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lackstone, the world's largest commercial real estate owner, has been aggressively expanding its portfolio after predicting a market bottom earlier this year. The company spent or committed $22 billion towards real estate acquisitions in the first nine months of the year, more than double its outlays for the same period in 2023.

    Blackstone President Jonathan Gray revealed that the firm had already committed 40% of its flagship $30 billion real estate fund. Analysts asked when the company would shift from buying to selling some of its $325 billion worth of real estate assets under management.

    CEO Stephen Schwarzman responded that the balance has been heavily tilted towards investing, but expects this to balance out as the year progresses, with more realizations on the horizon. Blackstone will continue to acquire properties and companies in sectors such as data centers, industrial real estate, and rental housing, and may even re-enter the office market.

    The company beat expectations for its third-quarter performance, with distributable earnings reaching almost $1.3 billion, 10% above analyst projections. Its assets under management increased from $1.08 trillion to $1.11 trillion in Q3, with its credit unit overtaking real estate as the segment with the most assets.

    Blackstone is also planning to take some of its largest holdings public, capitalizing on the record rally on Wall Street this year. "We are preparing to take some portfolio companies public," Gray said. "The discussions have gone from theoretical to practical, and we're talking about timing."