(August 16 – 09:45 ET) – TD Waterhouse Group Inc. is reporting improved net income for the third quarter ended July 31.
TD Waterhouse came in with earnings of 9¢ a share (all figures are in U.S. dollars), or 12¢ excluding goodwill, up 31% from the previous year. Revenues were up 42% to $346 million. Trades per day increased 44% to 156,800 year-over-year, with 74% of transactions online. New account openings were 172,000, at an average cost per new account of $136. Customer assets increased more than 44% year-over-year to $163 billion.
“While market activity slowed globally in our third fiscal quarter, a result of both decreased investment activity due to market volatility and a seasonal industry trend, the environment provided an opportunity for TD Waterhouse to continue improving our customer experience,” said CEO Stephen McDonald. “We also remained extremely focused on executing against our four key growth strategies: extending our global reach; expanding core and new growth segments; enhancing customer relationships; and leveraging technology.”
The company’s joint venture with Banque Generale du Luxembourg is scheduled to begin with telephone service in four languages in the fall. From there it will expand to branches, Interactive TV, wireless access and the Internet. Here at home, the firm surpassed one million accounts with the addition of CT Securities’ Market Partner discount brokerage business. It also trained over 2,200 employees in CT branches to cross sell TD Waterhouse brokerage products.
“Increasingly, the ability to generate profits through online operations is critical for the long-term success of companies with Internet businesses. We not only make money, but we’ve been successful at executing a clicks and bricks business strategy,” concluded McDonald. “We remain focused on the challenges ahead. We will continue to execute against our growth strategies, and build the brand and technology infrastructure we need to cement our position as a global online financial services powerhouse.”
-IE Staff