Q2-26
Filed Jul 31, 2026Fee Related Earnings increased 20% to $491,055 (in thousands) and Realized Income increased 31% to $521,501 (in thousands), while total Assets Under Management reached $671.3 billion.
Management fees, Fee Related Earnings, Realized Income, fundraising, deployment and AUM were higher year over year. GAAP total revenues increased, although carried interest allocation declined and total expenses increased.
Key metrics
as reported| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets Under Managementnon-GAAP | $671.3 billion | – | – |
| Total Fee Paying AUMnon-GAAP | $409.9 billion | – | – |
| Available Capitalnon-GAAP | $170.0 billion | – | – |
| AUM Not Yet Paying Fees available for future deploymentnon-GAAP | $92.6 billion | – | – |
| Development assets not yet stabilizednon-GAAP | $4.1 billion | – | – |
| Capital raisedother | $36.4 billion | – | – |
| Net inflows of capitalother | $34.4 billion | – | – |
| Capital deploymentother | $35.9 billion | – | – |
| Capital deployment by drawdown fundsother | $15.2 billion | – | – |
| Management feesGAAP | $1,017,563 | – | – |
| Carried interest allocationGAAP | $249,914 | – | – |
| Incentive feesGAAP | $42,753 | – | – |
| Principal investment incomeGAAP | $2,288 | – | – |
| Administrative, transaction and other feesGAAP | $116,092 | – | – |
| Total revenuesGAAP | $1,428,610 | – | – |
| Compensation and benefitsGAAP | $688,660 | – | – |
| Performance related compensationGAAP | $231,927 | – | – |
| General, administrative and other expensesGAAP | $255,715 | – | – |
| Expenses of Consolidated FundsGAAP | $3,675 | – | – |
| Total expensesGAAP | $1,179,977 | – | – |
| Income before taxesGAAP | $385,942 | – | – |
| Income tax expenseGAAP | $72,977 | – | – |
| Net incomeGAAP | $312,965 | – | – |
| Net income attributable to Ares Management CorporationGAAP | $150,635 | – | – |
| Net income attributable to Ares Management Corporation Class A and non-voting common stockholdersGAAP | $125,323 | – | – |
| Basic earnings per share of Class A and non-voting common stockGAAP | $0.49 | – | – |
| Diluted earnings per share of Class A and non-voting common stockGAAP | $0.49 | – | – |
| Unconsolidated management fees and other feesnon-GAAP | $1,122.0 million | – | – |
| Management feesnon-GAAP | $1,030,016 | – | 14% |
| Fee related performance revenuesnon-GAAP | $40,529 | – | 143 |
| Other feesnon-GAAP | $91,962 | – | 21 |
| Fee Related Earningsnon-GAAP | $491,055 | – | 20 |
| Realized net performance incomenon-GAAP | $50,903 | – | 209 |
| Investment income—realizednon-GAAP | $28,683 | – | 134 |
| Net interest expensenon-GAAP | $(49,140) | – | (23) |
| Realized Incomenon-GAAP | $521,501 | – | 31 |
| After-tax Realized Incomenon-GAAP | $467,569 | – | 27 |
| After-tax Realized Income per share of Class A and non-voting common stocknon-GAAP | $1.29 | – | – |
| Total revenuesGAAP | $2,825,046 | – | – |
| Net income attributable to Ares Management CorporationGAAP | $293,224 | – | – |
| Diluted earnings per share of Class A and non-voting common stockGAAP | $0.95 | – | – |
| Fee Related Earningsnon-GAAP | $955,459 | – | 23 |
| Realized Incomenon-GAAP | $1,024,237 | – | 27 |
Capital returns
- Declared quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share of Class A and non-voting common stock, payable on September 30, 2026 to stockholders of record as of September 16, 2026.
- Declared quarterly dividend of $0.84375 per share of Series B mandatory convertible preferred stock, payable on October 1, 2026 to preferred stockholders of record as of September 15, 2026.
What drove it
- Management fees increased 14% to $1,030,016 (in thousands).
- Fee related performance revenues increased to $40,529 (in thousands) from $16,697 (in thousands).
- Other fees increased to $91,962 (in thousands) from $76,118 (in thousands).
- Realized net performance income increased to $50,903 (in thousands) from $16,483 (in thousands).
- Investment income—realized increased to $28,683 (in thousands) from $12,240 (in thousands).
- Ares raised $36.4 billion and deployed $35.9 billion during the quarter.
Concerns
- GAAP carried interest allocation decreased to $249,914 (in thousands) from $323,901 (in thousands).
- GAAP principal investment income decreased to $2,288 (in thousands) from $10,963 (in thousands).
- GAAP total expenses increased to $1,179,977 (in thousands) from $1,137,578 (in thousands).
- Non-GAAP net interest expense was $(49,140) (in thousands), compared with $(40,020) (in thousands).
What to watch
- Conversion of $92.6 billion of AUM Not Yet Paying Fees into fee-paying assets.
- Deployment of $170.0 billion of Available Capital.
- Sustainability of fee related performance revenues and realized net performance income.
- The relationship between management-fee growth and compensation, general, administrative and other expenses.
- Future capital deployment by drawdown funds.
Balance sheet and cash flow
- Available Capital of $170.0 billion.
- AUM Not Yet Paying Fees available for future deployment of $92.6 billion and development assets not yet stabilized of $4.1 billion.
- Raised $36.4 billion, with net inflows of capital of $34.4 billion.
- Capital deployment of $35.9 billion, including $15.2 billion by drawdown funds.
- On July 1, 2026, Ares Acquisition Corporation III consummated its initial public offering and generated gross proceeds of $395.0 million.
Analysis
Ares reported a quarter of higher fee earnings and fundraising activity. Total Assets Under Management were $671.3 billion, Total Fee Paying AUM was $409.9 billion and Available Capital was $170.0 billion. The company raised $36.4 billion, generated net inflows of capital of $34.4 billion and deployed $35.9 billion, including $15.2 billion by drawdown funds. AUM Not Yet Paying Fees of $92.6 billion represents assets available for future deployment and fee activation as described in the presentation.
GAAP total revenues were $1,428,610 (in thousands), compared with $1,350,128 (in thousands) in the prior-year quarter. Management fees increased to $1,017,563 (in thousands) from $900,622 (in thousands), incentive fees increased to $42,753 (in thousands) from $23,079 (in thousands), and administrative, transaction and other fees increased to $116,092 (in thousands) from $91,563 (in thousands). These gains were partly offset by a decrease in carried interest allocation to $249,914 (in thousands) from $323,901 (in thousands), as well as lower principal investment income.
Expenses also increased. Total expenses were $1,179,977 (in thousands), versus $1,137,578 (in thousands), with compensation and benefits of $688,660 (in thousands) and general, administrative and other expenses of $255,715 (in thousands). GAAP net income attributable to Ares Management Corporation increased to $150,635 (in thousands) from $137,062 (in thousands). Basic and diluted GAAP earnings per share were both $0.49, compared with $0.46 in the prior-year quarter.
The non-GAAP earnings measures showed stronger growth than the GAAP revenue headline. Fee Related Earnings increased 20 to $491,055 (in thousands), supported by 14% management-fee growth, higher other fees and higher fee related performance revenues. Realized Income increased 31 to $521,501 (in thousands), aided by increases in realized net performance income and investment income—realized. After-tax Realized Income was $467,569 (in thousands), and After-tax Realized Income per share of Class A and non-voting common stock was $1.29.
Capital allocation included declared quarterly dividends of $1.35 per share for Class A and non-voting common stock and $0.84375 per share for Series B mandatory convertible preferred stock. The presentation also reported that Ares Acquisition Corporation III generated gross proceeds of $395.0 million in its July 1, 2026 initial public offering. The filing did not provide forward guidance, so the principal reported operating items to monitor are the conversion of AUM not yet paying fees, deployment of Available Capital, fee growth and expense growth.
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Forward revenue guidance
- Forward gross-margin guidance
- Forward operating-expense guidance
- Forward tax-rate guidance
- Previous-period outlook for comparison
- Segment revenue disclosures
- GAAP operating income
- GAAP gross margin
- Non-GAAP earnings per share other than the disclosed After-tax Realized Income per share figure
- Cash balance
- Debt balance
- Operating cash flow
- Free cash flow
- Share repurchases
- Management commentary or named executive quotes
- Prior-quarter comparisons for reported metrics
AlphaAI analysis generated from the company’s SEC earnings filing (Form 8-K Item 2.02, or Form 6-K for a foreign private issuer). Every figure was cross-checked against the filing text; consensus estimates, price targets and share-price reactions are not shown because they are not in the filing. AI-generated research, not investment advice.