RIA Valuation Insights

A weekly update on issues important to the Investment Management industry

Category

Call Reports


Buyer’s Remorse? CI Financial’s M&A Binge

On the earnings call last week, CI Financial reiterated intentions to separate its U.S. wealth management business and Canadian asset management business through an IPO of its U.S. wealth management business. While CI has had apparent success at completing deals, investors have not been on board with the strategy. The firm’s deal pace is slowing, and the focus has shifted to deleveraging and attempting to unlock the value of the U.S. wealth management business built through the planned spinoff.

COVID-19 Coverage

Are Public RIA Dividend Yields a Mirage?

Investors Quarantine Their Positions Despite the Search for Income, Strong Fundamentals

Since the Coronavirus pandemic settled into the American consciousness in mid-March, industry pundits have been actively musing about the impact of the crisis on the RIA community.  RIA operations are mostly unaffected by this pandemic, and RIA financial performance has been supported by massive central bank intervention.  None of this explains the pricing of publicly traded RIAs, however; especially when you look at the impact that slumping valuations have had on RIA dividend yields.

Practice Management

Q3 2019 Call Reports

Differentiated Strategies of Asset Managers, Wealth Managers, and RIA Consolidators

During Q3 2019, most classes of RIA stocks underperformed major equity markets, which are having their best year, so far at least, in more than two decades. In general, base fees for RIAs were up due to higher average AUM (driven by market growth), however, each sector experienced unique challenges. As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary from investment management pacesetters to scope out the dominate trends.

Q1 2019 Call Reports

RIAs Respond to the Changing Industry Landscape with Varied Measures

During Q1 2019, most classes of RIA stocks underperformed the market despite its relatively sharp increase through the first three months. Investors still seemed concerned about the RIA industry’s prospects in the face of fee compression and continued asset outflows.  RIAs are responding to this pressure in different ways.  Some are actively expanding product offerings to meet clients’ changing demands; others are staying true to the traditional RIA model and responding to revenue pressure by developing cost efficiencies. As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of investment management pacesetters to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

Q4 2018 Call Reports

Volatility Drives Investors to Low-Fee Passive Strategies

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacesetters in investment management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

Q3 2018 Call Reports

Coping with Rising Volatility and Fee Pressure

While equity market volatility was relatively subdued during the third quarter, 2018 as a whole has seen much higher volatility than last year.  This volatility may be an opportunity for active asset managers, although the industry continues to face fee pressures and increasing costs.  Scale is increasingly important for asset managers as assets flow into lower fee products due to secular trends in the industry and de-risking during recent periods of heightened volatility.

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacesetters in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

2Q18 Call Reports

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacesetters in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

1Q18 Call Reports

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacesetters in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry. This quarter the conversations center around market volatility, regulatory developments, and the potential cash flow into fixed income products.

Q4 Call Reports

Triadic Effects of the New Tax Law

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has been especially beneficial to the RIA sector, as lower corporate tax rates has had a positive impact on equity markets, boosting AUM and earnings, which are now taxed at lower rates.  Many firms are still assessing the full impact of tax reform, but what is clear is that lower corporate tax rates in 2018 will give asset mangers increased flexibility in capital management, M&A activity, and technology investment.  As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacesetters in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

3Q17 Call Reports

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacesetters in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

2Q17 Call Reports

The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary on pacemakers in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

1Q Call Reports

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacemakers in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

Q4 Call Reports

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacemakers in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry.

3Q16 Call Reports

The Times They are A-Changin’

As we do every quarter, we take a look at some of the earnings commentary of pacemakers in asset management to gain further insight into the challenges and opportunities developing in the industry. Some of the trends this quarter include the Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule, passive management favoritism, and industry consolidation.

2016 Q1 Analyst Call Report

Our quarterly summary of analyst calls is as revealing as usual, as pacemakers in the asset management sector review this quarter’s performance and how it may shape the year ahead. Madeleine Harrigan highlights four RIA market trends discussed by expert analysts.

Earnings Calls 4Q15

Year-end 2015 closed out a quarter of elevated market volatility and falling asset prices in the traditional asset management industry. The year was marked by a rising flight to passive strategies and overall falling net inflows that pressured margins, causing many managers to take a hard look at their expenses and compensation structures going into 2016. Looking ahead, traditional asset managers are also facing headwinds from a slowdown in the global market, and a subdued (but cautiously optimistic) outlook at home. As we did last quarter, we take a look at pacemakers in the traditional asset management industry and outline four key themes we believe are expected to define 2016.

What Industry Leadership is Saying about Asset Management

3Q15 Earnings Calls

As the dust settles in the aftermath of the third quarter, we take a look at several earnings calls from pace makers in the RIA industry. Changes in the character of the financial markets is driving change in firm business models, and out of this we see a few common themes that we expect will play a role in shaping the industry going forward.

Investment Management

Mercer Capital provides RIAs, trust companies, and investment consultants with corporate valuation, litigation support, transaction advisory, and related services