprise Value | — | $1.84T |
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.
TSM stock trades at $420.04, up 0.44% today, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages and strong fundamentals including 44.56% net income margin in 2025. Recent July 2026 revenue surged 45% year-over-year to $14.5 billion (CNBC, 2026-08-10), reflecting robust AI demand. The company is expanding with a $64 billion investment (Benzinga, 2026-08-10) and a joint $6.3 billion image sensor venture with Sony (Reuters, 2026-08-09).
Outlook remains positive due to AI-driven growth and analyst consensus of $544 price target, but risks include high valuation (P/E 36.86) and geopolitical tensions. Earnings beat expectations in Q2 2026 with EPS of $4.31 versus $3.87 forecast, supporting upside potential.
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 →Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, or TSMC, is the world's largest dedicated chip foundry, with over 57% market share in 2021 per Gartner. TSMC was founded in 1987 as a joint venture of Philips, the government of Taiwan, and private investors. It went public as an ADR in the U.S. in 1997. TSMC's scale and high-quality technology allow the firm to generate solid operating margins, even in the highly competitive foundry business. Furthermore, the shift to the fabless business model has created tailwinds for TSMC. The foundry leader has an illustrious customer base, including Apple, AMD and Nvidia, that looks to apply cutting-edge process technologies to its semiconductor designs.
Read more on TSM →