AI hack: Want to know who is successfully navigating the real estate market? Ask an LLM to scan 100 earnings call transcripts/10Ks for the most interesting takeaways. Here's an outlier from this quarter...
---- StepStone's fundraising haul ----
-- Record fundraising volume: StepStone secured $12.6 billion in gross AUM commitments, setting a new quarterly record.
-- Diverse paths: The firm attracted significant commitments to commingled funds and separately managed accounts.
-- Strong fee-earning AUM growth: StepStone’s fee-earning assets under management (FEAUM) grew by 15% to $100 billion, driven by the successful deployment of capital and new fund commitments.
-- Strong growth in real estate: Real estate FEAUM grew to $9 billion, up 46% YoY despite a challenging environment. StepStone's real estate fund is focused on special situations and secondaries.
-- Emergence of private wealth channel: StepStone’s strategic push into the private wealth sector paid off, with significant contributions from high-net-worth individuals and family offices. ...expected to be a key driver of future fundraising success as the firm deepens its relationships in this growing market segment.
---- What's driving the outperformance? ----
Our guesses based on StepStone's most recent investor day presentation:
1. Secondaries focus: StepStone expanded its secondaries and co-investments platform at an opportune time (when GPs and LPs need recaps due to the market's ongoing dislocation.)
2. Strong sourcing capabilities: StepStone's teams met with more than 2,000 GPs last year, and they reportedly have great data on opportunities, trends, and performance.
3. Diversified platform: Being able to offer customized solutions across various asset classes, including real estate, gives the firm access to more investors increasingly looking for alternatives to stocks and bonds.
4. Global reach: StepStone’s global presence with local teams in key regions probably helps.
5. Private wealth channel: Many firms have reacted to Blackstone's success with BREIT fundraising by starting similar HNW offerings. StepStone has been at it for a while and benefits from compounding and the early days of retail brand-building being in the rearview mirror.
Any other AI hacks?
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