Earnings from asset manager T. Rowe Price (NASDAQ:TROW) underscored that not everyone under the financial-services umbrella is smarting from the credit lockup and market turbulence in August. For the quarter, T. Rowe's earnings per share and revenue were up 37% and 27%, respectively. Though revenue was slightly less than Wall Street's estimates, earnings hit expectations right on the nose.
The company was hitting on all cylinders during the quarter. Overall revenue from investment advisory fees was up 29% from the prior year, with growth coming from both fees collected on mutual funds and managed investment portfolios. Total assets under management were up 4.5% from the prior quarter and 19% since the close of 2006. Administrative fees also increased 16%.
On the expense side, compensation and related costs rose almost 24% -- which management attributed to growth in head count -- but overall expenses grew less than 23%, showing some nice operating leverage for T. Rowe.
Looking out toward the next quarter, T. Rowe's CEO said the company continues to like stocks in the long term (big surprise there!), and that it sees continued global economic growth and expects the U.S. housing problems to work themselves out. Interestingly, he also said that the current market could benefit T. Rowe because of its "focus on selecting stocks with sound fundamentals and attractive valuations."
T. Rowe's stock is up more than 20% since mid-August, and it is not particularly cheap at 25 times expected 2007 earnings -- even as compared to competitors like BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) and Legg Mason (NYSE:LM). In its coverage of the company's earnings, though, The Wall Street Journal included a quote from Wachovia (NYSE:WB) analyst Doug Sipkin, who noted T. Rowe's strong fund flows, stock repurchases, lack of debt, and solid cash position. "This quarter," Sipkin said, "makes it clear why it is hard for us to downgrade TROW on valuation."
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