Record annual profit may not be the first words you want to see associated with your investment custodian. But imagine if it were the reverse or record losses? You don’t want to play games with your money. Stick with the best, Fidelity Investments, a family-run firm to this day. Hannah Erin Lang reports in The Wall Street Journal:
Fidelity Investments posted record annual operating profit and revenue last year after the stock market’s rally drew more money into its funds and spurred trading activity by its customers.
FMR LLC, Fidelity’s parent company, said Tuesday that operating income rose 21% to $10.3 billion. Revenue jumped 16%, to $32.7 billion.
Robust market conditions produced a banner year for many financial firms, including money managers such as BlackRock and brokerage firms such as Charles Schwab and Robinhood Markets. Fidelity, an investing conglomerate, manages its own mutual and exchange-traded funds, oversees corporate-retirement plans and provides brokerage accounts to millions of Americans.
A closely held company controlled by the Johnson family, Fidelity doesn’t provide as many details on its financial results as its publicly traded peers. But once a year, the firm offers a snapshot of its performance to its employees.
In a letter that accompanied the annual report, Fidelity Chief Executive Abigail Johnson said the company’s results were bolstered by strong returns from its actively managed stock and bond funds. Customers flocked to Fidelity’s money-market and index funds, and its managed accounts, she wrote. Daily average trades were 3.5 million, a 35% increase from the year prior.
“Fidelity’s financial strength and operational stability allow us to deliver products and services that meet the needs of our customers through all phases of their lives and all types of economic environments,” Johnson wrote.
Action Line: When you’re ready to talk about you, and Fidelity, email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com.
