(Nov 5): Apollo Global Management Inc’s push to target wealthy individuals helped boost the firm’s assets under management to US$733 billion (RM3.18 trillion), a 16% increase over the same period a year earlier.

The firm reported adjusted net income of US$1.13 billion, amounting to US$1.85 per share, in a statement announcing third-quarter earnings on Tuesday. That beat analysts’ estimates of US$1.73 per share.

“We are building a next-generation financial services business uniquely positioned to win across massive market opportunities,” CEO Marc Rowan said in the statement.

Apollo took in US$72 billion and US$79 billion for its asset management and retirement services divisions, respectively, during the quarter.

Asset management fees increased 10% year-over-year, while fee-related performance fees increased more than 40% in the same period, boosted by funds raised from wealthy clients.

Apollo, like its peers, continues to target high earners for higher-fee-paying assets and has set a goal of raising at least US$150 billion for its global wealth business by 2029.

So far this year, Apollo’s total capital raised from wealthy individuals has exceeded the total for all of 2023, the firm said in the statement. Earlier this year, Apollo’s co-president, Scott Kleinman, said it was selling about US$1 billion a month across semi-liquid products to wealthy individual investors.

The alternative asset manager said it originated a record US$62 billion across its core credit, high-grade capital solutions and equity origination businesses during the quarter. As it expands from its private equity roots, the firm is making origination — particularly in investment-grade assets — a key tenet of its growth strategy, as it caters to its insurance units that want to invest in less risky assets. 

Returns from Apollo’s direct origination unit clocked the highest across the firm at 3.4% for the quarter, while its flagship private equity investments recorded returns of just 0.3%. 

But Apollo said the exit environment is improving. The firm posted realised performance fees of US$331 million in the third quarter, the highest level since 2021, attributing the phenomenon to a “few sizable monetisations”.

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