Edward Jones enjoys growing profits and advisor headcount in first quarter

It's early days, but so far 2024 is looking like another good year for Edward Jones. In the first quarter, the financial services giant continued to gain both profits and financial advisors.

Edward Jones, which is based in St. Louis but operates in both the U.S. and Canada, unveiled its Q1 numbers on Friday in a 10-Q form filed with the SEC — and its winning streak appears to be going strong.

Just as it did for the first three quarters of 2023, the firm reported a double-digit increase in its bottom line. Net revenue (including both its Canadian and U.S. operations) rose to $3.79 million by the end of March 2024, a 15% jump over the same quarter last year.

Also continuing a trend from 2023, the firm saw a modest uptick in its advisor headcount. At the end of the quarter, Edward Jones was home to 19,456 financial advisors, a 3% increase over March 2023.

Client assets were also up. Assets under care at Edward Jones reached $2.03 trillion, an 18% leap over last year's first quarter.

"The Partnership is continuing to invest in new solutions, tools and products to help financial advisors better serve clients, and the Partnership remains focused on developing, rewarding and growing branch teams," the firm said in a statement.

But the news for Edward Jones was not all good. Advisor attrition crept higher to 5.5%, up from 5.2% last year.

And expenses rose to $3.33 billion, a 15% increase since Q1 of 2023. In its statement, Edward Jones presented this as a byproduct of its success.

"Operating expenses increased … primarily due to increases in financial advisor compensation and benefits expense and variable compensation," the firm said. "Financial advisor compensation increased primarily due to an increase in revenues on which commissions are earned. Variable compensation increased due to increased branch and overall Partnership profitability."

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The new numbers come on the heels of a very strong year for Edward Jones. In 2023, the firm saw a 15% increase in its net income, a 2% rise in its advisor headcount and a 17% jump in its client assets.

But some observers say there's trouble beneath the surface of these disclosures. The advisor attrition, in particular, concerns Jason Diamond, a vice president at the recruiting firm Diamond Consultants.

"I think what's happening with a lot of firms is that they're losing seasoned advisors and replacing them with junior, trainee-caliber advisors," Diamond said in January. "When we speak to Jones advisors … all of them see their colleagues — who are some of the top advisors at the firm — leaving, and they don't see quality advisors coming back in the door."