Companies
16/07/2024

BlackRock Assets Surged To A Record $10.65 Trillion Because To Higher Stock Prices And ETF Flows




The world's largest asset manager, BlackRock, announced on Monday that its assets under management reached a record $10.65 trillion in the second quarter as a result of investors flooding the company's exchange-traded funds with cash and growing client asset values.
 
A combination of growing expectations for a soft landing for the US economy and investor craze for firms related to artificial intelligence has sent stock markets to all-time highs in recent months.
 
BlackRock's assets under management increased to $10.65 trillion from $9.43 trillion a year earlier and $10.5 trillion in the first quarter as a result of the benchmark S&P 500 index rising by around 4% in the reporting quarter.
 
BlackRock anticipates completing two acquisitions in the second part of the year to strengthen its position in private markets and infrastructure investments, two important growth areas.
 
In a conference call, BlackRock's chairman and CEO, Larry Fink, stated, "We see unbelievable growth opportunities for our clients and shareholders for 2024 and beyond." He also mentioned that he saw a lot of opportunity for investments in artificial intelligence (AI) data centres and the energy transition.
 
"We are wildly bullish as more and more clients are going to be using infrastructure debt," he stated.
 
In a deal estimated to be worth close to $3.2 billion, the business last month decided to acquire private markets data provider Preqin. The transaction comes after BlackRock's $12.5 billion purchase of Global Infrastructure Partners this year, which placed the company at the forefront of global infrastructure investment. Global Infrastructure Partners is a gamble on alternative assets.
 
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According to Kyle Sanders, senior equities research analyst at Edward Jones, "there's growth in private markets... but more importantly, you can charge much, much higher fees on private assets than you can on an iShares ETF."
 
"They want to move into higher-margin, higher-fee products, and alternatives would be at the top of the list," he said.
 
BlackRock reported net inflows of $81.57 billion for the quarter, which is somewhat more than $80.16 billion from the same period last year. With $83 billion in inflows, exchange-traded funds had the largest share of flows, marking their best-ever start to a year, according to BlackRock.
 
The business expressed optimism over debt inflows, predicting that as interest rates began to decline, investors will switch from high-yielding cash to riskier fixed income products.
 
"We're seeing clients around the world re-calibrate their risks," Fink stated.
 
BlackRock's stock fell in early trading before rising marginally. This year, the stock has increased by around 2%, falling short of the S&P 500 index's 18% growth.
 
With BlackRock's premium valuation compared to its peer group, Cathy Seifert, vice president at CFRA Research, who has a "buy" recommendation on the firm, suggested that investors' greater revenue growth expectations may have contributed to Monday's flat performance in the company's shares.
 
Fees for investment administration and advice increased by 8.6% to $3.72 billion.
 
The company's technology services revenue increased by 10% to $395 million, indicating the ongoing demand for its Aladdin investment risk management platform.
 
At $4.81 billion, BlackRock's overall revenue increased by 8%.
 
In the three months ending June 30, net income increased to $1.50 billion, or $9.99 per share, from $1.37 billion, or $9.06 per share, in the corresponding period last year.
 
(Source:www.investing.com)

Christopher J. Mitchell
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