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Wells Fargo Assets Under Management (AUM)
2023 Wells Fargo total assets under management (custody). Wells Fargo AUM: client assets and number of customers (user accounts).
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Wells Fargo Assets Under Management (AUM)
| Wells Fargo assets under management |
$3 trillion |
| Wells Fargo number of users |
71 million |
Wells Fargo is a huge brokerage house by AUM. It is even comparable to
Charles Schwab, who has
7.58 trillion in AUM and over 34.1 million customers.
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Wells Fargo Investing
Wells Fargo offers three ways to invest. The first option is through its on-line discount brokerage
arm WellsTrade. The second is through Wells Fargo Advisors Solutions, which provides consultations
with investment advisors over the phone. The final way is to set up an account with Wells Fargo Advisors,
which provides both phone service and in-person consultations with a financial advisor at one of the
company’s branch locations. There is at least one location in every state and the District of Columbia.
These three options combine to produce a very large brokerage firm. The company has close to 15,000
financial advisors across the country. This makes Wells Fargo the third largest full-service provider of
retail investment services in the United States. In total, Wells Fargo has $3 trillion (yes trillion
with a t) in client assets. According to the financial newspaper Barron’s, Wells Fargo is the fourth largest wealth management provider in America.
Top Rated Brokerage Firms
Comparison
When we compare WellsTrade against some of its major competitors, the judgment isn't very good for the former. WellsTrade is more expensive than Fidelity, Schwab, and Firstrade. While it's true that WellsTrade offers a discount, many traders won't meet the minimum level of funding.
Trading tools at WellsTrade just don't measure up to today's standards. Most brokers offer at least a browser-based platform (Ally Invest is one example). Other brokers like TradeStation have a desktop platform.
Not providing any commission-free ETFs puts WellsTrade behind a long list of brokerage firms that do offer some. They include E*Trade and Vanguard. Firstrade offers over 700 (!) commission-free ETFs.
WellsTrade has done a good job rolling out Intuitive Investor. But the program is more expensive than
M1 Finance that charges nothing.
Although WellsTrade has a decent educational section, other brokers offer more resources. Fidelity, for example, provides videos, webinars, and self-guided courses. Merrill Edge also has an extensive learning center.
WellsTrade Pros
WellsTrade's commission schedule offers a deep discount to Wells Fargo customers with significant assets. Other brokerage houses provide no discounts at all.
These firms include Charles Schwab and Fidelity Investments.
The mutual fund selection at WellsTrade is larger than what's available at several of its rivals. Merrill Edge and Schwab, for example, provide fewer funds. WellsTrade's mutual fund search tools are also very good.
It's nice to have customer service available around the clock. Several brokerage firms today don't have this luxury. Vanguard and Firstrade are two examples.
WellsTrade Cons
WellsTrade doesn't offer any commission-free ETFs. This is a major failure in an era where many brokerage firms do provide at least some exchange-traded
funds that are free to trade. Charles Schwab offers good selection, and the lowest-cost
Firstrade
also has the largest list.
The WellsTrade order form only offers four order types. This is a smaller number, and many brokers have software that provides many more.
Charles Schwab's thinkorswim platform has 8, and TradeStation's desktop platform has no less than 20 different order types.
There are just two time-in-force choices on the WellsTrade order ticket. TradeStation, by comparison, offers twelve.
WellsTrade's mobile app doesn't have live streaming of business news or advanced charting. Charles Schwab's thinkorswim mobile platform has both for free. E*Trade charges for live streaming of CNBC.
The lack of a desktop trading platform, a browser-based platform, and a browser-based trading ticket are all failures at WellsTrade. Other brokers do offer
these products, and oftentimes at no charge. Interactive Brokers has a desktop platform, TradeStation
has a browser-based platform, and Merrill Edge has a sophisticated trading ticket.
WellsTrade's IRA selection is rather small. Other brokers, such as Vanguard, offer more account types. Charles Schwab and Firstrade charge nothing to close an IRA.
Recommendation
Mutual fund investors will probably find the best luck at WellsTrade. With the broker's large list of funds plus a good screener and a moderate
transaction fee for non-NTF products, the broker delivers a lot here. Nevertheless, some brokers (Charles Schwab and Firstrade, for example) do offer
more funds. Firstrade is much better priced: $0 per trancation versus $35 at Wellstrade.
We cannot recommend the broker for beginners due to the lack of investment education tools. Active traders who need good software will be disappointed here, too.
It's hard to recommend WellsTrade for self-directed retirement savers due to the lack of retirement resources on the broker's website. Vanguard, for example, has over ten retirement calculators on its site.
Small accounts will benefit from WellsTrade's no-fee and no-minimum account policies if they sign up for electronic statements.
Wells Fargo Brokerage Review Summary
In 2023 the broker has tried but failed to impress. Investors who expect a home run because of the Wells
Fargo name will be disappointed. The financial conglomerate has a long list of problems on its banking side, and it obviously hasn't placed a
lot of emphasis on its low-cost discount brokerage arm. Banking customers with sizeable
assets may find a decent value, but many brokerage features will still be missing. Most traders should simply pass on this one.
Chad Morris is a financial writer with more than 20 years experience
as both an English teacher and an avid trader. When he isn’t writing
expert content for Brokerage-Review.com, Chad can usually be found
managing his portfolio or building a new home computer.
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