BlackRock, Inc. (BLK.US) Q3 results beat expectations, assets under management rose 15% year-over-year to a record high.

BlackRock, Inc. (BLK.US) released its Q3 2026 results before the U.S. market open on October 14. Quarterly revenue was $7.752 billion, up 19% year-over-year, above the market expectation of $7.4 billion to $7.52 billion; adjusted earnings per share were $15.93, up 38% year-over-year, more than 11% above the market expectation range of $14.10 to $14.32. Under GAAP, net income was $1.659 billion and diluted earnings per share were $10.57, up 25% year-over-year. Scale and fund flows were the biggest highlights of the quarter. As of September 30, the company's assets under management (AUM) reached a record $15.49 trillion, up 15% year-over-year; third-quarter net inflows were $205 billion, of which iShares ETFs saw net inflows of $135 billion and active products saw net inflows of $66.4 billion, while institutional index products saw net outflows of $27.4 billion. Over the past 12 months, cumulative net inflows totaled $869 billion, corresponding to 10% organic base fee growth; third-quarter annualized organic base fee growth was 11%. Profitability improved in tandem. Adjusted operating income was $3.330 billion, up 27% year-over-year; adjusted operating margin was 47.8%, up 320 basis points from the same period last year. Technology services and subscription revenue was $588 million, up 14% year-over-year, with annualized contract value for the technology business rising 12%. The company repurchased $550 million of stock in the quarter and paid a dividend of $5.73 per share. It should be noted that GAAP operating income for the quarter was $2.328 billion, with an operating margin of 30.0%, flat versus the same period last year, mainly due to a $564 million non-cash change in the fair value of contingent consideration, which has been excluded from adjusted results. The company also said private markets raised $68 billion over the past 12 months, and its artificial intelligence infrastructure partnership platform completed its first deployment in the quarter. Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink said in a statement: "The global economy's demand for capital is growing, and BlackRock, Inc. is increasingly at the center of how capital is allocated and managed." It has now been a full year since the company advanced a major transformation to deepen its push into higher-fee private markets. The company completed its $12 billion acquisition of alternative credit specialist HPS Investment Partners in July 2025, marking the third step in the stock-and-bond giant's major expansion to catch up with private-market leaders. The latest quarterly results for the first time include year-earlier figures that incorporate HPS's performance. BlackRock, Inc. acquired the credit firm after securing Global Infrastructure Partners and private data company Preqin. BlackRock, Inc. has been trying to shed its label as a traditional asset manager by emphasizing its growth in private markets and the risk management and technology analytics services it sells to financial clients. After the earnings release, as of publication time, BlackRock, Inc. shares were up about 3.3% in premarket trading.