NEW YORK—Carlyle Group Inc. said on Thursday its third-quarter distributable earnings jumped nearly fivefold, driven by record asset sales mostly in its private equity portfolio. Distributable earnings reached a record $731 million, up from $152 million a year earlier. Carlyle reported after-tax distributable earnings per share of $1.54, which exceeded the average Wall Street analyst forecast of $1.02, according to Refinitiv. The economic rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic and low interest rates have allowed many private equity firms like Carlyle to sell investments for top dollar and pushed merger and acquisition activity to new highs. Blackstone Group Inc., the world’s largest private equity firm, reported last week that its distributable earnings more than doubled to an all-time high in the third quarter, owing to strong asset sales. Washington-based Carlyle said it generated a record $14 billion from selling assets in the quarter, including its minority stake in supplement maker The …