RJ and Makay

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Investors’ satisfaction level with their full service brokerages has remained flat since last year and also since the midst of the financial crisis in 2008, according to the latest J.D. Power and Associates investor satisfaction study.  Edward Jones scored highest this year, propelled by the best score in the “client satisfaction with advisor” subcategory.  The study found that advisors are spending more face time with clients over their portfolios and investment performance.

Registered representatives won't have to operate under a fiduciary standard until at least the second half of 2012, and even that might be pushing it, says Richard Ketchum, chief executive of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). For that change to occur, "the SEC would have to move through an implementation phase that would register one or more SROs (self-regulatory organizations)," Ketchum explained. "That process would take a period of time.”

On January 21, the SEC made formal recommendations for brokers and advisors to be held to a uniform fiduciary standard. It also proposed that FINRA be made the SRO for some investment advisors to help improve the regulation of that profession.

The top 100 wirehouse reps in Americawere ranked by Registered Rep and published this month. The wirehouses are comprised of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo and UBS. Retail focused advisors were ranked by assets under management.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney dominates the other wirehouses in top producing advisors. More than half of the top 100 belong to MSSB alone. Morgan Stanley has 60% of the top 10 and the top 20.

The wirehouse representations of the top 100 advisors are:

• MSSB: 51%
• Merrill: 26%
• UBS: 20%
• Wells Fargo: 3%

The advisors on the list at MSSB and UBS had average assets over $2 billion each. Merrill averaged $1.8 billion AUM per advisor and Wells Fargo at $1.3 billion.