Wirehouses Post Mixed Q3 Results

The total number of financial advisors stands at 15,807, up 36 from Q2’15 but down 355 from a year ago. Total client assets are $1.9 trillion, down about 5% from Q2 and 4% from Q3’14.

Yearly fees and commissions per FA are $922 million, a drop of 6% sequentially and 1% from the prior year. Average assets per FA are $122 million, down 5% from the earlier quarter and 2% from a year ago.

Client loans were $61 billion in Q3, up 5% sequentially and up 27% from last year. Fee-based asset flows, though, declined to $7.7 billion vs. $13.9 billion sequentially but rose from $6.5 billion a year earlier.

UBS

UBS’ wealth-management operations said it had an adjusted pretax profit of $287 million in the third quarter, up 24% from the prior period and 7% from the year-ago quarter. Its reported pretax profit increased to $268 million, a jump of 31% from Q2’15 and 6% from Q3’14.

The unit’s total revenue was $1.94 billion, down slightly from $1.95 billion in the prior quarter but up a bit from $1.92 billion a year earlier. Recurring fees represent $1.23 billion, or 63%, of total sales, according to UBS. Total assets were $992 billion as of Sept. 30, down 5% from the prior quarter and 2% from a year ago.

On a per-advisor basis, average yearly fees and commissions are more than $1.1 million, down 1% the prior quarter but up 3% from last year. The company says this unit “continues to have the most productive advisors in the Americas wealth management industry.” Invested assets per registered rep are about $142 million. down 5% from the prior quarter and 1% from the year-ago period.

The unit’s net new money flows were $500 million in the third quarter, and its number of reps stands at 6,989 — up 41 from 6,948 in the prior period but a drop from 7,114 in Q3’14.

In other news, UBS says Robert J. McCann is now chairman of UBS Americas. He has decided to step down from his roles as president of Wealth Management Americas and UBS Americas. Tom Naratil, who has served recently as group chief financial officer and group chief operating officer, succeeds McCann as president of the two groups; Naratil joined UBS in 2000 after 17 years at Paine Webber.