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We studied the compressive-tensile yield asymmetry (CTYA) and its sensitivity to standard post-processing treatments for a 17-4 PH stainless steel processed with selective laser melting (SLM). Quasistatic tensile and compression tests at ambient temperatures reveal a consistent CTYA for all tested conditions, with compressive yield strengths exceeding tensile values. In the as-printed state, yield asymmetry (Δσ) is ∼113 MPa. Stress-relieving at 300 °C results in only a marginal decrease in asymmetry (Δσ ∼109 MPa), suggesting that the residual stresses generated during SLM have a negligible effect on the observed CTYA. Our analyses indicate that “dynamic softening” due to a stress-assisted austenite-to-martensite transformation governs the yield behavior similar to that observed in transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP)-assisted steels containing mechanically unstable retained austenite. This interpretation is further supported by the increased asymmetry, Δσ ∼127 MPa, observed in a solution-treated and aged specimen, which has a slightly higher retained austenite volume fraction (24 % vs. 21 %). Direct aging at 482 °C of the as-printed steel with a ferritic microstructure causes severe embrittlement. Brittle fracture occurs under tensile stresses well below the yield strength. This pronounced loss of ductility most likely arises from a strong <001> fiber texture along the build direction developed during SLM, which is known to promote cleavage-type fracture on {001} planes. A solution treatment at 1000 °C for 1 h, austenitizes the microstructure completely, and subsequent quenching produces a predominantly martensitic structure with a much weaker crystallographic texture, which restores a favorable strength-ductility balance after aging.