ARES vs KKR Stock Comparison

Ares Management and Kkr Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ARES Ares Management Corp
$122.08 +0.5% 1M -17.8% 1Y
Market cap
$27.60B
P/E
51.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.99B
Div. yield
0.07%
Alternative Asset Managers Financial Services
4 wins
KKR KKR & Co. Inc.
$91.34 -6.0% 1M -24.5% 1Y
Market cap
$82.01B
P/E
27.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$21.31B
Div. yield
0.01%
Alternative Asset Managers Financial Services
7 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Kkr leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Kkr 7, Ares Management 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionARESKKRLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $27.60B $82.01B KKR
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 51.6x 27.4x KKR
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.4x 10.7x KKR
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +24.0% +31.1% KKR
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 8.9% 14.0% KKR
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 14.8% 6.0% ARES
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 3.5x –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.07% 0.01% ARES
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -17.8% -24.5% ARES
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +8.4%/yr +4.4%/yr ARES
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 43.7% 38.1% KKR
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 57/100 59/100 KKR

Percentile Scorecard

ARESKKR

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisARESKKR
Valuation 50 #92 of 183 80 #37 of 183
Growth 74 #30 of 113 78 #26 of 113
Profitability 69 #42 of 131 52 #63 of 131
Financial Health 42 #98 of 168 33 #113 of 168
Shareholder Returns 52 #37 of 76 51 #38 of 76
Overall 57 59
  • ARES ranked among 212 companies in Asset and Wealth Management
  • KKR ranked among 212 companies in Asset and Wealth Management

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodARESKKRSPY
1 month +0.5%-6.0% -1.0%
3 months -3.5%-8.1% +2.9%
6 months +5.9%-10.3% +6.4%
Year to date -24.5%-28.3% +11.4%
1 year -17.8%-24.5% +13.1%
3 years +16.9%+62.5% +79.4%
3 years, per year +5.4%+17.6% +21.5%
5 years +49.5%+24.2% +67.7%
5 years, per year +8.4%+4.4% +10.9%
10 years +613.9%+551.5% +255.2%
10 years, per year +21.7%+20.6% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureARESKKRSPY
Volatility, 1Y 43.7%38.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 46.3%40.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.661.45 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.41-0.64 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -51.3%-49.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -31.5%-36.0% -2.5%
52-week high $178.28$142.77 $779.14
52-week low $96.50$83.88 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleARESKKR
P/E now vs peer median 51.6xmedian 33.6x 27.4xmedian 33.6x
P/S now vs peer median 7.3xmedian 4.6x 3.8xmedian 4.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 12.0x 12.4xmedian 12.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 52.6xmedian 13.4x 35.0xmedian 13.4x
P/B now vs peer median 5.1xmedian 1.9x 1.1xmedian 1.9x
PEG now vs peer median 4.06median 0.91 0.92median 0.91

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsARESKKR
Revenue $5.99B $21.31B
Net income $636.35M $5.64B
Free cash flow $836.15M $2.34B
EPS (diluted) $2.36 $3.16
Cash & equivalents $1.85B $21.08B
Total debt $4.58B $53.48B
Shares (diluted) 226.30M 945.58M
Enterprise value $21.36B $2.16B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricARESKKR
P/E 51.6x 27.4x
P/FCF 52.6x 35.0x
P/Operating cash flow 48.2x 33.0x
P/S 7.3x 3.8x
P/B 5.1x 1.1x
P/Tangible book 5.6x 1.1x
EV/EBITDA – 12.4x
EV/EBIT 20.4x 12.1x
EV/Revenue 7.8x 5.4x
EV/FCF 55.8x 48.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 51.2x 46.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 4.06 0.92

Growth

14 metrics
MetricARESKKR
Revenue growth (1Y) 24.0% 31.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 18.0% 24.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – –
Net income growth (1Y) 32.6% 16.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 7.5% 48.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 27.3% 50.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 12.7% 29.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -77.5% -47.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 98.3% 33.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -79.0% -48.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 84.4% 32.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricARESKKR
Gross margin – –
EBITDA margin – 43.3%
Operating margin – –
Pretax margin 26.0% 31.1%
Net margin 8.9% 14.0%
FCF margin 14.0% 11.0%
Operating cash flow margin 15.2% 11.7%
Return on equity 15.4% 7.1%
Return on assets 4.5% 1.3%
Return on invested capital 14.8% 6.0%
Return on capital employed – –
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.4x 0.4x
Stock comp / revenue – 3.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricARESKKR
Debt / assets 15.4% 12.9%
Debt / equity 0.5x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA – 3.5x
Debt / FCF 5.5x 22.9x
Liabilities / assets 71.0% 81.3%
Equity / assets 29.0% 18.7%
Interest coverage 3.1x 3.4x
Current ratio – –
Quick ratio – –
Cash ratio – –
Altman Z-score – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricARESKKR
Dividend yield 4.2% 0.8%
Net buyback yield 0.9% 0.3%
Shareholder yield 5.1% 1.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) 301.7% 11.9%
Payout ratio (FCF) 229.6% 28.6%
Dividend growth (1Y) 23.7% 6.1%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 26.9% 7.3%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusARESKKR
Forward P/E 22.4xFY2026 10.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.44FY2026 $8.54FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +14.3%FY2026 +75.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +35.7% -18.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $5.47BFY2026 $11.29BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +13.2%FY2026 +47.4%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +19.7% +4.2%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersARESKKR
Held by institutions 66.7% 60.4%
Institutions holding 802 1,266
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.3% +3.8%
Institutions buying 477 634
Institutions selling 229 457
Buyers to sellers 2.08 1.39

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ARESKKR
ARES 1.00 0.83
KKR 0.83 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ARES and KKR?

Kkr (KKR) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ares Management (ARES) $27.60B, Kkr (KKR) $82.01B.

Which stock is cheaper, ARES and KKR?

Kkr (KKR) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ares Management (ARES) 51.6x, Kkr (KKR) 27.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Kkr (KKR) is cheapest (Ares Management (ARES) 22.4x, Kkr (KKR) 10.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Kkr (KKR) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ares Management (ARES) +24.0%, Kkr (KKR) +31.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Kkr (KKR) has the highest net margin (Ares Management (ARES) 8.9%, Kkr (KKR) 14.0%). On return on invested capital, Ares Management (ARES) leads (Ares Management (ARES) 14.8%, Kkr (KKR) 6.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ares Management (ARES) returned the most: Ares Management (ARES) -17.8%, Kkr (KKR) -24.5%. Over five years, Ares Management (ARES) compounded fastest (Ares Management (ARES) +8.4%/yr, Kkr (KKR) +4.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Ares Management (ARES) has the highest dividend yield: Ares Management (ARES) 0.07%, Kkr (KKR) 0.01%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Kkr (KKR) has been the steadiest (Ares Management (ARES) 43.7%, Kkr (KKR) 38.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do ARES and KKR move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.83, a strong positive relationship. Holding both adds little diversification.

Which is the better stock, ARES and KKR?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Kkr (KKR) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.