BlackRock assets under management hit $7.43 trillion valuation as per the quarterly earnings report

BlackRock has a reputation of the largest asset manager across the globe. In its earnings report revealed on Wednesday, BlackRock beat experts’ forecast on the profit front. The American global investment management corporation stated growth in its exchange-traded fund business to have helped post an upbeat quarterly profit. The report further highlighted the BlackRock’s assets to have hit the $7.43 trillion mark. In the fourth quarter that ended on December 31^st, BlackRock generated $128.84 billion in revenue. The iShare-branded ETFs recorded $75.20 billion in quarterly revenue. In the third quarter, this figure was capped at a much lower $41.50 billion. For the whole year, as per the report, the net inflow climbed to $183 billion.

CEO Fink Warns The Board Of Unsustainable Business Practices

Copy link to section With sharp improvement across its business units, BlackRock’s investments in fossil fuel recently met with increased scrutiny. The company’s board received a warning from the current CEO, Larry Fink, on Tuesday that directed it to play its role in addressing the challenges of climate change. Fink also highlighted the need for reshaping finance in order to protect its investors across multiple of the company’s assets from the threats of unsustainable business practices. In the fourth quarter, BlackRock recorded its net income at $1.30 billion ($8.29 of earnings per share). In the same quarter last year, the company had posted a much lower $927 million in net income ($5.78 of earnings per share). Based on Refinitiv’s data, analysts had anticipated the company to note $7.69 of earnings per share (EPS). Excluding items, however, Wednesday’s report revealed BlackRock’s quarterly EPS at $8.34 instead.

U.S – China Trade War Helped The U.S Stocks And Global Equity Markets At Large

Copy link to section As per the analysts, the ongoing U.S – China trade complications helped U.S stocks and global equity markets at large catch steam towards the end of the last year. The benchmark S&P 500 index hiked by 8.5% in the fourth quarter that contributed to an overall 29% surge in 2019. BlackRock’s cash management division saw $29.80 billion in net inflows in Q4. Subsequently, the total divisional assets were valued at $545.95 billion in the recent quarter. In premarket trading on Wednesday, BlackRock’s stock was seen trading 0.25% lower. At the time of writing, the stock is exchanging hands at $530.26 that marks an around 40% growth for BlackRock in the stock market as compared to the opening level in 2019. The $81.86 billion company, however, is currently trading over 10% lower as compared to its record high of around $600 in January 2018.