Edward Jones
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Edward Jones is a full-service financial services firm that caters to individual investors to build long term investment portfolios. The privately owned firm was founded in 1922 in St. Louis, Missouri where they are still headquartered. Today there are approximately 9,500 offices in North America and the United Kingdom. There is a small city strategy employed with office locations.
Edward Jones is recognized for buying quality securities for long term gains. In the Wall Street Journal evaluation cited above, Edward Jones was No. 1 for the lowest portfolio turnover during the measured five year period and also was No. 1 for highest asset gain at 85.1 percent, versus 14 other major brokerage firms.
Edward Jones through Dave Wideman does not charge consultative fees. Their fee generation is gained through the purchase or sale of financial securities. “There is no charge to talk.” There is no minimum investment threshold. The average investor account size for Dave in Warren County is $50,000.
Dave currently has about 1,000 clients representing about 500 households. Each client receives a monthly investment perspective newsletter with a lot of meaningful information. Each client receives a monthly statement for any month with account activity. Dave will also meet with clients on an as needed basis to discuss their investment needs and how well they are meeting their financial goals. Clients can also access their current account status with an on-line service called Account-Link.
When Dave joined Edward Jones 25 years ago, he had two goals. The first was to build a successful business in McMinnville. The second goal was to provide exceptional, personalized service to each investor who chose to do business with Edward Jones. As Dave’s business has grown, it has been increasingly difficult to provide top notch service, so Dave asked John Simmons to join Edward Jones.
John Simmons works out of Dave’s office and helps serve the needs of existing clients as well as new ones. John will eventually open another Edward Jones office in the local area.
How does someone start a business relationship with Edward Jones and Dave Wideman? The first meeting or more are used to develop a detailed and confidential investment portfolio assessment. This document sets the basis for downstream planning and financial decisions, which are then formally tracked back to the plan.
Dave, by the way, holds a bachelor’s degree in business. He is a Vietnam veteran and a sports car enthusiast. What kinds of services are offered by Edward Jones?
The list below is most impressive and includes: annuities, 401(k) plans, money market funds, IRAs, profit sharing plans, mutual funds, bonds, CDs (very active), stocks, trusts, insurance of all types, credit cards, college plans, loans/credit lines, cash management plans, estate planning, equity research, home mortgages, asset accounts, portfolio reviews, systematic investing, bond issues, succession planning, asset protection plans.
The above listing reflects the strategy of services aimed at individual investors. Services not offered include options, commodities, penny stocks, mergers & acquisitions, IPOs, or proprietary products owned by Edward Jones. The minimum stock purchase price per share is $4. Most of the above exclusions are due to higher than desired individual portfolio risk.
One of the newer services on the services list is home mortgages. An advantage of dealing with Edward Jones for a home mortgage is fast approval and processing. Their current available mortgage rate fixed for a ten year mortgage is 7.99 percent.
A key advantage of representing Edward Jones, according to Dave Wideman, is the fact a specialist can be brought in to help set up or develop any of the services offered. Dave has a considerable back-up force behind him within the company.
Edward Jones marketing program is based largely on customer referrals and “door knocking.” Their success stories for clients are based on long term success, with focus on achieving the desired retirement plans when reaching retirement. Client portfolios achieve planned success even with economic short term surprises. Underlining the Edward Jones approach to long term investment strategies is the fact that mutual funds, the core of retirement oriented investments, are held for an average of 17 years by their purchasers.
I asked Dave how he kept up with the latest market developments and intra-company advisories. Dave has a “smart” computer terminal on his office desk with full internet access. The office has a video system to receive telecast programs from Edward Jones that cover a variety of subjects, including client education. Dave receives overnite reports from Edward Jones, as well as on-line updates daily. He has a whole team of experts backing him up.
Dave sees his main competition as being banks and insurance companies. Edward Jones growing customer first reputation has helped the firm grow in a crowded financial services arena.
Edward Jones has and uses a specific target strategy – the individual investor. Dave Wideman welcomes new clients to visit him to consider the many services available. Dave is very active in the local business community, including the Business Roundtable Action Committee. He is a difference maker. We thank Dave for his continuing contribution to McMinnville and Warren County.