KKR & CO INC earnings calls

management fee growth next year

Q (Alexander Blostein · Goldman Sachs): He asked what will drive management fee growth into 2027 given tough 2026 comparisons and how to think about multi-year fee growth.

A: Management said they have scale and diversity across three business lines. They pointed to 30-plus products coming in 12 to 18 months, record fundraising, and a record level of committed capital not yet bearing fees. They see a lot of upside for multi-year management fee growth.

"So as we think about that multiyear outlook for management fees, we continue to see a lot of upside going forward." — Robert Lewin (CFO)

firm outlook vs market pessimism

Q (Scott Nuttall): He wanted a broader sense of how the firm feels overall and why external pessimism seems disconnected from the firm's operating fundamentals.

A: Management said the best response to pessimism is performance and they prefer letting results speak. They listed five sources of external pessimism but said their internal momentum and results are strong, with record fundraising and net income gains.

Global Atlantic insurance growth and ROE

Q (Craig Siegenthaler · BofA): He asked how GA's organic growth outlook has evolved across retail annuities, reinsurance blocks and institutional channel, and for an update on ROE trajectory amid higher competition.

A: Management said they see heightened competition and are allocating a bit less capital to insurance today. They emphasized longer-duration liabilities, linkage between liability and asset origination, and $6 billion of third-party dry powder that yields north of $60 billion of buying power, which they say positions them well for a more volatile environment and higher ROEs through the cycle.

"We think in combination, we're incredibly well positioned for that more volatile environment." — Robert Lewin (CFO)

AI, CapEx cycle and infrastructure risk

Q (Glenn Schorr · Evercore): He wanted the firm's view on the apparent CapEx/AI cycle and how that affects risks held for clients and on the balance sheet.

A: Management said they view the mega themes as a big opportunity, focused on infrastructure, real estate and credit rather than betting on the next chip or LLM. They stressed selectivity on counterparties and contracts, and noted activity across data centers, fiber, mobile infrastructure and renewables, which they think gives them a lot to do despite volatility.

"We're going to care about our counterparty, we're going to care about contract terms, and it allows us to be selective -- and in that context, the volatility we're seeing, we think is helpful for us." — Craig Larson

Arctos and solutions AUM path

Q (Citizens Bank): He asked about Arctos's growth potential, how it connects to KKR distribution, and how it helps reach solutions AUM of $100 billion.

A: Management said early months post-close look even more promising than expected and highlighted Keystone's $6 billion capital raise as a credibility signal. They see Arctos plus KKR relationships enabling a world-class GP-led business and believe the combined efforts can help reach $100-plus billion of solutions AUM over time.

"When you combine all of that, we feel really good about the target of $100-plus billion of AUM from our solutions business over time" — Robert Lewin (CFO)

retail distribution and international redemptions

Q (Steven Chubak · Wolfe): He asked whether recent redemption episodes changed KKR's approach to expanding retail distribution abroad, and for the pipeline of new distribution platforms.

A: Management said they remain focused on growth investment and that recent volatility has not changed that view. They noted K Series is concentrated in private equity and infrastructure, are building teams in Asia and Europe, and believe education and platform access will continue to drive retail adoption.

"The short answer to your question is that it has not changed our perspective on investing in growth." — Scott Nuttall (CEO)

strategic holdings confidence and AI risk

Q (Brennan Hawken · BMO): He asked what drives confidence in the back-end loaded strategic holdings earnings target and how AI risk could affect that portfolio.

A: Management said strategic holdings was introduced early and will show more quarter-to-quarter variability until the business scales toward the $1.5 billion plus target by 2030. They said the portfolio has roughly 20 businesses with differentiated exposures, continues to perform at a high level, and they underwrite it as a diversified portfolio against both risks and winners.

"As it relates to the portfolio, it continues to perform at a high level." — Robert Lewin (CFO)

scaling private wealth adoption

Q (Michael Cyprys · Morgan Stanley): He asked what will most meaningfully drive adoption and penetration of private wealth offerings over the next few years—technology, wrappers, or something else.

A: Management said education is the most important driver: spending time with advisers and clients so they understand private markets. They also said access and distribution via platforms is critical, and partnerships like with Capital Group help reach far more advisers and clients over time.

"The second thing I would say is, obviously, you need access and you need distribution, which is back to the discussion we had about the relationship with platforms around the world." — Scott Nuttall (CEO)

adding Roy Gori as senior adviser

Q (Bart Dziarski · RBC): He asked why Roy Gori was added and how Manulife experience helps reach the Investor Day target to double AUM.

A: Management said they know Roy well, admire how he built Manulife's Asia business, and expect his wisdom to help KKR on strategy and insurance expansion outside the U.S. They said Roy will be especially helpful on Asia initiatives and can make the firm better across several topics.

"And sometimes you spend time with people and you realize they can make you better." — Scott Nuttall (CEO)

positioning in private investment grade credit

Q (TD Cowen): He asked for more detail on KKR's positioning in private IG and specifically on origination platforms.

A: Management said the private IG opportunity is massive and that KKR approaches it via asset-based finance, bespoke solutions for corporates and long-duration real estate investments. They pointed to global capital through funds and SMAs, capital markets overlay, 36 captive platforms, five decades of relationships, and a strong fundraising pipeline, which they believe positions them well to address private IG at scale.

"I think in terms of our business and how we're thinking about it, we look at private IG as all we are doing in asset-based finance plus bespoke solutions, for large established corporates plus long-duration investments across real estate." — Craig Larson

credit management fees and AUM trends

Q (Michael Brown · UBS): He asked why credit management fees declined sequentially despite AUM growth being muted and how to think about second-half flows, fees, and fee rates.

A: Management said quarter-to-quarter trends can be noisy and last quarter included a small one-time benefit to management fees. Over 12 months, management fees in credit and liquid strategies are up almost 10%, and committed but not-yet-earning capital in credit is up 33% year-over-year, which they view as the best forward indicator for future fees.

"I think if you look over a 12-month period of time, management fees across credit and liquid strategy is up almost 10% or just shy of 10%." — Robert Lewin (CFO)

monetization visibility and $7 target

Q (Benjamin Budish · Barclays Bank): He asked for color on visibility to transaction revenues and realizations, and whether the $7 target for ANI is still possible this year.

A: Management said they have roughly plus or minus $700 million of monetization-related visibility for the quarter, split about 80% realized performance revenue and 20% realized investment income. They noted a good pipeline for the year but prefer focusing on performance and fundamentals rather than the removed formal $7 guide.

"For the quarter, I'd say we've got plus or minus $700 million of monetization-related visibility, maybe a bit of variability there based on the timing of taking carry in certain funds or partnership." — Robert Lewin (CFO)

insured operating earnings outlook

Q (Crispin Love · Piper Sandler): He asked whether the $250 million insured operating earnings guide stays, how the quarter's elevated gains trend in back half, and whether 2027 could see a step up.

A: Management said the $250 million plus or minus guide remains a good go-forward number and the quarter had elevated realizations that may not be a run rate. They expect the alts book to mature and see potential for materially higher outcomes in later years while pointing to improved all-in insurance economics up 13% year-on-year.

"I think the $250 million plus or minus, still a good number for the go forward." — Robert Lewin (CFO)

TelicDigital infra capital and mandate

Q (BNP): She asked about capital raised for TelicDigital Infra, target fund size, the mandate (power involvement, partner roles), and whether it's incremental to the $50 billion ECP deployment target.

A: Management said the TelicDigital effort is an incremental step in the KKR–ECP partnership to serve hyperscalers' massive CapEx needs and will be broader than just data centers. They called it a company rather than a closed-end fund, launched with $10-plus billion from founding investors, see tens-of-billions opportunity, and expect ongoing investor outreach and future updates.

"And I think this is incremental and a continued evolution as it relates to the opportunities that we see in the massive CapEx needs that we continue to see from the hyperscaler space." — Craig Larson