Ares Posts Record Year With $484B Assets Under Management, Earnings Recap

What's Happening

Ares Management Corporation reports Q4 and full-year 2024 results, with GAAP net income of $177.3 million and after-tax realized income of $434.7 million. The alternative asset manager set records in fundraising and capital deployment.

Why It Matters

• Growth Alternative asset management continues to attract significant capital despite market uncertainty

• Scale Record $93 billion in new fundraising shows institutional investors' growing appetite for private market strategies

• Evolution Expansion into insurance and wealth management channels broadens revenue streams

The Key Moves

• Acquisition Completed purchase of Walton Street Capital Mexico, adding $2.5 billion in AUM

• Pipeline Making progress on GCP International acquisition, expected to close in Q1 2025

• Distribution Successfully expanded across institutional, wealth, and insurance channels

By The Numbers

• Assets Total AUM reached $484.4 billion, up 16% year-over-year

• Earnings Fee Related Earnings hit $396.2 million in Q4, up 7% year-over-year

• Future Growth $81 billion in AUM not yet paying fees available for deployment

Key Quotes

• "We are optimistic that we are entering into a more active transaction environment which should create more investment opportunities for our platform." - Michael Arougheti, CEO

Segment Highlights

• The Credit Group remains Ares' largest and most profitable segment, reaching $348.8 billion in AUM with Fee Related Earnings of $458.8 million in Q4, driven by robust growth in direct lending and a continued strong deployment pace of $25.8 billion for the quarter.

• The Real Assets Group demonstrated solid expansion with AUM growing 15% to $75.3 billion, bolstered by the strategic acquisition of Walton Street Mexico and notable performance in infrastructure debt, though Fee Related Earnings slightly declined to $57.4 million.

• The Private Equity Group experienced a period of selective deployment with AUM declining slightly to $24.0 billion and Fee Related Earnings down to $14.2 million, reflecting a disciplined approach in a challenging market environment.

• The Secondaries Group emerged as a strong growth engine with AUM increasing 18% to $29.2 billion and Fee Related Earnings up 18% to $39.2 million, showcasing the platform's expanding capabilities across private equity and infrastructure secondaries.

• The Insurance and Other Businesses segment recorded remarkable growth with AUM surging 49% to $7.1 billion, highlighting Ares' successful expansion into insurance-linked strategies and perpetual capital vehicles.

The Wrap

Ares' record-breaking year demonstrates the growing institutionalization of alternative assets, with the firm successfully expanding across strategies and distribution channels. With significant dry powder and a robust pipeline of fee-generating assets, Ares appears well-positioned to maintain momentum through 2025.