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Ares Management
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Latest analysis
Updated Nov 6, 2026
Ares AUM reaches $690.6B in Q3 2026, FRE rises 11% YoY to $524M as management fees grow 9%; ARCC-MFIC merger signals BDC consolidation.
Ares Management delivered Q3 2026 segment FRE of $524.2 million, up 11% year-over-year, powered by management fee growth of 9% to $1.07 billion and total AUM expansion to $690.6 billion — a $95 billion increase from the prior-year period driven by organic fundraising and deployment rather than acquisitions. The shadow AUM pipeline of $96.1 billion (AUM not yet paying fees plus development assets) represents an embedded 24% incremental management fee growth rate, making the organic revenue runway highly visible. The post-period announcement that ARCC will acquire MidCap Financial Investment Corporation (MFIC) in a $2.6 billion enterprise-value transaction signals Ares is actively consolidating the BDC market to deepen its dominant direct lending franchise.
Tone: bullishRevenue
$5.6B
ARES 10-K · FY 2025
Employees
4,250
Revenue FY2024
$3.9B
Founded
1997
Profile
ARES 10-K Item 1 · Feb 25, 2026Ares Management Corporation is a global alternative investment manager operating across Credit, Real Assets, Secondaries, and Private Equity. The firm managed $622.5 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2025, serving over 2,850 direct institutional relationships and a significant retail investor base. Founded in 1997, Ares has grown through organic fundraising, strategic acquisitions, and product expansion across more than 25 countries.
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Ares is a leading global alternative investment manager with $622.5 billion of assets under management and over 4,250 employees in over 55 offices in more than 25 countries. We offer our investors a range of investment strategies and seek to deliver attractive performance to an investor base that includes over 2,850 direct institutional relationships and a significant retail investor base across our publicly-traded funds, sub-advised accounts and perpetual wealth vehicles. Since our inception in 1997, we have adhered to a disciplined investment philosophy that focuses on delivering strong risk-adjusted investment returns through market cycles. Ares believes each of its distinct but complementary investment groups in Credit, Real Assets, Secondaries and Private Equity is a market leader based on assets under management and investment performance. We believe we create value for our stakeholders not only through our investment performance, but also by expanding our product offerings, enhancing our distribution channels, increasing our global presence, investing in our non-investment functions, securing strategic partnerships and completing strategic acquisitions and portfolio purchases. Our AUM has grown to $622.5 billion as of December 31, 2025 from $94.0 billion a decade earlier. Over the past five and 10 years, our assets under management have achieved a compound annual growth rate of 26% and 21%, respectively. We have an established track record of delivering strong risk-adjusted returns through market cycles shaped by comprehensive multi-asset class expertise, differentiated market intelligence, consistent investment approach, robust sourcing model, talented professionals and a collaborative culture.
Primary products
- Liquid Credit
- Alternative Credit
- Opportunistic Credit
- U.S. Direct Lending
- European Direct Lending
- APAC Credit
Business segments
End markets
Geographies
Named customers
Named competitors
“Ares believes each of its distinct but complementary investment groups in Credit, Real Assets, Secondaries and Private Equity is a market leader based on assets under management and investment performance.” Competitive position, as stated in the filing
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