The private equity giant Carlyle Group reported on Thursday that earnings rose less than 1 percent the first quarter, a gain that came largely thanks to a rise in the value of its investments.
The firm said it earned $393.9 million in economic net income, compared with $392 million in the period a year earlier. That amounts to $1.02 a share, exceeding the average analyst estimate of 94 cents a share, according to Standard & Poor's Capital IQ.
Economic net income accounts for unrealized investment gains. Carlyle itself prefers to focus on distributable earnings, which track actual payouts to limited partners. But that measure fell 6 percent in the quarter, to $168 million, as the firm realized a $15 million loss on a Latin American real estate investment.
Carlyle's first-quarter results fell short of what major rivals like the Blackstone Group, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Apollo Global Management reported for their first quarters. Improving global markets and the continued availability of cheap debt have lifted the value of buyout firms' holdings and opened the door to continued deal-making.
Other measures of Carlyle's performance looked better. The firm raised $4.9 billion in the quarter, up 6.5 percent from the first quarter of 2012. And its main carry funds, which pay out carried interest fees, appreciated 7 percent, up from 4 percent appreciation last year.
The firm's total assets under management rose 11 percent, to $176.3 billion.
“Our first quarter results continue to demonstrate strength in the Carlyle engine,†David M. Rubenstein, one of the firm's co-chief executives, said in a statement.
