Edward Jones Investments
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P. | |
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| Type | Partnership |
| Founded | 1871 |
| Headquarters | St. Louis, Missouri |
| Key people | James D. Weddle, Managing Partner Steven Novik, Partner, Finance & Accounting Ken Dude, Partner, Human Resources Bradley S. Scott, Partner, Recruiting |
| Industry | Investment services |
| Revenue |  $3.5 billion USD (2006) |
| Employees | 34,000 (2006) |
| Website | www.edwardjones.com |
Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P. is a brokerage firm based out of St. Louis, Missouri which serves investment clients in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom through its branch network of nearly 10,000 locations. The firm focuses solely on individual investors and small-business owners. Edward Jones is a member of the New York Stock Exchange and all other major stock exchanges.
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[edit] Business model
Edward Jones financial advisors sell commission-based and fee-based financial products. Over 50% of total company business comes from the sale of mutual funds. Of those the majority of sales comes from American Funds mutual funds. Offices are usually staffed by two company employees: one Financial Adviser (a licensed broker) and one Branch-Office Administrator. The one-broker-per-office model allows clients to choose their broker directly and deal with just that broker. This model also allows the firm to open offices in areas and towns where a large office staffed by many brokers would be unprofitable. This model is also the reason that Edward Jones currently has the largest number of branch offices among brokerage firms in the United States.
[edit] Awards and rankings
- Designated the firm with "Highest in Investor Satisfaction" by J.D. Power and Associates in 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2007
- Awarded 5-star honors in stock picking, customer satisfaction, trust, and easy to understand customer statements by SmartMoney magazine in August of 2005. Repeated for top honors in 2007
- Named, for the eighth year, one of the "Best Companies to Work for in America" by Fortune magazine in its annual listing. The firm took the No. 4 spot overall in the ranking (2008). The firm also was named to the No. 2 spot for large companies. The eight FORTUNE rankings include top 10 finishes for six years and consecutive number one rankings in 2002 and 2003.
- Ranked No. 1 in the independent category on Investment Executive's annual survey of brokers in 2006
- Ranked among the best advocates for its customers, according to a national research study of U.S. financial-services firms by Forrester Research in 2004, 2005, and 2006
- For the 14th consecutive year in 2006, ranked No. 1 among the nation's top seven brokerage firms by industry magazine Registered Representative.
- Ranked #6 in Business Week magazine's list of Customer Service Excellence.
[edit] History
Edward Jones was founded by Edward D. Jones in 1922. A merger with Whittaker and Company in 1941 enables the company to claim to trace its roots back to 1871. Edward Jones' son Edward D. "Ted" Jones was responsible for the creation of the individual branch network which has spread across rural communities and suburbs throughout the US, Canada, and United Kingdom. The first single broker office was opened by Ted, and staffed by Zeke McIntyre, in Mexico, Missouri. Ted opened another branch office in Pueblo, Colorado, with his brother-in-law Pete Key as manager of the multi-broker office. When Edward D. Jones, Sr., found the teletype line bill, he insisted Ted either shut the office down or find some way to pay for it. Ted Jones paid for it by opening one-broker offices on either side of the teletype line stretching from St. Louis, Missouri, to Pueblo, Colorado. That is why some of the earliest Edward Jones offices were Dodge City, Hays, Great Bend, and Manhattan, Kansas and Columbia, Missouri. Edward Jones Investments has designated naming rights for the Edward Jones Dome (formerly known as the TransWorld Dome and Dome at America's Center) in St Louis.
[edit] Regulatory issues
In 2004, it was revealed that financial regulators were investigating mutual fund sales practices at Edward Jones. Since the mid 1990's Edward Jones has represented nearly 240 different mutual fund families, but seven of them, American Funds, Federated Investors, Goldman Sachs Funds, Hartford, Lord Abbett, Putnam Funds and Van Kampen Investments, were designated "Preferred Families". In addition to the normal commissions and fees, Edward Jones received extra incentives to promote and sell funds from the "Preferred Families". During this time, over 95% of mutual fund sales were made from these families. This arrangement was not routinely disclosed to prospective investors, and for that reason was in violation of SEC regulations. As a result, Edward Jones settled the charges brought by the SEC for $75 million, and is in the final stages of settling a class action lawsuit brought by affected investors.[1]
