MeritValue

Ares Management Corp

ARESdata completeness 63%14 fiscal years on file

Data notes: no data for concept 'totalDebt'; no data for concept 'epsDiluted'

The thesis, from the filings

Ares Management Corp earns about 53% on invested capital, but has diluted owners by 8% over 5 years — worth asking whether the growth reaches owners. The cash-flow models don't apply cleanly here — the ledger says why below.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$4.21B1$3.06B2$3.63B3$3.88B3$5.6B3
Net income$408.8M4$167.5M5$474.3M6$463.7M6$527.4M6
Operating cash flow−$2.6B7−$734.1M8−$233.3M9$2.79B9$3.27B9
Capital expenditure—————
Free cash flow (derived)—————
Total debt—————
Cash & equivalents$343.7M10$390M11$348.3M12$1.51B12$488.9M12
Diluted shares290.5M294.6M307.6M313.2M—

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
53% avg · 5y
FY21 64%FY22 42%FY23 75%FY24 55%FY25 29%

It earned an average 53% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+8% shares · 5y

Share count is up 8% over 5 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
only 0 years of FCF (need ≥3) — model not applicable
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
only 0 years of FCF (need ≥3) — model not applicable
Earnings Power Value
not applicable
no diluted share count
Graham Number
not applicable
diluted EPS missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-007014 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008665 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-011413 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-007014 (NetIncomeLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008665 (NetIncomeLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-011413 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-007014 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008665 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-011413 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-007014 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008665 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-011413 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)