Charles Schwab reported record fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results on Wednesday, fueled by strong client asset growth and heavier trading activity, but its latest numbers came in slightly below analyst expectations.
The company posted adjusted fourth-quarter earnings of $1.39 a share, up from $1.01 a year earlier but a cent below the $1.40 consensus estimate put together by FactSet. Net revenue for the quarter rose 19% year over year to $6.34 billion, also just under Wall Street’s $6.38 billion forecast.
According to the Wednesday release, Schwab took in $2.5 billion in net income during the fourth quarter on a GAAP basis, or $1.33 per share, compared with $1.84 billion, or 94 cents per share, a year earlier. Full-year 2025 net income rose to $8.9 billion from $5.9 billion in 2024, while total revenue climbed 22% to a record $23.9 billion.
Despite the record top- and bottom-line figures, Schwab shares were down about 3% in premarket trading as investors digested the modest shortfall versus expectations and a sizable run-up in the stock over the past year. As reported by Barron's, the shares have gained roughly 37% over the past 12 months, outpacing the S&P 500.
Total client assets reached a record $11.9 trillion at year-end, up 18% from 2024. Core net new assets – a key organic growth metric Schwab highlights to investors and RIAs – totaled $163.9 billion in the fourth quarter and $519 billion for the full year, translating to 5.1% organic growth and landing just within the firm’s long-term 5% to 7% target range.
“Schwab delivered growth on all fronts in 2025,” president and CEO Rick Wurster said in the Wednesday earnings release, touting the fact that client accounts rose 6% year over year to 46.5 million.
Schwab continues to lean into advice and managed assets. The company said net inflows into its managed investing solutions grew 36% in 2025 compared with 2024, with quarterly inflows up 50% versus the prior-year period. Management framed that as evidence that more clients are consolidating assets on the platform and using Schwab for a broader set of planning and portfolio needs.
“Clients are conducting more of their financial lives at Schwab, with record engagement across wealth management, trading, and banking,” Wurster said.
Trading remained a major driver, with daily average trades amounting to 8.3 million in the fourth quarter, up 31% from a year earlier, while margin loan balances increased 34% year over year to end 2025 at $112.3 billion. That backdrop, combined with higher equity markets, helped lift asset management and administration fees 15% versus the fourth quarter of 2024, to $1.7 billion.
Net interest revenue — still a core earnings engine even as Schwab leans further into advice and managed investing — rose to $3.2 billion in the quarter, up 25% from a year earlier. Net interest margin expanded to 2.90%, 57 basis points higher than in the fourth quarter of 2024, as funding costs eased and client cash balances remained substantial. Client transactional sweep cash ended the year at $453.7 billion, up from the prior quarter.
On the Advisor Services side, client assets climbed 19% year over year to $5.2 trillion, underscoring Schwab’s central position in the RIA custody market even as independent advisors push for more choice across custodians. The firm ruffled some feathers late last year by introducing a $2 million minimum requirement for RIAs using its client referral program, after which it set another floor of $500 million for those assets at the client level.
The firm is also looking to deepen its lineup in private markets through its announced acquisition of Forge Global, which Schwab expects to close in the first half of 2026 and is positioning as an expansion of its alternatives platform.
Schwab continued to return capital aggressively. The company repurchased 29.2 million shares in the fourth quarter for $2.7 billion, bringing total 2025 capital return to $11.8 billion across dividends and buybacks. CFO Mike Verdeschi said that doing more business with existing and new clients has supported the company’s diversified revenue mix as markets have climbed.
"Our capital ratios remained strong while enhancing our balance sheet flexibility to meet the needs of clients in different environments," Verdeschi said.
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