Suffice it to say that BlackRock Inc. had a stellar 2024, as its latest earnings report revealed that the New York-based asset manager hit a high of $11.55 trillion in assets under management at the end of the fourth quarter last year.
From an exchange-traded fund perspective, the report shows that of the record $641 billion worth of investor inflows for the year ended Dec. 31, as $390 billion went into ETFs, including $226 billion into equity and $164 billion into fixed income.
Shares of BlackRock gained more than 4% in midday trading Wednesday after the company reported annual net income of $1.67 billion, marking a 21% increase over 2023.
“BlackRock checks all the boxes when it comes to organic growth,” said Catherine Seifert, an analyst covering the company for CFRA.
“But the other thing BlackRock has is the ability and willingness to grow strategically through acquisitions and expand into private asset and alternative markets,” she added. “The demand for these assets is huge and the degree to which BlackRock can tap in is significant.”
The asset manager was the biggest winner in the white-hot bitcoin ETF race, which kicked off with approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission last January.
At nearly $46 billion, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) is more than twice the size of the next-largest bitcoin ETF.
Seifert, who maintains a “Buy” rating on BlackRock stock with a 12-month price target 17% above where the stock is currently trading, expects the company to continue to lead innovation that includes the “democratization” of private assets and alternatives packaged inside ETFs.
“If we look further out, I see the integration or influence of their growing private market business with some of the retail-oriented products like ETFs,” she said.
The positive earnings report follows news of the departure of senior executive Mark Wiedman later this year. Wiedman was often seen as the person most likely to succeed BlackRock founder Larry Fink, who is 72.
“The parlor game of who will succeed Larry Fink is an ongoing topic,” Seifert said. “Any surprises out of BlackRock will be on the management front and the company may be at an inflection point, but I don’t think Fink is in a hurry to give up his job.”
Wiedman’s announcement comes after the exit of another high-level executive, Salim Ramji, who resigned last year to become chief executive of The Vanguard Group.
“There is a degree of uncertainty surrounding this, which is why Larry Fink emphasized the strength and depth of BlackRock’s bench in his opening call remarks during the earnings call,” Seifert added.
