Ares Management Corp.

The company continues to see strong fundraising and capital appreciation, particularly in its credit segment, slightly offset by capital reductions, redemptions, and distributions. Since 2018, the company has generated a compound annual growth rate of 25% in AUM. Fee-paying AUM (FPAUM) reached $267 billion at first-quarter 2024. Credit makes up approximately 72% of AUM, up from approximately 65% at the end of first-quarter 2023. The stable outlook reflects S&P Global Ratings' expectation that Ares will maintain good investment performance, despite increased market volatility; solid growth in FPAUM; and leverage of 1.5x-2.0x in the next 18 to 24 months. We could downgrade Ares if leverage increases above 2.0x on a sustained basis. We could also downgrade the company if we observe

...Ares Management Corp. continues to exhibit strong AUM growth given robust investor demand for private capital offerings. Ares' AUM reached $428 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2024, compared with $360 billion at the same point in 2023. The company continues to see strong fundraising and capital appreciation, particularly in its credit segment, slightly offset by capital reductions, redemptions, and distributions. Since 2018, the company has generated a compound annual growth rate of 25% in AUM. Fee-paying AUM (FPAUM) reached $267 billion at first-quarter 2024. Credit makes up approximately 72% of AUM, up from approximately 65% at the end of first-quarter 2023. Locked-up AUM provides significant visibility into future cash flow generation. As of March 31, 2024, 88% of AUM and 95% of management fees are from long-dated funds or perpetual capital vehicles. A good portion (27%) of AUM is perpetual and nearly 44% of management fees are derived from perpertual capital. Increased volatility...

Full Report