Apollo Posts $1.06 Billion Quarterly Loss as Athene Valuation Swings Offset Fee Growth

Apollo Global Management reported a $1.06 billion net loss attributable to common shareholders for the third quarter of 2026, as interest-rate-driven investment valuation losses at its retirement services business outweighed stronger asset management fees and continued growth in client capital.

The New York-based alternative investment manager disclosed the quarter ended Sept. 30. Despite the accounting loss, Apollo’s assets under management climbed to approximately $1.07 trillion, supported by $53 billion in quarterly inflows, while fee-related earnings increased 23% from a year earlier.

The contrasting results illustrate the different financial drivers of Apollo’s integrated asset management and insurance businesses, particularly the sensitivity of reported earnings to changes in investment valuations.

Retirement Services Drives Sharp Earnings Reversal

Apollo recorded a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $1.057 billion, equivalent to $1.78 per share, compared with net income of $1.712 billion, or $2.78 per diluted share, in the corresponding period of 2025.

The principal contributor was a $3.418 billion investment-related loss within Retirement Services, compared with investment-related gains of $2.254 billion a year earlier.

That represented a year-over-year swing of approximately $5.67 billion in the segment’s investment-related gains and losses.

Apollo attributed the quarterly loss primarily to unrealized mark-to-market declines on certain retirement services investments resulting from higher interest rates.

The losses largely reflected accounting revaluations rather than realized investment disposals. Nevertheless, they affected reported profitability and demonstrate how movements in financial markets can produce substantial volatility in the consolidated results of insurance-linked alternative asset managers.

Total revenue declined approximately 52% to $4.74 billion from $9.82 billion a year earlier.

The financial results were detailed in Apollo’s third-quarter 2026 earnings presentation

Fee-Related Earnings Rise Despite Accounting Loss

Apollo’s operating earnings presented a materially different picture from its GAAP results.

Fee-related earnings reached $802 million, compared with approximately $652 million in the third quarter of 2025, reflecting growth in its asset management platform.

Adjusted net income totaled $1.293 billion, or $2.07 per share, compared with $1.357 billion in the prior-year period.

Excluding notable items, adjusted net income was approximately $1.344 billion, equivalent to $2.15 per share.

These adjusted measures exclude certain accounting movements and other items included in GAAP profitability. They provide a separate view of the company’s recurring earnings capacity but do not eliminate the economic risks associated with its investment portfolio.

Apollo’s spread-related earnings, generated primarily through its retirement services operations, totaled $844 million, down approximately 3% year over year.

Excluding notable items, spread-related earnings increased to $909 million from $846 million.

The distinction matters because Apollo generates income through both management fees on client assets and the investment spreads earned by its insurance-related operations.

The company’s ability to expand recurring fee income while absorbing investment valuation volatility is therefore central to assessing the sustainability of its earnings.

Assets Under Management Exceed $1.07 Trillion

Apollo’s total assets under management reached $1.074 trillion at Sept. 30, an increase of approximately 18% from a year earlier.

The firm reported $53 billion in third-quarter inflows, including approximately $35 billion within Asset Management and $19 billion in Retirement Services, with figures rounded.

Over the preceding 12 months, inflows reached approximately $270 billion.

Apollo also reported quarterly origination of $114 billion, bringing origination activity over the trailing 12 months to approximately $356 billion.

Origination refers to the creation or sourcing of investment assets, including credit investments and financing arrangements, rather than simply purchasing securities in secondary markets.

This capability is particularly relevant to Apollo’s private credit and asset-backed finance operations, where sourcing investments directly can support deployment across institutional funds and insurance portfolios.

Fee-generating assets under management reached approximately $880 billion, representing a substantial portion of the firm’s overall investment platform.

Apollo’s expansion also builds on the growth disclosed in its 2025 annual report, when assets under management increased to $938.4 billion from $751 billion at the end of 2024.

That historical comparison demonstrates that the firm’s asset growth continued into 2026 despite volatility in reported earnings.

Athene’s Role Creates Distinct Investment Risks

Athene, Apollo’s retirement services subsidiary, plays a central role in the group’s investment and funding model.

The insurance business collects retirement-related liabilities and invests assets to generate returns sufficient to meet policyholder obligations and produce an investment spread.

Apollo’s asset management platform provides investment capabilities across credit, structured finance and other strategies.

This relationship creates opportunities to deploy substantial amounts of long-duration capital, but it also introduces exposure to interest-rate movements, asset valuations, funding costs and insurance liabilities.

Apollo’s 2025 annual filing provides additional detail on the company’s asset management and retirement services structure, including the contribution of insurance-related capital to its investment platform.

For institutional investors, the third-quarter results reinforce the importance of distinguishing accounting valuation changes from realized investment losses, while continuing to evaluate portfolio credit quality, liquidity and funding arrangements.

Unrealized losses do not necessarily translate into equivalent cash losses. However, their significance depends on the underlying assets, liability matching, capital requirements and whether investments must be sold before maturity.

Private Credit Origination Supports Deployment

Apollo’s continued growth in credit origination provides another perspective on the quarterly results.

The firm’s $114 billion in originations and $117 billion in gross capital deployment demonstrate the scale of investment activity across its platform.

Recent transactions illustrate how Apollo is extending its financing capabilities beyond traditional corporate lending.

PE NEWSWIRE previously reported on Apollo and Goldman Sachs’ $40 billion SpaceX GPU financing arrangement, which uses equipment leasing to support artificial intelligence infrastructure investment.

The transaction provides an example of Apollo’s ability to structure financing around specialized assets and long-term contractual cash flows.

The firm’s exposure to insurance-related investment strategies also connects its results to broader developments in private credit.

As examined in PE NEWSWIRE’s coverage of insurance-linked private debt investments, alternative managers increasingly use insurance capital to finance privately originated loans and structured credit investments.

Such arrangements can generate recurring investment income but require careful management of asset liquidity, liability duration and portfolio valuations.

Investor Focus Shifts to Earnings Quality and Capital Growth

For Apollo shareholders and institutional investors, the third-quarter results present two distinct considerations.

The first is whether investment-related valuation losses will continue to create significant fluctuations in reported earnings.

The second is whether expanding assets under management, origination volumes and recurring management fees can sustain growth in underlying profitability.

Apollo’s fee-related earnings increased even as consolidated GAAP profitability turned negative, while adjusted net income remained positive but declined from the previous year.

The retirement services business also maintained positive spread-related earnings despite the investment valuation losses.

Those differences make it important to assess the company’s GAAP earnings, adjusted profitability, insurance investment performance and capital formation together rather than relying on any single measure.

Apollo declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.5625 per common share, payable Nov. 30 to shareholders of record Nov. 18.

The firm’s next reporting periods will provide further evidence of whether asset growth and recurring earnings can offset continued sensitivity to interest rates and investment valuations.

For private-market investors, the central question is not simply whether Apollo can continue attracting capital, but how efficiently that capital translates into durable earnings after accounting for the risks embedded in its insurance and credit portfolios.