Ares Management (ARES) investor relations material

Executive summary

• Achieved record fundraising of $30 billion in Q1 2026, up over 45% year-over-year, with AUM rising 18% to over $644 billion and fee-paying AUM up 19% to $400 billion.

• Management fees exceeded $1 billion for the first time, up 25% year-over-year; fee-related earnings reached $464.4 million, up 26% year-over-year.

• Declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share for Class A and non-voting common stock, a 20% increase over the prior year, and $0.84375 per share for Series B preferred stock.

• Strong institutional demand and diversified product offerings drove growth across credit, real assets, and secondaries, with broad-based investor demand despite market volatility.

• Completed acquisition of BlueCove Limited, adding $5.5 billion to AUM and expanding liquid credit strategy.

Financial highlights

• Fee-related earnings were $464.4 million, up 26% year-over-year, with a margin of 42.4%; management fees reached $989.5 million.

• Realized income was $503 million, up 24% year-over-year; after-tax realized income per share was $1.24, up 14% year-over-year.

• GAAP net income was $142.6 million, with EPS of $0.46 for Q1 2026.

• Available capital reached $158.1 billion, up 11% year-over-year.

• Perpetual capital AUM grew 39% year-over-year to $215.3 billion.

Outlook and guidance

• On track to meet 2026 goals: 16%-20% CAGR in FRE, 20%-25% in realized income, and 20% dividend growth; guidance for $125 billion fundraising target by 2028 remains unchanged.

• Management expects another record year of fundraising, supported by a record investment pipeline and nearly $160 billion of available capital.

• Positioned to invest opportunistically and meet financial objectives for the year despite market volatility.