Will Blackstone's Rising AUM Balance Aid Long-Term Earnings Growth?

Driven by continued solid capital inflows, strategic investments in high-growth sectors and a broad fundraising momentum, Blackstone Inc. BX has been witnessing a rise in its assets under management (AUM) balance. Over the last five years (2020-2025), total AUM and fee-earning AUM have recorded compound annual growth rates (CAGR) of 15.6% and 14.4%, respectively. At the end of 2025, the firm’s total AUM balance reached a record $1.27 trillion.

Blackstone’s robust AUM base supports its long-term earnings growth by providing a larger pool of fee-generating capital across its private equity, real estate, credit and infrastructure platforms. As AUM expands, BX earns higher management fees, which are typically stable and recurring, creating a predictable revenue stream regardless of short-term market volatility. A larger AUM base also increases the potential for performance fees when investments are realized at attractive returns.

In addition, scale allows Blackstone to launch new funds, attract institutional investors and deploy capital across diverse strategies, which is expected to strengthen fundraising momentum and expand fee-related earnings over time.

The current concerns in the private credit market might moderately slow near-term AUM growth for Blackstone due to weaker investor sentiment and rising redemption requests across the sector. Blackstone, along with peers, has had to adjust redemption policies or manage higher outflows from certain funds as investors reassess risks in the asset class. Warnings about potentially rising default rates in private credit and tighter financing conditions from banks have heightened uncertainty, which could temporarily slow fundraising momentum and inflows.

Nevertheless, the long-term outlook for private credit remains strong, with industry AUM projected to grow significantly over the coming years as institutional investors continue shifting toward alternative assets. Thus, sustained growth in AUM is expected to remain a crucial pillar of Blackstone’s earnings trajectory. In the last three to five years, the company’s earnings have witnessed a CAGR of 3.5%. The long-term projected earnings growth rate for the company is 19.8%.

AUM Performance of BX’s Peers

Apollo Global Management’s APO AUM witnessed a CAGR of 19.6% over the past three years (2022-2025). The increase in Apollo’s AUM is primarily driven by growth in its retirement services client assets, subscriptions across the platform and new financing facilities.

The acquisition of Bridge Investment Group Holding nearly doubled Apollo’s real estate AUM to more than $110 billion. By 2029, Apollo expects its total AUM to reach $1.5 trillion by scaling its private equity business.

KKR & Co. Inc.’s KKR AUM saw a five-year (2020-2025) CAGR of 24.2%. Going forward, the company’s efforts to improve and add investment strategies will continue to support AUM growth.

In February 2026, KKR entered a strategic agreement to acquire Arctos Partners for $1.4 billion. The acquisition will expand the company’s reach to sports franchises and support long-term growth. At its 2024 investor day, KKR laid out a plan to scale its core businesses as it aims to reach at least $1 trillion in AUM by 2030.

Blackstone’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates

The company’s shares have lost 44.4% in the past six months compared with the industry’s 29.4% decline.

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From a valuation standpoint, BX trades at a 12-month forward price-to-earnings (P/E) of 16.05X, above the industry average of 9.82X.

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The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Blackstone’s 2026 and 2027 earnings indicates year-over-year growth rates of 14% and 26.8%, respectively. Estimates for both years have been revised lower over the past 30 days.

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Currently, BX carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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