BlackRock Posts Record $205 Billion in Third-Quarter Flows
Key Facts
BlackRock reported third-quarter 2026 results on October 14, recording net inflows of $205 billion in the three months ended September 30, in what the company described as a reflection of broad strength across its businesses. It said organic base management fees grew at an annual rate of 11% during the quarter, alongside those flows. Sources of strength included iShares funds, systematic active equities, private markets and cash, according to the company’s statement. Assets under management rose to $15.5 trillion on September 30, following net inflows of $869 billion over the previous twelve months. These figures show the breadth of the asset base underpinning management-fee revenue, while the market’s reaction on results day reflected adjusted earnings beating expectations.
Revenue was $7.752 billion in the third quarter, compared with $6.509 billion in the same period a year earlier, according to BlackRock’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company said annual revenue growth of 19% reflected the positive impact of markets, growth in organic base management fees, higher performance fees, and increased technology services and subscription revenue. Technology services and subscription revenue rose 14% year over year, which the company attributed to continued momentum in its Aladdin platform and multi-product solutions. Operating income under generally accepted accounting principles was $2.328 billion, versus $1.955 billion a year earlier, while the operating margin held at 30% in both periods. Adjusted operating income rose 27% year over year, a measure distinct from operating income reported under those principles.
Adjusted earnings per share were $15.93, topping Wall Street expectations of $14.13 per share, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters. On a generally accepted accounting principles basis, operating income rose 19% and diluted earnings per share increased 25% year over year. BlackRock said both figures were affected by a non-cash change in the fair value of contingent consideration related to prior acquisitions, and that this effect was excluded from adjusted results. The company repurchased $550 million of stock during the quarter. After the results were announced, the company’s shares rose as much as 5% in trading on Wednesday, October 14, according to Reuters.
Assets under management rose to $15.49 trillion in the third quarter, from $13.46 trillion a year earlier and $15.34 trillion in the second quarter, according to Reuters. The news agency attributed the increase in assets to $134.5 billion in new flows into iShares funds and higher investment valuations amid strength in the stock market. Net inflows to the private markets category totaled $15.31 billion during the quarter. Larry Fink said BlackRock had raised $68 billion for investment in private markets overall during the past twelve months, including $25 billion for private credit. This funding forms part of the company’s expansion in private markets, while the company presented the quarter’s flows as spread across several businesses, rather than coming from a single source.
The company had reported record first-half net inflows of $321 billion in its second-quarter results, including $192 billion in the second quarter. In an outlook published on September 15, the BlackRock Investment Institute linked AI-driven earnings growth with equity resilience and said financing AI needs competes with sovereign borrowing for funding. But a later comment from the institute on November 2 pointed to heightened investor scrutiny of AI during earnings season. The institute said how results hold up will be crucial to its broader medium-term conviction in the AI transformation, and also said the Nasdaq recorded its worst month since March 2025 as that scrutiny intensified. In EL7 data, BLK shares closed at $1,216.61 on November 12; that was a close from a session after the results announcement and the stock’s reaction on October 14.