The firm maintains structural pricing power with gross margins consistently hovering near the 50% range, despite a notable $34.6 million stock-based compensation expense in 2025Q4.
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 | Dec'04 | Dec'03 | Dec'02 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 574.61M | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Revenue Growth % | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gross Profit | 381.59M | 326.52M | 242.3M | 235.29M | 281.96M | 312.5M | 159.36M | 212.16M | 210.2M | 205.62M | 184.87M | 186.22M | 175.73M | 164.04M | 146.3M | 213.38M | 90.9M | 50.92M | 99.16M | 214.61M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 70.34M | 55.77M |
| Gross Margin % | 66.41% | 57.51% | 46.83% | 48.05% | 49.15% | 53.53% | 36.98% | 51.64% | 53.69% | 53.68% | 52.28% | 56.39% | 55.98% | 54.68% | 52.99% | 89.94% | 49.09% | 41.22% | 53.36% | 84.14% | - | - | - | 100% | 100% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | 34.76% | 2.98% | -16.55% | -9.77% | 96.1% | -24.89% | 0.93% | 2.23% | 11.22% | -0.73% | 5.97% | 7.13% | 12.13% | -31.44% | 134.74% | 78.51% | -48.65% | -53.79% | - | - | - | -100% | 26.12% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 197.92M | 148.78M | 69.42M | 70.81M | 66.03M | 52.13M | 64.3M | 52.03M | 63.16M | 50.87M | 49.35M | 58.67M | 53.79M | 57.7M | 49.86M | 126.38M | 38.12M | 33.36M | 40.28M | 115.14M | -2.5M | -53.88M | 1.28M | 58.47M | -14.29M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 26.2% | 13.42% | 14.46% | 11.51% | 8.93% | 14.92% | 12.66% | 16.13% | 13.28% | 13.96% | 17.76% | 17.13% | 19.23% | 18.06% | 53.27% | 20.58% | 27% | 21.68% | 45.14% | - | - | - | 83.12% | -25.61% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 54.06M | 71.23M | 60.13M | 66.7M | 54.83M | 48.03M | 56.29M | 47.63M | 48.27M | 42.22M | 42.99M | 50.85M | 47.34M | 46.8M | 39.43M | 119.58M | 31.17M | 28.35M | 32.24M | 99.24M | 28.79M | 23.3M | 12.97M | 8.01M | 32.31M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 12.55% | 11.62% | 13.62% | 9.56% | 8.23% | 13.06% | 11.59% | 12.33% | 11.02% | 12.16% | 15.4% | 15.08% | 15.6% | 14.28% | 50.4% | 16.83% | 22.95% | 17.35% | 38.91% | - | - | - | 11.38% | 57.94% |
| Research & Development | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Operating Income | 183.67M | 177.74M | 172.88M | 164.48M | 215.94M | 260.37M | 95.06M | 160.13M | 147.04M | 154.75M | 135.51M | 127.55M | 121.94M | 106.34M | 96.43M | 87M | 52.79M | 17.56M | 58.88M | 99.47M | 2.5M | 53.88M | -1.28M | 11.87M | 70.06M |
| Operating Margin % | 31.96% | 31.3% | 33.41% | 33.59% | 37.64% | 44.6% | 22.06% | 38.98% | 37.55% | 40.4% | 38.32% | 38.62% | 38.84% | 35.45% | 34.93% | 36.67% | 28.5% | 14.21% | 31.68% | 39% | - | - | - | 16.88% | 125.61% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 2.81% | 5.11% | -23.83% | -17.07% | 173.91% | -40.64% | 8.91% | -4.98% | 14.19% | 6.24% | 4.6% | 14.67% | 10.28% | 10.84% | 64.82% | 200.55% | -70.17% | -40.81% | 3878.88% | -95.36% | 4302.73% | -110.8% | -83.05% | - |
| EBITDA | 194.44M | 188.76M | 184.05M | 169.62M | 221.6M | 276.44M | 111.33M | 175.16M | 160.88M | 166.63M | 139.76M | 133.76M | 126.56M | 114.96M | 101.99M | 92.06M | 57.32M | 21.78M | 62.91M | 106.46M | 8.9M | 60.16M | 5.8M | 12.87M | 72.68M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 33.84% | 33.24% | 35.57% | 34.64% | 38.63% | 47.35% | 25.84% | 42.64% | 41.09% | 43.5% | 39.52% | 40.5% | 40.32% | 38.32% | 36.94% | 38.8% | 30.95% | 17.63% | 33.85% | 41.74% | - | - | - | 18.3% | 130.32% |
| EBITDA Growth % | 2.8% | 2.56% | 8.51% | -23.46% | -19.84% | 148.3% | -36.44% | 8.88% | -3.46% | 19.23% | 4.48% | 5.69% | 10.1% | 12.71% | 10.79% | 60.62% | 163.12% | -65.37% | -40.91% | 1095.8% | -85.2% | 937.28% | -54.95% | -82.29% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 10.77M | 11.02M | 11.17M | 5.14M | 5.67M | 16.06M | 16.27M | 15.03M | 13.84M | 11.89M | 4.25M | 6.21M | 4.62M | 8.62M | 5.56M | 5.06M | 4.53M | 4.22M | 4.03M | 6.99M | 6.4M | 6.28M | 7.08M | 1M | 2.63M |
| EBIT | 196.05M | 189.42M | 192.22M | 164.48M | 222.76M | 263.25M | 98.42M | 166.85M | 157.46M | 159.08M | 137.63M | 129.15M | 124M | 108.62M | 98.96M | 88.07M | 54.24M | 17.56M | 58.88M | 99.47M | -4.99M | 46.7M | -2.41M | 11.87M | 8.65M |
| Net Interest Income | 15.63M | 10.32M | 19.34M | 14.62M | 6.82M | 2.88M | 3.36M | 6.72M | 10.43M | 4.33M | 2.12M | 1.6M | 2.06M | 2.28M | 2.53M | 1.07M | 1.45M | 1.87M | 5.91M | 7.78M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 15.63M | 10.32M | 19.34M | 14.62M | 6.82M | 2.88M | 3.36M | 6.72M | 10.43M | 4.33M | 2.12M | 1.6M | 2.06M | 2.28M | 2.53M | 1.07M | 1.45M | 1.87M | 5.91M | 7.78M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Pretax Income | 208.88M | 204.63M | 209.54M | 180.25M | 196.9M | 281.94M | 93.39M | 187.55M | 143.78M | 160.4M | 143.4M | 112.74M | 122.01M | 104.36M | 104.3M | 86.86M | 65.49M | 4.15M | 45.88M | 109.48M | 2.5M | 53.88M | -1.28M | 12.15M | 9.05M |
| Pretax Margin % | 36.35% | 36.04% | 40.5% | 36.81% | 34.32% | 48.29% | 21.67% | 45.65% | 36.72% | 41.88% | 40.55% | 34.14% | 38.87% | 34.79% | 37.78% | 36.61% | 35.37% | 3.36% | 24.69% | 42.92% | - | - | - | 17.27% | 16.22% |
| Income Tax | 53.55M | 47.23M | 46.75M | 43.64M | 47.41M | 55.79M | 18.22M | 40.56M | 34.26M | 67.91M | 50.59M | 48.41M | 46.28M | 41.11M | 36.41M | 32.58M | 19.09M | 4.49M | 20.82M | 41.38M | -837K | 22.88M | -8.55M | 100K | 611K |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 25.64% | 23.08% | 22.31% | 24.21% | 24.08% | 19.79% | 19.51% | 21.63% | 23.83% | 42.34% | 35.28% | 42.94% | 37.93% | 39.39% | 34.91% | 37.51% | 29.15% | 108.09% | 45.38% | 37.79% | -33.48% | 42.47% | 667% | 0.82% | 6.75% |
| Net Income | 155.81M | 153.22M | 151.26M | 129.05M | 171.04M | 211.4M | 76.58M | 134.62M | 113.9M | 91.94M | 92.94M | 64.55M | 75.51M | 68.12M | 66.12M | 54.31M | 46.4M | -1.71M | 18.06M | 75.5M | 3.2M | 31.92M | 7.29M | 12.05M | 8.44M |
| Net Margin % | 27.12% | 26.98% | 29.23% | 26.36% | 29.81% | 36.21% | 17.77% | 32.77% | 29.09% | 24% | 26.28% | 19.55% | 24.05% | 22.71% | 23.95% | 22.89% | 25.05% | -1.38% | 9.72% | 29.6% | - | - | - | 17.13% | 15.13% |
| Net Income Growth % | -0.78% | 1.29% | 17.22% | -24.55% | -19.09% | 176.03% | -43.11% | 18.2% | 23.88% | -1.07% | 43.97% | -14.51% | 10.85% | 3.03% | 21.75% | 17.05% | 2813.27% | -109.47% | -76.08% | 2256.3% | -89.96% | 337.99% | -39.52% | 42.85% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 155.33M | 157.4M | 162.79M | 136.61M | 149.49M | 226.15M | 75.17M | 146.98M | 109.52M | 92.49M | 92.81M | 64.34M | 75.73M | 63.26M | 67.9M | 54.28M | 46.41M | -336K | 25.06M | 68.1M | 3.2M | 31.92M | 7.29M | 12.05M | 8.44M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -10K | -7M | 7.39M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 103.62M | 71.89M | 63.19M | 111.42M | 89.39M | 89.14M | 50.66M | 53.41M | 114.19M | 47.8M | 853K | 11.33M | 607K | 207K | 53.19M | 4.8M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 3.02 | 2.98 | 2.97 | 2.60 | 3.47 | 4.31 | 1.57 | 2.79 | 2.40 | 1.96 | 2.00 | 1.41 | 1.65 | 1.51 | 1.49 | 1.23 | 1.07 | -0.04 | 0.43 | 1.77 | 0.08 | 0.79 | 0.23 | 0.45 | 0.32 |
| EPS Growth % | -0.98% | 0.34% | 14.23% | -25.07% | -19.49% | 174.52% | -43.73% | 16.25% | 22.45% | -2% | 41.84% | -14.55% | 9.27% | 1.34% | 21.14% | 14.95% | 2775% | -109.3% | -75.71% | 2112.5% | -89.87% | 243.48% | -48.89% | 40.63% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 2.99 | 3.00 | 2.62 | 3.51 | 4.38 | 1.60 | 2.85 | 2.43 | 1.98 | 2.02 | 1.42 | 1.69 | 1.54 | 1.51 | 1.26 | 1.09 | -0.04 | 0.43 | 1.80 | 0.08 | 0.80 | 0.23 | 0.45 | 0.32 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 51.59M | 51.64M | 50.94M | 49.55M | 49.3M | 49.09M | 48.68M | 48.3M | 47.38M | 46.98M | 46.43M | 45.9M | 45.64M | 45.08M | 44.48M | 43.98M | 43.23M | 42.34M | 42.09M | 42.66M | 40.71M | 40.32M | 31.94M | 26.78M | 26.36M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 51.44M | 51.24M | 50.41M | 49.31M | 48.78M | 48.32M | 47.8M | 47.27M | 46.79M | 46.35M | 45.95M | 45.43M | 44.79M | 44.27M | 43.77M | 43.19M | 42.72M | 42.34M | 41.86M | 41.87M | 40.03M | 39.99M | 31.82M | 26.78M | 26.36M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | 82.84% | 78.79% | 87.13% | 62.76% | 69.8% | 159.94% | 120.86% | 157.05% | 106.93% | 76.21% | 105.62% | 111.56% | 116.99% | 147.02% | 127.27% | 220.7% | - | 174.92% | 51.3% | 570.47% | 51.18% | 54.65% | 76.8% | 87% |
Interest rate sensitivity
As reported in recent financial statements, CNS achieved a 9.74% year-over-year revenue increase, suggesting that the firm's specialized active management model maintains resilience despite broader macroeconomic headwinds that typically pressure asset-based fee structures in the yield-sensitive real estate and preferred security sectors.
The revenue trajectory appears to be supported by the firm's ability to retain institutional capital, which likely provides a buffer against the cyclical nature of its underlying asset classes. Investors should monitor whether this growth is driven by market appreciation of AUM or genuine net organic inflows, as the latter is a more reliable indicator of long-term competitive durability.
Based on the provided income statement data, the firm maintains a consistent gross margin profile, typically hovering near the 50% range, which suggests that the firm possesses sufficient pricing power to offset the costs associated with managing complex, niche investment vehicles.
The notable spike in gross margin to 85.3% in 2026Q1 warrants further investigation, as it may represent a non-recurring accounting adjustment rather than a permanent shift in the cost-to-revenue relationship. Sustained margins at these levels indicate that the firm's specialized research capabilities remain highly valued by clients, shielding it from the aggressive fee compression seen in commoditized passive products.
According to the quarterly income statement data, stock-based compensation reached a significant $34.6 million in 2025Q4, which appears to have temporarily depressed net income and highlights the importance of adjusting for non-cash expenses when evaluating the firm's true underlying profitability.
The volatility in quarterly net income, particularly when compared to the more stable operating income, suggests that non-operating items and compensation timing can obscure core performance. Analysts should focus on the consistency of operating margins to gauge the firm's ability to convert fee revenue into shareholder value without excessive dilution or compensation-related earnings distortion.
As evidenced by the historical income statement figures, the firm has demonstrated disciplined control over SG&A expenses, which have remained relatively contained even as revenue has scaled, indicating an efficient operating structure that leverages existing research and distribution infrastructure.
The firm's ability to keep SG&A expenses from ballooning suggests that management is successfully avoiding the common pitfall of over-investing in headcount during market upswings. This expense discipline appears to be a key driver of the firm's ability to maintain healthy operating margins, even during periods of market-driven revenue contraction.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying CNS stock.
Cohen & Steers, Inc. (CNS) is profitable, generating $153.2M in net income for the fiscal year ending 2025 with a net profit margin of 27.0%.
Cohen & Steers, Inc. (CNS) reported an operating income of $177.7M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 31.3%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
Cohen & Steers, Inc. (CNS) generated $326.5M in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 57.5%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.