January giveth, but Feburary taketh away.
Last month's Super Bowl ads may have helped E*TRADE
The discount broker posted a 20% sequential dip in daily average revenue trades for the month of February. The showing fell 15% below its year-ago numbers. Rival TD AMERITRADE
Traders seemed poised for a rebound earlier this year. E*TRADE, TD AMERITRADE, Schwab, and Interactive Brokers
Brisk trading in January and favorable implications behind Fed actions in February found Goldman Sachs warming up to the sector. The megabrokerage had previously talked down the price targets of Schwab, E*TRADE, TD AMERITRADE, TradeStation
Trading is supposed to be volatile, and one can argue that broad market declines in January jolted passive investors into action. Once stocks began to inch higher again, it seems that discount brokerage clients tapped the snooze bar and went back to sleep.
Clearly, the discounters would prefer not to see trading activity spike only when there's an exodus. It would be refreshing for trading activity pick up during what has been a somewhat smooth March. At least February's weakness gives the sequential metric a bit of a sandbag. It may be harder to compete year over year, since last March marked the bottom of stocks' slide before they began their torrid run upward over the past year.
So thanks for nothing, February. Bring on March!
In the market for a new discount broker? The way that rates and initial deposits are bouncing around, I don't blame you. Check the sponsored broker comparison table in the Discount Broker Center to find the bargain-minded brokerage outfit that's right for you.