The largest listed brokerage lost a major investor after the painful bank shake-up last month.
Charles Schwab is gearing up to report its financial results for the first quarter today. But the discount brokerage is still scrambling to patch up its business after it had to endure a torrent of withdrawals from its declining client base. This led to a stomach-churning 33% loss in March alone.
Last month’s collapse of three regional banks bruised Charles Schwab to the point where it lost one of its largest shareholders. GQG Partners, a Florida-based fund, abandoned ship and sold its $1.4bn stake, or 1%, of SCHW amid fears that unrealized losses might cripple the brokerage’s future growth.
In that context, Charles Schwab, the biggest publicly traded brokerage, is expected to post sharply reduced income for the first quarter. Analysts predict a $1.6bn quarterly profit, down from a prior estimation of more than $2bn. The longer-term forecast will be keenly-watched, too.
