BlackRock announced on Thursday that it will cut 400 jobs and will undertake a
$76 million restructuring charge after the company posted a 20 percent loss in first-quarter profit in the face of a dramatic setback in financial markets.
The company's investment performance faltered and its net inflows last quarter, even if they are still in the tens of billions of dollars, dropped in reaction to the U.S. market's difficult start to the year.
"We did have a tough quarter," Larry Fink, Chief Executive Officer of BlackRock told Reuters. "The entire industry had a tough quarter in active management and we were no different," he added.
At the start of 2016, U.S. stocks, energy and corporate bonds all dropped sharply and were only able to regain their footing in February.
Fink also said that the restructuring that BlackRock will undertake will enable the company to concentrate more on other growth areas, including sustainable investment.
As the world's largest asset manager announced its lower first-quarter earnings, it has taken charge of $76 million to "simplify" its operations which means job cuts as well. The CEO also said that the company will also be hiring personnel for its exchange-traded funds and alternate business which includes investments in technology and hedge funds.
Fink warned in a comprehensive interview that the U.S. is coming into "an uncertain earnings environment."
Investors took the company's disappointing investment performance in stride. They initially sold shares and then bidding them up by 1.7 percent to $354.32 by midafternoon.
The earnings shortfall was attributed by Fink to lower fees collected on what is called "active" investments, which include several mutual funds and hedge funds wherewith managers assess financial markets and companies, making bets as to how they will perform in the future.
"The biggest challenge for them currently is the continuing effort to revamp and improve their actively managed strategies," said Daniel Culloton, a Morningstar analyst.
