Fundamentals snapshot
BLK · NYQ · Financial Services · Asset Management
Current price
$1,009.43
52-week range
$917.39 - $1,219.94
Market cap
$164.14B
One-glance verdict
We don't put a cash-flow fair value on banks and insurers. For these companies the reported 'cash flow' is really just money moving between loans, deposits and trades — not the leftover profit the owners could actually pocket — so the usual method would print a misleading number.
Balance sheet
Net debt $1.82B. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
What this company does
BlackRock is the world's largest investment manager, offering products like its iShares ETFs (funds that hold a basket of stocks and trade on an exchange) to help both large institutions and individuals grow their money. The company makes money primarily by charging a small fee on the trillions of dollars it manages, which creates a steady stream of recurring revenue (predictable income that comes in regularly). Because of its massive scale, BlackRock's investment strategies and influence are felt across the entire global economy.
BlackRock was started in 1988 by eight people in a single room who wanted to manage money for big institutions with a focus on understanding and managing risk. A key moment was the 2008 financial crisis, when their expertise in risk management was sought after. A major turning point was their acquisition of Barclays Global Investors in 2009, which included the iShares family of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), a type of investment that was just becoming popular. This purchase positioned BlackRock to become a dominant player as more people started investing in lower-cost funds that track the market. Over the years, they have grown by creating new investment products and acquiring other companies, becoming the world's largest asset manager.
BlackRock is an investment manager, which means they handle money for others with the goal of making it grow. Their clients are not just individuals, but also large organizations like pension funds (retirement plans for employees), insurance companies, and governments. Think of them as a financial professional that you hire to manage your savings, but on a much larger scale. They offer a wide variety of investment options, from funds that own a little bit of many different stocks to those that focus on specific areas like technology or real estate. A large part of their business involves creating and managing exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, which are like baskets of investments that can be bought and sold like a single stock.
This is BlackRock's largest business, making up the vast majority of its revenue. Here, the company earns fees for managing investments for its clients. These fees are typically a small percentage of the total money they manage, which is known as assets under management (AUM). So, as the value of the investments they manage for clients goes up, so does their revenue. This segment includes managing different types of funds, such as those that hold stocks (equities), bonds (fixed income), or a mix of different investments.
A huge and well-known part of BlackRock's business is its iShares brand of exchange-traded funds (ETFs). An ETF is a fund that holds a collection of investments, like stocks or bonds, but trades on a stock exchange just like a single stock. This makes it easy for people to invest in a diversified portfolio (a mix of different investments to spread out risk) without having to buy each individual investment separately. BlackRock makes money by charging a management fee on these ETFs, and because they are the largest provider of ETFs globally, this is a very significant business for them.
BlackRock has a technology platform called Aladdin, which stands for Asset, Liability, and Debt and Derivative Investment Network. They originally built this powerful software to help their own teams manage risk and make investment decisions. Now, they also sell access to Aladdin to other financial institutions, like insurance companies and other asset managers, who use it to manage their own portfolios and understand potential risks. This technology business provides a growing and steady stream of revenue for the company.
BlackRock is heavily focused on expanding into private markets, which means investing in companies and assets that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange, like infrastructure projects and private companies. They are also betting on the continued growth of their technology services, particularly the Aladdin platform, to provide essential tools for other financial companies. Another key area is providing more personalized and comprehensive portfolio solutions for their clients, essentially offering a one-stop shop for investment management. Finally, they are paying close attention to major economic trends, or "mega forces," like the rise of artificial intelligence and the global shift to a low-carbon economy, and creating investment products that allow their clients to invest in these trends.
Price history
Earnings history
Click any quarter to read the call summary and what the numbers say.
Is it cheap or expensive?
For a bank or insurer, the "free cash flow" shown on its statements is mostly money flowing through loans, deposits and trades — not the leftover profit the owners could actually keep, which is what this kind of valuation needs. Running that through the usual method would spit out a meaningless number, so we leave the cash-flow fair value out here rather than show you something misleading.
Is it drowning in debt?
Net debt $1.8B. Interest coverage 12.9x.
BlackRock, Inc.'s profit covers its interest bill about 12.9 times over. which is stronger than most peers shown here and 1 peers sit below 1x, which is the danger zone where profit does not fully cover the interest bill.
Total debt $14.97B Interest coverage 12.88x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $55.78B Interest coverage 0.16x -99% vs BLK Carries about 80.7x less debt cushion than BLK.
Total debt $40.03B Interest coverage 22.32x +73% vs BLK Carries about 1.7x more debt cushion than BLK.
Total debt $3.49B Interest coverage 14.82x +15% vs BLK Carries about 1.2x more debt cushion than BLK.
What you should know
The numbers
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Valuation
Profitability
Health
Growth
Cash flow
Dividend
Metric explainer
Debt comparison
What you should know