With all the turmoil in in markets, one might wonder which broker-dealers are thriving, which are merely surviving and which are shutting their doors.
Investment Advisor magazine releases its 2012 Broker-Dealer Reference Guide, a review of the top 25 BDs in five major categories using numbers through 2011, to help you sort it all out and ensure a lasting and profitable relationship for you and your clients. All data is as of April 1, 2012, and was supplied by the broker-dealers themselves. (Investment Advisor has not independently confirmed the data.)
Here, AdvisorOne hightlights the Top 10 BDs in annual gross production of their advisors of the 25 listed in the Reference Guide. AdvisorOne will look at the Top 10 in other categories in the days ahead. Check out Top 10 Independent BDs by Annual Revenue.
Once again, diversification is the word of the day (decade), not just for the client's portfolio, but for advisor revenue streams. The "wirehouse exodus" may have some effect in this category this year. Chip Roame told us for this year's IA 25 (see "The 2012 IA 25," Investment Advisor, May 2012) that the overall number of breakaway brokers might not be big, but the assets they take with them certainly are. Those assets have an outsize impact when moved because of the independent channel's smaller size.
(Bradley Shepherd, CEO of Founders Financial)
10. Founders Financial Securities
Avg. Annual Gross Production per Advisor: $232,000
Avg. AUM per Advisor ($ in Millions): NA
AUM in Fee-Based Program ($ in Billions): $0.4
Excess Capital ($ in Millions): NA
9. M Holdings Securities
Avg. Annual Gross Production per Advisor: $235,506
Avg. AUM per Advisor (in Mil): $13.6
AUM in Fee-Based Program (in Bil): $2.3
Excess Capital (in Mil): $1.3
All data is as of April 1, 2012, and was supplied by the broker-dealers themselves. (Investment Advisor has not independently confirmed the data.)
(Screenshot of Securities America website)
8. Securities America
Avg. Annual Gross Production per Advisor: $242,752
Avg. AUM per Advisor (in Mil): $15.5
AUM in Fee-Based Program (in Bil): $13.3
Excess Capital (in Mil): $8.0
7. NFP Advisor Service Group (and Affiliates)
Avg. Annual Gross Production per Advisor: $274,483
Avg. AUM per Advisor (in Mil): $10.5
AUM in Fee-Based Program (in Bil): $9.7
Excess Capital (in Mil): $23.4 
(Screenshot of Prospera Financial website)
6. Prospera Financial Services
Avg. Annual Gross Production per Advisor: $274,694
Avg. AUM per Advisor (in Mil): $9.0
