KKR & Co. Shares Fall as Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates, AUM Rises Y/Y

Shares of KKR & Co. Inc.KKR fell nearly 2.9% in the pre trading market session as it reported fourth-quarter 2025 net income per share of $1.12, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.16. The bottom line declined from $1.32 in the prior-year quarter.
Results were adversely affected by an increase in expenses. Nonetheless, growth in assets under management (AUM) and transaction fees for the capital markets business were tailwinds.
Net income attributable to the company (GAAP basis) was $1.11 billion compared with the net income of $1.12 billion in the year-ago quarter.
For 2025, net income per share of $5.05 missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.39. The bottom line increased from $4.70 in the previous year. Net income attributable to the company (GAAP basis) was $3.08 billion compared with the net income of $2.25 billion in the previous year.
KKR’s Segmental Revenues & Expenses Increase
Total segment revenues amounted to $1.43 billion, jumping 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.44 billion.
For 2025, total segment revenues amounted to $5.38 billion, jumping 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. The metric missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.39 billion.
Total segment expenses increased 10.3% to $454.5 million.
As of Dec. 31, 2025, total AUM grew 16.6% year over year to $743.9 billion. Fee-paying AUM summed $604.1 billion, which increased 18% from the year-ago quarter.
KKR’s Total Operating Earnings & Fee-Related Earnings Rise
Total operating earnings grew 17% year over year to $1.3 billion.
The company posted fee-related earnings of $1 billion, up 15% year over year.
Our Viewpoint on KKR
The company will continue utilizing lucrative investment opportunities on the back of its efficient fundraising capability in the quarters ahead. Significant growth in fee-related earnings and total operating earnings is aiding the company’s financials. However, due to the company’s continuous expansion of its global footprint, expenses are likely to remain elevated. The current tough operating environment is another concern.
KKR & Co. Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Currently, KKR carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Performances of Other Asset Managers
T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.’s TROW fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.44 missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.47. Nevertheless, the bottom line increased 15.1% year over year.
TROW’s results were affected by higher expenses. Nonetheless, an increase in investment advisory fees and capital allocation-based income supported the results. Also, higher AUM was another positive.
Invesco’s IVZ fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings of 62 cents per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 57 cents. The bottom line increased 19.2% from the prior-year quarter.
The results of IVZ have been primarily aided by an increase in adjusted revenues. Moreover, growth in the assets under management reached record levels, supporting the results to an extent. However, an increase in adjusted operating expenses was a headwind.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

