Schwab Says Trading Activity Off to Slow Start in 2015

By Lisa Beilfuss 

Charles Schwab Corp. said Friday that earnings for its first quarter are running a penny per share lower than its year-earlier results, as client trading activity has started out below expectations and as equity market returns were negative until early February.

Schwab is due to report first-quarter results on April 13.

The San Francisco, Calif.-based brokerage firm added that it would assess its spending in view of its developing revenue picture.

Shares of Schwab were down 1.8% at $30.49.

A year ago, Schwab reported earnings of 24 cents a share. For the current quarter ending March 31, analysts had forecast, on average, earnings of 25 cents a share on $1.6 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters.

Total client assets rose to $2.53 trillion through February, up 10% from a year earlier and up 4% from January.

Fellow broker E-Trade Financial Corp said Friday that daily average revenue trades fell 11% in January from the previous year but rose 4% in February from January.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at [e-mail]

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