Brookfield Asset Management Ltd.

Brookfield reported fee-related earnings of $808 million in Q2 2026, up 20% year over year, or $0.50 per share. Distributable earnings were $707 million, up 15% year over year, or $0.44 per share, and fee-bearing capital reached $672 billion, up 19% over the last 12 months. Margin was 57% for the quarter and 58% over the last 12 months. Fundraising hit a record $77 billion in the quarter, bringing year-to-date fundraising to $98 billion and the last-12-month total to $163 billion. For the balance of 2026, management said it expects very significant capital raising across flagships, complementary equity strategies, debt strategies, and insurance inflows, and said 2027 should still be very strong though likely smaller than 2026.

Connor Teskey struck an upbeat tone, saying 2026 should be a record year “not by a small margin” and describing Q2 as exceptional across fundraising, earnings, and capital growth. He emphasized Brookfield’s advantage in real assets, credit, and AI infrastructure, arguing the firm is positioned to outperform because it has limited exposure to stressed areas like software and sponsor-led direct lending while being exposed to areas with high demand. He also highlighted the strategic value of partnerships, including Just Group, OpenAI, AllianceBernstein, and AI-related collaborations with Bloom, NVIDIA, and others.

Hadley Marshall focused on the financial momentum and balance sheet. She reiterated FRE of $808 million, DE of $707 million, and margins of 57% in the quarter, noting DE continues to track FRE closely. She also flagged that reported margins will decline next quarter after the Oaktree consolidation because of mix, said BAM repurchased $200 million of stock in Q2 and nearly $575 million year to date, issued $1 billion of senior secured notes, and ended Q2 with $3.1 billion of corporate liquidity before using some of it to complete the Oaktree acquisition. She said the dividend was $0.5025 per share payable September 30.

Analysts pressed on whether fundraising can stay strong in the back half of 2026, whether credit markets can absorb the scale of AI financing, and whether AI infrastructure is becoming crowded. Management said capital raising should remain very strong and broadly balanced, credit markets remain robust enough to support AI and infrastructure build-outs, and Brookfield’s edge is its energy, digital infrastructure, and partnership capabilities. On AI crowding, Sikander Rashid said competition has increased but the fund still has strong demand because Brookfield can connect power, compute, land, and operating expertise across the full AI value chain. On Oaktree, management said the main upside is revenue growth through Brookfield’s distribution and multi-asset platform, with major flagship fundraises now expected to be staggered into 2027 and 2028.