Barclays has lowered its price target on KKR & Co. to $136.00 from $159.00 but retained an Overweight rating following the company's fourth-quarter results. The investment bank pointed to a shortfall in adjusted earnings per share as a key driver of the revision.
KKR reported adjusted net income per share of $1.12 for the quarter. That figure missed the consensus targets cited by analysts - the article references a $1.15 consensus estimate in one instance and a $1.14 expectation in another - and Barclays attributed the shortfall largely to lower-than-expected net realized performance income and weaker operating earnings from strategic holdings.
According to InvestingPro data cited in the company commentary, 14 analysts have revised downward their earnings forecasts for the upcoming period. The firm is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.45, a valuation level noted as materially above industry averages in the same dataset.
Fundraising and realizations
KKR recorded $28 billion of fundraising during the quarter, a sizable haul that the company characterized as solid but slightly below consensus expectations. Management highlighted additional expected sources of future fundraising, naming Americas XIII as nearing completion while noting that flagship funds in Asia Private Equity and Global Infrastructure remain in market.
Realizations for the quarter totaled $15 billion, a level described as in line with expectations. Management forecast a sharp rise in realizations over 2026, a projection that Barclays flagged as central to the firm's longer-term earnings outlook.
Fees, revenue and sector exposure
Transaction fees during the quarter underperformed expectations, and KKR signaled a seasonal decline in transaction fee revenue entering the first quarter of 2025. Despite the miss on EPS, the company reported revenue that exceeded the cited forecast: $5.74 billion versus an anticipated $2.11 billion, a result noted in the report.
Management reiterated guidance of more than $7.00 of earnings per share for fiscal 2026, while Barclays cautioned that achieving that target would be heavily dependent on materially higher realizations. Management also outlined the firm's exposure to software assets, which comprise roughly 7% of assets under management.
Analyst reaction and outlook
Goldman Sachs also adjusted its outlook, trimming its price target on KKR from $159.00 to $145.00 while keeping a Buy rating. Goldman Sachs based its revision on updated per-share earnings estimates that are approximately 3% lower, citing anticipated declines in capital-markets-sensitive revenue streams - including monetizations and transaction fees - and a slower near-term build in Strategic Holdings income.
InvestingPro assigns KKR an overall "GOOD" financial health rating in the dataset referenced, even as analysts model a 0.7% sales decline for the current year. Taken together, the broker revisions and internal guidance paint a picture of mixed financial performance and a cautious analyst view that hinges on the timing and scale of future realizations and fee recovery.
Bottom line
KKR's fourth-quarter results produced a split outcome: an EPS miss and some underperformance in fees contrasted with robust fundraising and a revenue beat. Broker price-target reductions from Barclays and Goldman Sachs reflect that mixed set of results and signal analyst caution about near-term capital-markets revenue and the pace of Strategic Holdings income growth.