E*Trade makes the grade
Anticipation of positive results pushes E*Trade stock up over 11 percent.
The company's stock gained 2 points during trading today to close at 20-1/8, up from yesterday's close of 18-1/8. Volume was heavy, with nearly 2 million shares trading hands--more than double its average daily volume.
Net income for the fiscal third quarter ending June 30 was $3.1 million, or 9 cents per share, compared with a loss of $2.4 million, or 8 cents a share, for the same quarter last year. Wall Street was expecting 9 cents a share, according to First Call.
Results would have been even higher--16 cents a share--had it not been for a one-time charge of $4.3 million, due to the company's lapsed annual registration in the state of Ohio. The company said the charge was the result of a clerical oversight.
Revenues for the quarter was $37 million, more than double its results a year earlier of $15.5 million. And revenues were up 15 percent from $32.2 million in the previous quarter.
E*Trade held 182,000 active accounts with assets of $5.5 billion at the end of June, up from the previous quarter's 145,000 accounts.
A recently completed alliance in Australia also generated $2 million in licensing revenues in the third quarter, and E*Trade said it expects to continue receiving royalty payments from the alliance.