Key Takeaways
- The firm’s adjusted earnings per share reached $1.43, exceeding analyst projections by $0.04
- First-quarter net revenue achieved an all-time high of $6.5B, representing a 16% yearly increase
- Client assets under management expanded 19% to reach $11.77 trillion
- The company executed $2.4B in share buybacks and boosted its dividend by 19%
- Average daily trading volume reached an unprecedented 9.9 million trades, marking a 34% jump from Q1 2025
Charles Schwab delivered impressive first-quarter results, with adjusted earnings per share reaching $1.43, surpassing analyst expectations of $1.39 by four cents.
On a GAAP basis, earnings per share registered at $1.37. The brokerage firm’s net revenue climbed to an unprecedented $6.5 billion, reflecting a 16% year-over-year gain and marginally topping the consensus forecast of $6.47 billion.
GAAP-based net income for the three-month period totaled $2.48 billion, representing a 30% annual improvement. On an adjusted basis, net income reached $2.59 billion, climbing 29% compared to the first quarter of 2025.
The Charles Schwab Corporation, SCHW
The firm’s pre-tax profit margin widened to 49.2% under GAAP accounting, up from 43.8% during the same quarter last year. The adjusted pre-tax margin reached 51.4%.
During the quarter, clients deposited $140 billion in core net new assets. When excluding a scheduled mutual fund clearing deconversion that caused a $17.5 billion outflow, net new assets actually totaled $157.5 billion.
The company added 1.3 million new brokerage accounts throughout Q1. Active brokerage accounts now total 39.1 million, while overall client accounts have reached 47.2 million.
Trading Volume and Asset Base Hit New Heights
Average daily trades reached an all-time high of 9.9 million during the quarter, climbing 34% compared to the first quarter of 2025. This surge drove trading revenue up 20% year-over-year.
Client assets under management grew 19% annually to $11.77 trillion. Fees from asset management and administration services increased 15% to $1.8 billion.
Net inflows into Managed Investing Solutions jumped 46% versus the prior-year quarter. Bank loan balances climbed 29% year-over-year, reaching $60.9 billion at the end of March.
Margin loan balances increased 13% from year-end 2025 levels to $126.7 billion, incorporating $21.3 billion associated with long/short strategies employed by registered investment advisor clients.
The net interest margin for the quarter registered at 2.88%. Client transactional sweep cash balances concluded March at $461.5 billion, representing a $7.8 billion increase from the previous quarter.
Shareholder Rewards and Dividend Increase
Schwab bought back 24.3 million common stock units for $2.4 billion throughout the first quarter. Additionally, the firm increased its quarterly common stock dividend by 19% to $0.32 per share.
Annualized return on average common stockholders’ equity came to 23%, improving from 18% in the year-ago quarter. Return on tangible common equity reached 40%.
The brokerage completed its purchase of Forge Global in early March. GAAP-based expenses increased 5% year-over-year, with adjusted expenses similarly rising 5% after backing out $143 million in acquisition and integration-related charges.
The firm also introduced the Schwab Teen Investor Account during the quarter, designed for users between 13 and 17 years old.
StockBrokers.com recognized the company as the top overall broker for the second consecutive year. March core net new assets of $79.7 billion represented the second-largest monthly total in company history.
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