The Blackstone Group's assets under management hit a record high of $218.2 billion as of March 31, up 3.8% from the end of 2012, according to the alternative money manager's earnings statement released Thursday.
Gross inflows totaled $8 billion in the first quarter — and $34 billion in the year —ended March 31. Blackstone's funds over the past year have returned $23 billion of capital to investors.
By business segment, Blackstone's real estate AUM rose 4.9% to $59.5 billion from the previous quarter, while assets managed in hedge fund solutions rose 4.6% to $48.2 billion and private equity AUM rose 2.9% to $52.5 billion.
Total AUM rose 14.8% for the year ended March 31. Over the same time period, real estate assets under management rose 23.2%, assets managed in hedge fund solutions rose 11.1% and private equity AUM rose 10.3%.
“Greater realizations, reaching $6 billion in the quarter, drove our second-best quarter for cash earnings since becoming a public company,” said Stephen A. Schwarzmann, chairman and CEO, in the earnings statement. “Although several of our investment businesses are already the largest of their kind in the world, every one reported year-over-year double-digit growth in total assets under management.”