By Chibuike Oguh
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Private equity firm Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG) Inc reported on Wednesday that its second quarter distributable earnings fell 26% year-on-year due to a slump in asset sales, although the result still exceeded analyst expectations.
Distributable earnings, which represents the cash used to pay dividends to shareholders, fell to $388.8 million from $528.8 million a year earlier. That translated to after-tax distributable earnings per share of 88 cents, which surpassed the average estimate of 67 cents, according to Refinitiv data.
Carlyle said its net profit from asset sales fell by nearly 36% to $335.1 million as it cashed out fewer investments across all its business lines during the quarter, which was marked by a continued slowdown in private equity dealmaking activity.
Last month, Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Inc, the world's largest private equity firm, also reported a plunge in its realized performance revenues, resulting in a 39% slump in its distributable earnings in the second quarter.
Carlyle's corporate private equity and real estate funds gained 1% during the quarter, while its credit funds appreciated by 2%. By contrast, Blackstone's corporate private equity funds appreciated by 3.5% and its private credit funds rose 3.3%, while opportunistic real estate funds were flat.
Carlyle reported a net loss of $98.4 million under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), compared with a net profit of $245.4 million a year earlier, owing to a surge in unrealized investment losses.
Total assets under management reached $385 billion, up 1% from the prior quarter, driven by fundraising of $7 billion and fund investment gains. Unspent capital stood at $72 billion.