Blackstone Inc. (BX) Q1 2025 Earnings Summary

Executive Summary

Q1 2025 was resilient despite market turbulence: Distributable Earnings rose 11% YoY to $1.41B ($1.09 per share), Fee Related Earnings reached $1.26B ($1.03 per share), and GAAP revenue was $3.29B, driven by record inflows ($61.6B) and strong investment performance in Infrastructure and Credit .
Versus S&P Global consensus, BX delivered a clean beat: DE/share $1.09 vs $1.057 estimate (+$0.03, +3%), and revenue $3.29B vs $2.68B estimate (+$0.61B, +22%) as fundraising and fee-related performance revenues outpaced expectations (values from S&P Global)* .
Management reiterated a constructive multi-engine outlook: management fees tracking ~10% YoY as a starting point, margin stability, FRPR timing (modest in Q2/Q3), and improving conditions for realizations in 2025 .
Catalyst set-up: continued private credit scale (IG and non-IG), private wealth momentum (BCRED/BXPE/BXINFRA), Infrastructure FRPR cadence, and potential acceleration of realizations (especially in PE) amid more constructive capital markets .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- “Inflows reached $62 billion — the highest level in nearly three years” and BX is “well positioned…with $177 billion of dry powder” (Schwarzman) .
- Infrastructure led returns (+7.5% QoQ; +23.6% LTM) and Credit delivered strong gross returns (Private Credit +2.7% QoQ, +15.0% LTM) underpinning fee-related performance revenues and segment earnings .
- Private wealth momentum: $11B raised in Q1, BXPE grew >$10B in five quarters; BREIT had its best quarter of returns in 18 months, reinforcing brand-led distribution strength (Gray) .
What Went Wrong
- Real Estate equity remained mixed: Core+ appreciated only +1.2% QoQ and Opportunistic +0.2% QoQ; fee-related performance revenues fell YoY in Real Estate, and segment DE declined 20% YoY .
- Tariff uncertainty impacted sentiment and realization timing; management cautioned the near-term exit environment remains sensitive to policy and volatility (Gray/Chae) .
- GAAP diluted EPS fell 29% YoY to $0.80 as performance allocations and principal investment unrealized components normalized after Q4’s unusually strong crystallizations .

Financial Results

Metric	Q1 2024	Q4 2024	Q1 2025
GAAP Total Revenues ($USD Billions)	$3.69	$3.08	$3.29
Total Segment Revenues ($USD Billions)	$2.55	$4.15	$2.76
GAAP Diluted EPS ($)	$1.11	$0.92	$0.80
Distributable Earnings ($USD Billions)	$1.27	$2.17	$1.41
DE per Common Share ($)	$0.98	$1.69	$1.09
Fee Related Earnings ($USD Billions)	$1.16	$1.84	$1.26
FRE per Share ($)	$0.95	$1.50	$1.03

Segment breakdown (revenues and distributable earnings):

Segment	Q1 2024 Segment Revenues ($MM)	Q4 2024 Segment Revenues ($MM)	Q1 2025 Segment Revenues ($MM)	Q1 2024 Segment DE ($MM)	Q4 2024 Segment DE ($MM)	Q1 2025 Segment DE ($MM)
Real Estate	902.6	720.6	758.0	616.4	464.7	495.4
Private Equity	973.5	2,159.6	1,041.9	500.4	1,229.4	564.6
Credit & Insurance	554.0	804.1	841.8	285.6	410.2	503.4
Multi-Asset Investing	119.3	465.0	122.1	50.9	332.8	55.7

Key operating and balance metrics:

KPI	Q1 2024	Q4 2024	Q1 2025
Inflows ($USD Billions)	LTM $166.7	$57.5; FY $171.5	$61.6; LTM $199.1
Deployment ($USD Billions)	LTM $123.4	$41.6; FY $133.9	$36.4; LTM $145.7
Realizations ($USD Billions)	LTM $77.0	$25.9; FY $87.1	$25.5; LTM $97.6
Dry Powder ($USD Billions)	$171.6	$168.6	$177.2
Total AUM ($USD Billions)	$1,061.3	$1,127.2	$1,167.5
Fee-Earning AUM ($USD Billions)	$781.4	$830.7	$860.1
Net Accrued Performance Revenues ($USD Billions)	$6.08	$6.28	$6.40
NAPR per Share ($)	$5.24 (Q1’25)	$5.14	$5.24
Dividend per Common Share ($)	$0.83	$1.44	$0.93
DE Shares Outstanding (MM)	1,216.7	1,221.2	1,221.5

Select margin indicator (computed):
FRE Margin = FRE / (Mgmt & Advisory Fees Net + FRPR):

Q1 2024: $1,160MM / ($1,707.6MM + $295.5MM) = 56.7%
Q4 2024: $1,835.9MM / ($1,859.3MM + $1,399.3MM) = 53.0%
Q1 2025: $1,262.1MM / ($1,892.0MM + $293.9MM) = 57.8%

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Management fees growth	FY 2025	“Reasonable starting point” 10% (Q4 baseline)	Q1 delivered 10%; full-year path influenced by flagship activations and perpetuals; avoid specific full-year target	Maintained (clarified cadence)
FRE margin	FY 2025	Margin stability as guidepost	Reiterated margin stability; sensitivity to FRPR mix; ongoing investment in new initiatives	Maintained
FRPR (Infrastructure)	2025	Major crystallization in Q4’24 (non-recurring in 2025)	Modest but material infra incentives in Q2 & Q3; none in Q1/Q4	Sequenced (normalized lower, periodic)
Realizations	2025	Exit markets challenged; improving trajectory	Near-term concentration in PE; real estate exits more back-half weighted in 2025	Raised (timing clarity)
Dividend	Q1 2025	$1.44 for Q4’24	$0.93 declared; payable May 5, 2025	Lower (seasonal vs DE cadence)

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Topic	Q3 2024 (prior two)	Q4 2024 (prior one)	Q1 2025 (current)	Trend
Tariffs/macro	Not a focal risk; more on capital markets improving	Expect policy-driven uncertainty; improving trajectory for 2025	“Uncertainty around tariffs…impacted sentiment”; limited direct first-order exposure; watch second-order effects (Gray)	Caution rising; manageable exposure
Private wealth	Strong sales building; BREIT navigating liquidity	$28B sales in 2024; January +$3.7B; BCRED/BXPE momentum (Gray)	Q1 private wealth $11B; BXPE >$10B in 5 quarters; BREIT strong quarter	Accelerating
IG private credit	Platform expanding (IG and ABF)	$100B+ IG private credit; 200 bp excess spread; insurers-led	IG private credit up 35% YoY to $107B; bespoke corporate solutions (EQT, Rogers)	Rapid scale-up
Infrastructure/data centers	BIP performance and FRPR crystallization	17% net returns; significant FRPR; VIP performance	Data center demand durable despite compute cost shifts; non-speculative builds (Gray)	Structural tailwind
Real estate	Recovery conditions forming; AUM reclassification	Q4 equity down on rates/USD; confident recovery (Gray/Chae)	Q1 Core+ +1.2% QoQ; opportunistic +0.2%; supply down; cautious exits	Gradual recovery
Retirement/401(k)	N/A	See potential with regulatory changes; BX positioned	Strategic alliance with Wellington/Vanguard to integrate public-private solutions	Opening access; medium-term optionality

Management Commentary

Stephen Schwarzman: “Inflows reached $62 billion — the highest level in nearly three years… We are well positioned… with $177 billion of dry powder to deploy” .
Jonathan Gray: “We raised $11 billion in the [private wealth] channel in the first quarter… BXPE grew to over $10 billion in only 5 quarters… BREIT had its best quarter of returns in 18 months in Q1” .
Michael Chae: “Net accrued performance revenue… stood at $6.4 billion at quarter end or $5.24 per share… We expect management fees to continue on a strong positive trajectory” .
Strategy: “Collaboration with Wellington and Vanguard… to develop simplified multi-asset solutions integrating public and private markets” (press release) .

Q&A Highlights

Deployment cadence: BX is accelerating deployment in dislocations (loans, HY, equities) and sees opportunity in digital infra, energy & power, life sciences, India/Japan (Gray) .
Private markets resilience: Long-duration capital, minimal net debt, not forced sellers; structural advantages through cycles (Gray) .
North American institutions: Alternatives appetite remains; secondaries/infra/credit favored; slower decisions but strong performance drives allocations (Gray) .
Direct lending/defaults: Lower leverage vs pre-GFC; defaults ~50 bps in non-IG portfolio; expect modestly higher but far from systemic (Gray) .
Capital markets: IPO most sensitive; PE exits improving; real estate exits more back-half weighted in 2025 (Gray) .

Estimates Context

S&P Global consensus vs actual (company-reported):

Metric	Consensus	Actual	Surprise
Primary EPS (DE/share) ($)	1.057*	1.09	+0.033 (+3%)*
Revenue ($USD Billions)	2.6847*	3.2895	+0.6048 (+22%)*

Values with asterisk retrieved from S&P Global.

of estimates: EPS (18); Revenue (6).

Implications: A clear beat on both revenue and DE/share reflects stronger-than-expected fundraising, fee-related performance revenues, and segment earnings momentum in Credit & Insurance and Infrastructure .

Key Takeaways for Investors

The fee engine is robust: management fees tracking ~10% growth with rising perpetual capital mix (46% of FE AUM), supporting sustained FRE and dividends .
Private credit scale and mix shift (IG + ABF) are durable growth drivers, supported by insurer demand and bespoke corporate solutions delivering ~200 bp excess spread (Gray) .
Infrastructure performance and FRPR cadence normalize in 2025 (modest Q2/Q3 events), but fundraising and returns remain powerful tailwinds .
Realizations should improve in 2025, especially in PE, while real estate exits remain more back-half weighted; NAPR of $6.4B provides embedded monetization potential .
Private wealth momentum continues across BCRED, BXPE, BXINFRA, with BREIT performance stabilizing; brand strength and new Wellington/Vanguard collaboration expand addressable market .
Policy/tariff uncertainty is a watch item; BX’s limited first-order exposure and capital-light model mitigate risk, though second-order effects (cost of capital, exit windows) bear monitoring .
Near-term trading setup: Positive estimate beats, dividend continuity, and multi-engine growth could support sentiment; monitor Q2/Q3 FRPR timing, PE exit activity, and fundraising cadence (especially wealth/insurance) .

Additional Press Releases (Q1 2025)

Wellington, Vanguard, and Blackstone strategic alliance to integrate public and private market solutions .
BREDS V final close at ~$8B, positioning BX to capitalize on attractive debt vintage amidst dislocation .

All company-reported figures cited from Blackstone’s Q1 2025 8-K and detailed presentation; prior quarter/year figures from Q4 2024 and Q3 2024 8-Ks. Values with asterisk retrieved from S&P Global.