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Most retirees assume their IRA custodian withholds enough to cover their tax bill, and that assumption costs them thousands every April. The reason traces back to a single line on a form that almost nobody changes.

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Every April, the same scene plays out at kitchen tables across the country. A retiree who took a big IRA withdrawal the year before opens the tax software expecting a small bill and finds a balance due in the thousands. Nobody made a mistake. The custodian withheld exactly what federal law told it to, and that amount was never built to match what the retiree actually owed.

At Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW | SCHW Price Prediction), as at every IRA custodian, the default federal withholding on a one-time IRA withdrawal is 10%. If your income already sits in the 24% bracket, a $50,000 distribution leaves a $7,000 gap. Here’s where that number comes from, plus the one line on the form that closes it.

Where the 10% IRA Withholding Default Comes From
The rule lives under section §3405(b)(1), which tells the payer of any nonperiodic distribution to withhold 10% of it. A nonperiodic distribution is any withdrawal that isn’t part of a regular installment stream. That covers most of the lump sums retirees take out for a car, a roof or a wedding.

IRS Publication 505 for 2026 spells out the fix. You use Form W-4R, line 2, to pick a rate other than the default, and you can choose anywhere from 0% to 100%. Schwab’s IRA Distribution Form has the same election in its tax withholding section, which shows the 10% federal default. Schwab’s form also says your election “will remain in effect on all distributions from this IRA until you change or revoke it.”

That 10% lines up with the lowest federal bracket. If your income sits in any higher bracket, the default will come up short.

How a $50,000 IRA Withdrawal Becomes a $7,000 April Bill
Take a sample single filer in tax year 2026. Her pension, the taxable part of her Social Security and her investment income already add up to $110,000 of taxable income before she touches the IRA. Single taxpayers in 2026 pay 24% on income over $105,700, and the 32% rate starts in above $201,775.

Line
Amount

Taxable income before withdrawal
$110,000

IRA distribution
$50,000

Taxable income after withdrawal
$160,000

The $50,000, all taxed at 24% (federal)
$12,000

Withheld at the 10% default
$5,000

Still owed at filing
$7,000

Every dollar of the withdrawal lands in the 24% band, so it adds $12,000 of federal tax. Schwab sends $5,000 to the IRS, and the other $7,000 comes due in April. Brackets work like fill lines: only income above $105,700 gets taxed at 24%, and in this example the whole distribution sits above that line.

Married couples run into the same gap at higher incomes. The 24% bracket for joint filers begins at $211,400 of taxable income in 2026. In most states, state income tax adds to the bill, and state withholding rules differ by state.

Underpayment Penalties Can Stack on Top of the Balance Due
A big bill in April can also bring a penalty. Under IRS Publication 575, you generally need to make estimated payments for 2026 if you expect to owe at least $1,000 after withholding and credits. That applies when your withholding covers less than the smaller of 90% of your 2026 tax or 100% of your 2025 tax. If your 2025 adjusted gross income exceeded $150,000, the second test rises to 110%. A $7,000 shortfall clears the $1,000 threshold easily.

The 401(k) rules make a useful contrast. Distributions from a 401(k) that are eligible for rollover face a 20% default, and the IRS itself warns that this default “may be too low for your tax situation.” IRA withdrawals start at half that rate.

Three Ways to Close the Gap Before Year-End

Write your bracket on line 2. In the example, choosing 24% sends the full $12,000 to the IRS. If your state taxes IRA income, add a few points to cover it.
Enter “-0-” and pay estimates. The IRS allows a zero election on line 2. This fits retirees who want the full $50,000 now and plan to cover the tax with quarterly Form 1040-ES payments from a taxable account. Because Schwab’s election carries forward, reset it on the next request if you want withholding again.
Use a late-year withdrawal as a catch-up. The IRS generally handles withholding as paid evenly over the year, no matter when it actually happened. Heavy withholding on a December distribution or required minimum distribution can cover a shortfall from a withdrawal taken in spring.

It’s mid-October, so 2026 withholding can still be fixed. The most common mistake is reading the 10% on the confirmation screen as the tax itself. It’s a deposit toward your bill. Your bracket sets what you actually owe, and a CPA can run the bracket and safe-harbor math against your full-year income before the December request goes in. The default withholding rate is one of several IRS quirks that quietly drain retirement accounts, and our free guide covers the rest: The Retiree’s Tax Trap Map.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

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Charles Schwab is the largest self-directed brokerage in the US, controlling nearly 40 million active brokerage accounts. SCHW is on pace for two consecutive years of dividend increases. S&P has awarded Charles Schwab with a very strong, investment-grade credit rating of A- on senior unsecured debt.

Banque Pictet & Cie SA raised its holdings in shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW – Free Report) by 4.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 145,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,582 shares during the quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA’s holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $14,252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. USS Investment Management Ltd grew its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 4.6% during the first quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 288,035 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,068,000 after purchasing an additional 12,789 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. increased its stake in Charles Schwab by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 384,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,790,000 after acquiring an additional 14,538 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advisory Partners LLC bought a new stake in Charles Schwab in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,199,000. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC raised its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 112.0% during the 1st quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 89,498 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,411,000 after acquiring an additional 47,281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 91.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 204,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,195,000 after acquiring an additional 97,829 shares in the last quarter. 84.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Charles Schwab Stock Down 2.5% NYSE:SCHW opened at $91.81 on Friday. The Charles Schwab Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $83.96 and a fifty-two week high of $114.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $158.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $104.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.15.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.18 billion. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 39.33% and a return on equity of 25.79%. Charles Schwab’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Charles Schwab Corporation will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of research analysts have recently commented on SCHW shares. Compass Point assumed coverage on Charles Schwab in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $135.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $117.00 price target on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial set a $115.00 price target on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Charles Schwab from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $118.95.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on SCHW

Trending Headlines about Charles Schwab Here are the key news stories impacting Charles Schwab this week:

Positive Sentiment: Schwab reported adjusted third-quarter EPS of $1.69, exceeding the $1.66 analyst consensus, while revenue rose 16.9% year over year to a record $7.17 billion. Net income increased 23% to approximately $2.91 billion. Charles Schwab Stock Is Falling Friday: What’s Going On? Positive Sentiment: Client momentum remained a major strength: core net new assets reached a record $190.4 billion, up 38% year over year, total client assets climbed to $13.33 trillion, and the company added roughly 1.2 million brokerage accounts. Higher trading activity, lending, and net interest revenue supported the quarter. Schwab Delivers Record Net New Assets & Earnings Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive. JPMorgan reaffirmed an “overweight” rating with a $147 price target, while Citizens JMP maintained “market outperform” with a $120 target. Schwab is also expanding AI tools, tax-aware products, cryptocurrency services, and prediction-market capabilities, potentially creating additional engagement and revenue opportunities. Neutral Sentiment: Management said clients using AI-enabled trading tools are holding more cash rather than withdrawing funds, which could support Schwab’s deposit and lending franchise. However, the long-term financial impact of these new products remains unproven. Negative Sentiment: Revenue of $7.17 billion was slightly below the approximately $7.18 billion consensus estimate. Analysts characterized the quarter as “somewhat low quality,” citing less impressive net-interest-revenue trends and the possibility that strong market activity, rather than purely organic improvement, drove results. Charles Schwab’s Q3 Print was Somewhat Low Quality Negative Sentiment: Schwab indicated that full-year 2026 revenue and net-interest-margin growth could land at the lower end of its previous ranges. Truist reduced its price target, and some investors appear to be taking profits after the stock’s earlier gains. Insider Buying and Selling at Charles Schwab In other news, insider Dennis Howard sold 28,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.01, for a total value of $2,940,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,470 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,099,454.70. This trade represents a 72.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Peter J. Morgan III sold 6,952 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.03, for a total value of $709,312.56. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 645,582 shares of company stock valued at $69,553,935. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Charles Schwab Profile (Free Report)

Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) is a financial services company that provides brokerage, investment, banking and wealth management services to individual investors, employers, institutions and independent investment advisors. Its offerings include online and mobile trading, securities brokerage, retirement accounts, financial planning, portfolio management, banking products, research and access to mutual funds and exchange-traded funds.

The company operates through businesses including Schwab Brokerage, Schwab Wealth Advisory, Schwab Asset Management and Charles Schwab Bank.

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On its fall business update call held on Oct. 15, 2026, Schwab (SCHW -2.34%) announced record quarterly net revenue of $7.2 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $1.69. The business is expanding its market share across retail and advisory channels while converting scale into operating leverage. Three key takeaways from management stand out for long-term investors.

1. Artificial Intelligence Drives Client Engagement and Developer EfficiencySoftware developers at the firm are 25% more productive using large language models, which are software programs trained on vast data sets to generate text and code. Internal efficiency wins let the firm reinvest savings into client tools without expanding its core overhead.

AI is an opportunity for Schwab. It is attracting more people to investing while amplifying our strengths.
-- Rick Wurster, President and CEO2. Record Organic Inflows Fuel Wealth Management GrowthClients brought $190 billion in core net new assets, which represents fresh capital for the firm, excluding market movements. High client retention and deep wealth management relationships keep expanding the franchise across generations.

Managed investing net flows reached a quarterly record of $24 billion, and bank lending reached $72 billion, up 35% year over year.
-- Rick Wurster, President and CEO3. High-Margin Secured Lending Expands Net Interest IncomeBank lending and margin loans grew as clients tapped non-purpose lines backed by securities. These loans carry higher yields than traditional fixed-income securities, boosting net interest revenue, which is the interest earned on assets minus interest paid on deposits.

Net interest revenue grew 14% year-over-year to nearly $3.5 billion, reflecting sustained interest in our secured lending programs, including margin loans and the Bank's Pledged Asset Line.
-- Mike Verdeschi, CFOLooking AheadClient engagement remains high, with top-line growth and net interest margin, or net yield on earning assets, expanding. Scale and client trust deliver clear operating leverage.

We expect many of the positive trends to continue in the fourth quarter, driven by strong client engagement and growth across the platform, including in lending and trading.
-- Mike Verdeschi, CFOExpanding digital trading tools and wealth management services positions the firm for multiyear growth across market cycles.

Taken together, we are in a position of strength, hard for any competitor to match, and we have compelling growth opportunities ahead.
-- Rick Wurster, President and CEOCharles Schwab is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. The Motley Fool recommends Charles Schwab and recommends the following options: short September 2026 $95 calls on Charles Schwab. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE:SCHW) on Thursday reported mixed third-quarter results.

U.S. stocks traded mixed midway through trading, with the Dow Jones index gaining over 450 points on Thursday.

Key Takeaways Schwab's Q3 adjusted EPS rose 29% to $1.69, beating estimates, but revenues of $7.17B missed expectations.SCHW's net interest revenues climbed 14% to $3.48B, while trading revenues jumped 16% to $1.16B.Schwab's record core net new assets surged 38% to $190.4B, while adjusted expenses rose 9% to $3.24B.
Charles Schwab’s (SCHW - Free Report)  third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.69 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.66. The bottom line increased 29% year over year.

Despite the earnings beat, Schwab’s shares are down more than 4.5% in pre-market trading, possibly reflecting investor disappointment over the revenue miss. The modest earnings surprise, coupled with concerns about the sustainability of revenue growth amid an uncertain interest rate environment, may have further weighed on investor sentiment.

Quarterly results benefited from higher net interest revenues (NIR), solid asset management fees and increased trading activity. Record core net new assets were another positive. However, rising expenses were a headwind.

Results excluded transaction-related costs. After considering these, net income (GAAP basis) was $2.91 billion or $1.62 per share, up from $2.36 billion or $1.26 per share in the year-ago quarter.

SCHW's Revenues Rise, Expenses IncreaseQuarterly net revenues reached a record $7.17 billion, increasing 17% year over year. The top line marginally missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.19 billion. Revenue growth reflected higher NIR, asset management and administration fees, trading revenues and bank deposit account fees.

NIR rose 14% year over year to $3.48 billion, supported by higher average interest-earning assets and an improved net interest margin. Average interest-earning assets increased 8% to $451.5 billion. The net interest margin expanded to 3.04% from 2.88% a year ago.

Asset management and administration fees grew 14% to $1.91 billion, aided by organic growth and increased utilization of wealth and asset management solutions. Trading revenues jumped 16% to $1.16 billion, driven by higher client engagement. Bank deposit account fees surged 40% to $345 million, while other revenues increased 64% to $279 million.

Total non-interest expenses (GAAP basis) increased 9% year over year to $3.39 billion. Excluding acquisition and integration-related costs and amortization of acquired intangible assets, adjusted expenses were $3.24 billion, up 9%.

The adjusted pre-tax profit margin expanded to 54.8% from 51.3% in the prior-year quarter.

Schwab's Client Assets and Account Growth Remain SolidAs of Sept. 30, 2026, total client assets reached $13.33 trillion, increasing 15% year over year. Quarterly core net new assets were a record $190.4 billion, up 38%, representing an annualized organic growth rate of 5.8%.

Schwab added approximately 1.2 million new brokerage accounts during the quarter, up 9% year over year. The company ended September with 40.3 million active brokerage accounts, 2.4 million banking accounts and 5.9 million workplace plan participant accounts.

Daily average trading volume increased 44% year over year to approximately 10.7 million trades. Further, net flows into Schwab Wealth Advisory grew 55%, reflecting stronger client demand for advisory solutions.

SCHW's Lending and Capital Position Remain StrongBank loan balances increased 35% year over year to $72.3 billion as of Sept. 30, 2026. Margin loan balances reached $187.9 billion, rising 14% sequentially. These included $60.7 billion related to certain long/short strategies.

Client transactional sweep cash balances were $492.8 billion, increasing $7.1 billion sequentially. The preliminary consolidated Tier 1 leverage ratio was 8.9%, while the adjusted Tier 1 leverage ratio was 7%.

During the quarter, Schwab repurchased 4.7 million common shares for approximately $500 million, reflecting continued capital distributions.

Schwab's Product Expansion and Digital InitiativesSchwab continued expanding its product capabilities during the reported quarter. The company announced Single Stock Futures on its thinkorswim trading platform and plans to broaden the digital assets available through Schwab Crypto.

It also introduced Charley, an artificial intelligence-powered assistant designed to provide U.S. retail clients with conversational access to Schwab's tools and insights. Additionally, Schwab partnered with Anthropic to bring Claude for Financial Advisors to the independent registered investment advisors it serves.

These initiatives complement the company's expanding wealth, trading and banking offerings as it focuses on deepening client relationships and broadening engagement across its platform.

Our Take on SchwabA steady decline in funding costs and a favorable rate environment will likely support Schwab’s margins. Strategic acquisitions, expanding product line-up and sustainable capital distributions are other major positives. Rising expenses and near-term macroeconomic turmoil are headwinds.
 

Currently, Schwab carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Earnings Dates & Expectations of Schwab's PeersHere are some of Schwab’s peers that have yet to report quarterly results.

Robinhood (HOOD - Free Report) is slated to announce third-quarter 2026 numbers on Oct. 27.

In the past week, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Robinhood’s quarterly earnings has moved higher to 56 cents. This implies an 8.2% decrease from the prior-year quarter.

LPL Financial (LPLA - Free Report) is also scheduled to announce quarterly numbers on Oct. 27.

In the past seven days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for LPL Financial’s quarterly earnings has been revised lower at $5.69. This indicates a 9.4% rise on a year-over-year basis.

The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW) Discusses Client Growth, Strategic Positioning, and Record Financial Performance October 15, 2026 8:30 AM EDT

Company Participants

Kartik Sharma
Richard Wurster - CEO, President & Director
Michael Verdeschi - MD & Chief Financial Officer

Conference Call Participants

Kenneth Worthington - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division
Alexander Blostein - Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division
William Katz - TD Cowen, Research Division
Daniel Fannon - Jefferies LLC, Research Division
Steven Chubak - Wolfe Research, LLC
Benjamin Budish - Barclays Bank PLC, Research Division
Brennan Hawken - BMO Capital Markets Equity Research
Michael Cyprys - Morgan Stanley, Research Division
Devin Ryan - Citizens JMP Securities, LLC, Research Division
Brian Bedell - Deutsche Bank AG, Research Division
Michael Brown - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division

Presentation

Kartik Sharma

Hi. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Schwab's 2026 Fall Business Update. This is Kartik Sharma, Head of Investor Relations. And I am joined in Westlake today by our President and CEO, Rick Wurster; and our CFO, Mike Verdeschi.

A few housekeeping items before we get started. The slides for today's business update will be posted to the usual spot on the IR website at the conclusion of the call. [Operator Instructions]

And as always, the IR team is available to assist with any questions following today's update. Finally, please review our forward-looking statements page and remember that outcomes may differ from expectations, so please stay up-to-date with our disclosures.

And with that, I'll turn it over to Rick.

Richard Wurster
CEO, President & Director

Thank you, Kartik, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining the fall business update. I hope you've had a chance to review our results and agree that Schwab is in a position of strength. We are winning today and uniquely positioned among our peers to continue winning well into the future.

There are 4

Charles Schwab Corp (NYSE:SCHW), the US financial services and brokerage firm, reported record third-quarter revenue of $7.17 billion as net income rose 23% to $2.91 billion, supported by stronger client asset inflows, lending and interest income.

Revenue increased 17% year on year in the three months to September, while diluted earnings per share rose 29% to $1.62 from $1.26 a year earlier.

Adjusted earnings per share, which exclude certain transaction and acquisition-related costs and the amortisation of acquired intangible assets, also climbed 29% to $1.69, beating analysts’ expectations of $1.65, according to market estimates reported by Barron’s.

The company attracted a record $190.4 billion in core net new assets, up 38% from the same period last year, while total client assets increased 15% to $13.33 trillion.

Schwab opened 1.2 million new brokerage accounts during the quarter, bringing its total client accounts to 48.6 million, as the company continued to attract investors and expand relationships with existing customers.

Net interest revenue, the difference between income earned on loans and investments and interest paid on deposits and other borrowing, rose 14% to $3.48 billion, while net interest margin widened to 3.04% from 2.88% in the previous quarter.

Asset management and administration fees increased 14% to $1.91 billion, while trading revenue rose 16% year on year to $1.16 billion, although it fell 5% from the second quarter.

Daily average trades climbed 44% year on year to 10.7 million, reflecting stronger client activity, but revenue per trade declined 20% to $1.69.

Lending activity also strengthened, with bank loan balances rising 35% year on year to $72.3 billion and margin loan balances, which reflect borrowing against investment portfolios, increasing 93% to $187.9 billion.

Expenses excluding interest rose 9% to $3.39 billion, slower than revenue growth, helping lift the company’s generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) pre-tax profit margin to 52.7% from 49.2% a year earlier.

Schwab repurchased 4.7 million shares for $500 million during the quarter and continued investing in technology, including its Charley artificial intelligence assistant for US retail clients and a partnership with Anthropic to offer Claude for Financial Advisors to independent registered investment advisers.

Despite the strong results, Schwab shares fell about 2.4% in premarket trading as investors weighed the earnings beat against broader concerns affecting financial stocks.

The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW - Free Report) reported $7.17 billion in revenue for the quarter ended September 2026, representing a year-over-year increase of 16.9%. EPS of $1.69 for the same period compares to $1.31 a year ago.

The reported revenue represents a surprise of -0.26% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.19 billion. With the consensus EPS estimate being $1.66, the EPS surprise was +1.81%.

While investors scrutinize revenue and earnings changes year-over-year and how they compare with Wall Street expectations to determine their next move, some key metrics always offer a more accurate picture of a company's financial health.

As these metrics influence top- and bottom-line performance, comparing them to the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated helps investors project a stock's price performance more accurately.

Here is how Charles Schwab performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

Average Client Assets - Mutual Fund OneSource and other no-transaction-fee funds: $486.89 million versus $497.13 million estimated by four analysts on average.Average Client Assets - Total managed investing solutions: $967.1 million versus $897.97 million estimated by four analysts on average.Average Balance - Total interest-earning assets: $451.54 billion versus $455.64 billion estimated by four analysts on average.Total client assets: $13,333.20 billion versus the four-analyst average estimate of $13,428.70 billion.Net Revenues- Bank deposit account fees: $345 million versus $360.96 million estimated by six analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +39.7% change.Net Revenues- Other: $279 million versus the six-analyst average estimate of $228.18 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +64.1%.Net Revenues- Trading revenue: $1.16 billion compared to the $1.17 billion average estimate based on six analysts. The reported number represents a change of +16.4% year over year.Net Revenues- Asset management and administration fees: $1.91 billion compared to the $1.9 billion average estimate based on six analysts. The reported number represents a change of +14.4% year over year.Net Revenues- Net interest revenue: $3.48 billion compared to the $3.53 billion average estimate based on six analysts. The reported number represents a change of +14% year over year.Net Revenues- Asset management and administration fees- Mutual Fund OneSource and other no-transaction-fee funds: $277 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $285.75 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +7%.Net Revenues- Asset management and administration fees- Total managed investing solutions: $761 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $750.03 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +22.9%.Net Revenues- Asset management and administration fees- Schwab equity and bond funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and collective trust funds (CTFs): $167 million versus $166.36 million estimated by three analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +26.5% change.View all Key Company Metrics for Charles Schwab here>>>

Shares of Charles Schwab have returned -8% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +1.4% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicating that it could perform in line with the broader market in the near term.

WESTLAKE, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Charles Schwab Corporation reported record quarterly core net new assets of $190.4 billion, up 38% year-over-year.

Krilogy Financial LLC lessened its stake in shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW – Free Report) by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 73,618 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,887 shares during the period. Krilogy Financial LLC’s holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $7,145,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Charles Schwab by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,425,579 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,641,080,000 after purchasing an additional 484,558 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 22.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,162,082 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,518,913,000 after acquiring an additional 3,009,884 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Charles Schwab by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,623,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,468,252,000 after purchasing an additional 530,191 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE purchased a new stake in shares of Charles Schwab during the 2nd quarter worth about $987,930,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,862,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $685,645,000 after buying an additional 1,040,041 shares in the last quarter. 84.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $136.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 target price on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $128.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Evercore started coverage on Charles Schwab in a research report on Monday. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $107.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.00.

Get Our Latest Report on SCHW Key Charles Schwab News Here are the key news stories impacting Charles Schwab this week:

Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank raised its price target on Charles Schwab (SCHW) to $130 from $125, reinforcing the view that the stock has meaningful upside potential. Deutsche Bank Adjusts Price Target on Charles Schwab Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect third-quarter results to benefit from robust trading activity, higher net interest revenue and stronger asset-management fees. These trends could support revenue and earnings, although investors will also monitor expense growth. Can Robust Trading, Higher NIR Support Schwab’s Q3 Earnings? Positive Sentiment: Erste Group Bank increased its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast for Schwab to $7.96 from $7.85, indicating improving expectations for the company’s longer-term earnings power. Erste Group Bank Earnings Estimate Update Neutral Sentiment: Evercore initiated coverage with an “in line” or “hold” rating and a $107 price target. The target implies upside, but the rating suggests limited conviction that Schwab will materially outperform the broader market in the near term. Evercore ISI Initiates Charles Schwab at In Line Negative Sentiment: Truist maintained a “buy” rating but lowered its price target to $125 from $130. The target still represents substantial upside, though the reduction may weigh on sentiment because it signals slightly more cautious expectations. Truist Lowers Charles Schwab Price Target Negative Sentiment: Higher operating expenses remain a key risk for the upcoming earnings report and could offset gains from trading, net interest revenue and asset-management fees. Charles Schwab’s Next Earnings Report Could Send the Stock Soaring Charles Schwab Stock Down 1.0% Shares of SCHW opened at $96.06 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $105.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The Charles Schwab Corporation has a one year low of $83.96 and a one year high of $114.53. The company has a market capitalization of $166.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.47, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.79.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.06. Charles Schwab had a return on equity of 24.53% and a net margin of 38.79%. The company had revenue of $7.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Charles Schwab Corporation will post 6.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Charles Schwab’s payout ratio is currently 23.27%.

Insider Activity at Charles Schwab In other news, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 192,488 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.90, for a total transaction of $19,999,503.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 529,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,999,049.40. The trade was a 26.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nigel J. Murtagh sold 32,947 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.01, for a total transaction of $3,426,817.47. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 57,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,029,667.72. This trade represents a 36.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 645,582 shares of company stock worth $69,553,935. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Charles Schwab Profile (Free Report)

Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) is a financial services company that provides brokerage, investment, banking and wealth management services to individual investors, employers, institutions and independent investment advisors. Its offerings include online and mobile trading, securities brokerage, retirement accounts, financial planning, portfolio management, banking products, research and access to mutual funds and exchange-traded funds.

The company operates through businesses including Schwab Brokerage, Schwab Wealth Advisory, Schwab Asset Management and Charles Schwab Bank.

Read More Five stocks we like better than Charles Schwab A Chinese Rival Just Spooked Memory Stocks—How Worried Should Micron Investors Be? Could T-Mobile’s Satellite Competition Fears Create a Buying Opportunity? Surgical Precision, Sustainable Returns: Johnson & Johnson Secures Its Cash Flow Runway Tesla’s Robotaxi Lands in Paris—But Europe’s Real Fight Is Over Cheap EVs Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SCHW? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW – Free Report).

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A family tax advisor told her client to stay completely silent with the brokerage, but keeping quiet may be the one move that costs this family everything.

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A Ramsey Show caller’s family tax advisor gave her a blunt instruction about her father’s brokerage account: “Don’t even call them because it’s going to flag him as having dementia.” “Them” is Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW | SCHW Price Prediction). Her father is 77 and has an official dementia diagnosis. He still trades single stocks in that account.

The rest of the family picture shows what’s at risk. Her father has access to roughly $1.5 million in investable assets. Her mother is in remission from an aggressive cancer. The parents have moved into senior living, and their house closes this week. Two daughters hold durable powers of attorney, and the neurology clinic has already recommended that financial decisions be handed off. Dad is still placing trades.

Dave Ramsey’s answer was sobering. He said the law gives the family no power until a court sees medical evidence of incompetence, and “until then, people are allowed to do dumb things.”

Silence Protects Nothing but the Trading Habit
Here’s my verdict: Ramsey has the law right, and the tax advisor has the strategy backwards. Staying quiet leaves the whole $1.5 million exposed to a man his own doctors say should stop making financial decisions.

It helps to know how a power of attorney works. A durable POA lets the agent act on the father’s behalf. It doesn’t take away his own authority. Only a court-ordered guardianship or conservatorship does that, which is why Ramsey says the family’s hands are tied. The daughters can act alongside him, but he can keep clicking “buy.”

The regulatory tools are narrower than the advisor seems to fear. FINRA Rule 4512 requires firms to make reasonable efforts to collect a trusted contact person. Rule 2165 permits firms to place temporary holds when they reasonably believe a senior is being financially exploited. Since March 17, 2022, that has included holds on securities transactions, for up to 55 business days if the firm reports the matter to a state authority. These holds are discretionary and temporary, and they’re aimed at exploitation.

Schwab’s own account application says a trusted contact cannot view account information or execute transactions unless they also hold a role such as power of attorney. Schwab may contact that person to confirm the client’s “health status (including physical or mental capacity).” That system exists for exactly this situation. And for a diagnosed retired person trading single stocks, a temporary pause would protect him.

On Sept 30, Schwab CEO Rick Wurster told CNBC its new AI assistant will be “the foundation of how people interact with us.” The firm handles one-third of retail brokerage trades in the industry, and it averaged 11.9 million trades a day last quarter. While the brokerage pitches deeper engagement, this family is being trained to stay away from it.

Sandbox Size Decides How Much Dad Can Lose
Ramsey’s practical fix was to limit the father’s trading to a smaller sandbox of about $100,000. That respects his independence and caps the damage. How much money his trading can reach will determine how this ends.

Here’s an illustrative example. Concentrated single-stock portfolios can easily fall 30% in a bad stretch. If Dad trades the full $1.5 million and takes that hit, the family loses $450,000. That money may be needed for senior living and his wife’s medical care.

That same 30% loss on a $100,000 sandbox costs $30,000. Even if the sandbox goes to zero, $1.4 million stays out of reach. The sandbox is only about 7% of the assets, but it keeps the activity that gives him a sense of control.

Four Moves to Make Before the Next Bad Trade

Put the POA on file with Schwab. A power of attorney only helps if the brokerage has accepted it. Send the documents and confirm in writing that the agents are recognized on every account.
Name trusted contacts. Schwab lets a client name up to two. Ask Dad to name both daughters. That gives the firm someone to call if his trading starts to look erratic.
Build the sandbox together. With his agreement, move all but about $100,000 into a separate account the POA agents manage. Present it as protecting Mom’s care, which is the true reason.
Get the medical record in order now. Ask the neurology clinic for a written capacity assessment. Then ask an elder law attorney whether your POA takes effect immediately or only after incapacity is documented. If a guardianship petition ever becomes necessary, that evidence is what the court will want to see.

A temporary flag on the account is a small price compared with a six-figure loss, so contact the brokerage while the family still has the chance to set the limits.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Key Takeaways Schwab's Q3 earnings are projected to rise 26.7% year over year, with revenues expected to grow 17.3%.SCHW's trading revenues are likely to jump 18.2%, driven by market volatility and healthy client engagement.SCHW's NIR and asset management fees are poised to rise, while higher expenses may weigh on results. Charles Schwab (SCHW - Free Report) is scheduled to report third-quarter 2026 earnings on Oct. 15, before market open. The company’s quarterly earnings and revenues are expected to have increased on a year-over-year basis.

Schwab’s second-quarter 2026 earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven by the solid performance of the asset management business and higher trading revenues. Higher net interest revenues (NIR) and solid brokerage account numbers were other positives.

The company has an impressive earnings surprise history. Its earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average beat being 4.16%.

Before we take a look at what our quantitative model predicts, let us check the factors that are likely to have impacted Schwab’s third-quarter performance.

Factors Likely to Impact Schwab’s Q3 EarningsTrading Revenues: Client trading activity remained strong in the third quarter, driven by elevated market volatility amid shifting expectations for artificial intelligence, persistent inflation, ongoing geopolitical tensions and a more hawkish Federal Reserve. These factors fueled higher activity across equities, fixed income, foreign exchange and commodities markets.

Schwab continued to expand its client base, with new brokerage account openings rising in the first two months of the quarter and core net new assets increasing year over year.

Backed by healthy client engagement and a favorable trading backdrop, Schwab is expected to have delivered solid growth in trading revenues. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for trading revenues is pegged at $1.18 billion, indicating an 18.2% year-over-year increase.

NIR: In the quarter, the Fed increased interest rates by 25 basis points, while maintaining a hawkish tone because of persistently high inflation. This is expected to have created a favorable backdrop for SCHW. Thus, supported by growth in loans and stabilizing funding/deposit costs, the company’s NIR is expected to have been positively impacted.

The consensus estimate for SCHW’s average interest-earning assets for the to-be-reported quarter is $460.6 billion, indicating a year-over-year rise of 9.7%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter NIR is pegged at $3.57 billion, indicating a rise of 17%.

Asset Management & Administration Fees: Schwab’s asset management and administration fees are expected to have benefited from higher average client assets in the third quarter, supported by decent equity market performance and continued growth in advisory solutions. In July and August, Schwab’s client assets receiving ongoing advisory services grew from the prior-year periods.

The consensus estimate for asset management and administration fees for the to-be-reported quarter is pegged at $1.89 billion, which implies year-over-year growth of 13.2%.

Expenses: Schwab’s operating expenses have been elevated in the past few quarters. Due to persistent regulatory spending and strategic acquisitions, marketing and advertising, and efforts to enhance business efficiency, expenses are likely to have increased in the to-be-reported quarter. Also, the company’s plan to expand its branch network and hire for branch-related positions is expected to have led to higher expenses.

What the Zacks Model Reveals for SchwabAccording to our quantitative model, the chances of Schwab beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings this time are low. This is because it doesn’t have the right combination of the two key ingredients — a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better.

You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they are reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Earnings ESP: The Earnings ESP for Schwab is -0.11%.

Zacks Rank: The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #3.

Q3 Earnings & Sales Estimates for SCHWIn the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter earnings has been revised marginally lower to $1.66 per share. The figure indicates a 26.7% rise from the year-ago quarter.

The consensus estimate for quarterly sales is pegged at $7.19 billion, which suggests a 17.3% increase.

Finance Stocks Worth ConsideringHere are a couple of finance stocks that you may want to consider, as these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat in their upcoming releases:

JPMorgan (JPM - Free Report) is scheduled to announce third-quarter 2026 results tomorrow. The company carries a Zacks Rank #3 at present and has an Earnings ESP of +1.19%.

Quarterly earnings estimates for JPMorgan have been revised marginally higher to $5.94 per share over the past week.

The Earnings ESP for Interactive Brokers (IBKR - Free Report) is +1.52%, and it carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. The company is slated to report third-quarter 2026 results on Oct. 15. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Over the past seven days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Interactive Brokers’ quarterly earnings has been unchanged at 66 cents per share.

SummaryCharles Schwab (SCHW) is well-positioned to benefit from AI-driven productivity gains, particularly in back-office cost savings and process automation.SCHW’s large employee base and paperwork-heavy processes offer significant opportunities for AI to enhance efficiency and margins over time.Demand for SCHW’s financial advisory services should remain robust, as human expertise and trust continue to be valued over AI-only solutions.I maintain a buy rating on SCHW, viewing any post-earnings pullbacks as potential entry points given long-term AI tailwinds and durable business moats. Getty Images

One of my key priorities right now is identifying firms that I believe could enjoy outsized impact from AI-driven productivity gains. Various types of companies and business models could fit this bill, and I believe that Charles Schwab (

1.47K Followers

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, but may initiate a beneficial Short position through short-selling of the stock, or purchase of put options or similar derivatives in SCHW over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Most retirees assume Roth conversions follow the same forgiving April deadline as contributions, and that assumption alone can cost a couple thousands of dollars in taxes they never saw coming.

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Picture a retired couple who spent all year planning to move money from a traditional IRA into a Roth. On December 30 they log in, click submit, and find out their brokerage’s cutoff has already passed. The conversion lands on next year’s return, and this year’s cheap bracket space is gone for good.

The trap: two deadlines that sound alike. You can make a Roth IRA contribution for 2026 as late as April 15, 2027. A Roth conversion counts only in the tax year it falls, ending December 31. Below: why the calendars split, what a missed window costs, and how to beat your custodian’s cutoff.

Why Roth Contributions Get an April Grace Period A contribution counts for whichever tax year you assign it to. The IRS lets you fund an IRA by the due date of your return, which sets the deadline for 2026 money at April 15, 2027. For 2026, the combined limit across all your IRAs is $7,500 ($8,600 if you’re age 50 or older).

A conversion runs on different rules. It’s a distribution from a traditional IRA deposited into a Roth, taxed in the calendar year it happens. You can’t push a January conversion back into the prior year. One Reddit user learned this from Vanguard in early 2026: “I thought I could do that up until April 15 for some reason, but Vanguard told me otherwise.”

The old escape hatch is closed too. For conversions made in 2018 and later, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanently bans recharacterizations. Once a conversion falls, you can’t undo it.

Fidelity and Schwab Close the Window Before the IRS Does December 31 is the legal deadline. Your custodian sets the one that matters. Fidelity and Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW | SCHW Price Prediction) set internal year-end cutoffs for conversions. Online conversions inside an existing account at the same custodian get the latest cutoff, sometimes into the final business days of December. Anything needing a signed form, medallion signature guarantee, or manual review is processed earlier, often by mid-December.

Other delays pile on. If your Roth account doesn’t exist yet, opening and verifying it takes several business days. If your custodian needing cash instead of in-kind shares, you must sell first, and stock trades falls the next business day. Rolling a 401(k) into an IRA before converting takes weeks.

Holiday staffing, back-office backlogs, or a form stuck in the mail won’t matter to the IRS. Without the funds moving by December 31, the conversion counts for 2027.

One Missed Deadline Can Cost $7,300 Here’s a worked example. A married couple filing jointly, both 63, retired, with $60,000 of pension and interest income in 2026. They haven’t claimed Social Security yet and take the 2026 standard deduction of $32,200.

Line 2026 Amount Other income $60,000 Taxable income before conversion $27,800 Top of 12% bracket (joint) $100,800 Conversion room at 12% $73,000 Federal tax on conversion $8,760 Now say the conversion slips into January. To catch up, the couple converts two years’ worth in 2027. Only dollars above the 12% line pay the higher rate, but that’s the entire second $73,000, taxed at 22%. That chunk costs $16,060 instead of $8,760, or $7,300 more, assuming brackets stay flat.

There’s also a second-order hit. Medicare sets premiums from income two years back, so a bigger 2027 return could raise the couple’s Part B bill in 2029.

Three Moves That Keep Your Conversion in 2026 Get the cutoff in writing now. Call your IRA custodian and ask for the 2026 year-end deadline for your conversion type: online or paper, in kind or cash. Take your RMD first. If subject to required minimum distributions, take the year’s RMD before converting. An RMD can’t be converted, and converting first creates an excess contribution problem that must be unwound. Choose zero withholding. Tax withheld from a conversion never makes it into the Roth. If under 59½, the withheld amount counts as an early distribution and triggers a 10% penalty. Pay the tax from a taxable account instead. Convert most of the amount in October or November, then do a small top-up in early December once your full-year income is clear. Those low-tax years between your last paycheck and your first RMD are the whole reason conversions matter in the first place, something we sized up in a free guide here: The Roth Window.

Filing Mistake That Draws IRS Letters The most common mistake is sets a January conversion on the prior year’s return as if the April contribution rule covered it. Your custodian issues Form 1099-R for the year the money actually moved, and the IRS matches that form against your return. Report the conversion on Form 8606 for that same year.

Converting late in the year means running bracket math under deadline pressure. Handle this with a qualified tax professional before your custodian’s cutoff comes.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Key Takeaways Schwab will sell Forge Trust to Alto, refining its private-market operations after acquiring Forge Global.The sale lets SCHW retain private market exposure through Forge Global while shedding specialized IRA custody.Rising expenses and a premium valuation remain key risks as Schwab optimizes its business portfolio. The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW - Free Report) is sharpening its strategic focus. It has agreed to sell Forge Trust Co. and its parent company, Forge Services Inc., to Alto, a technology-led platform connecting retirement capital with private markets. The transaction is subject to approval by the South Dakota Division of Banking. The financial terms have not been disclosed. The deal is expected to simplify Schwab’s private market operations.

Forge Trust is a South Dakota-based chartered self-directed Individual Retirement Account (IRA) custodian with more than 40 years of operating history. It specializes in custody of alternative assets, including private stock, private equity, real estate, private placements, promissory notes and precious metals. Forge Trust is a subsidiary of Forge Global, which Schwab acquired in March 2026.

Per the deal, Alto will add Forge Trust’s alternative asset capabilities, account types and established client and partner relationships to its existing custody and investment infrastructure. On the other hand, the divestiture will allow Schwab to focus on the parts of the Forge Global business that complement its broader private-market strategy.

Per the Preqin Releases Private Markets in 2030 Report released last October, the broader private-markets opportunity remains significant, with global alternative assets under management expected to approach $32 trillion by 2030. Additionally, a statistical report from the Investment Company Institute mentioned that more than $19.9 trillion currently sits in IRAs, representing a substantial pool of retirement capital that could potentially be directed toward alternative investments.

For Schwab, the Forge Trust sale therefore represents a portfolio adjustment rather than a retreat from the private markets business. The company will maintain its private market exposure through Forge Global while avoiding the need to operate a specialized self-directed IRA custody platform.

Our Take on Schwab’s Business Streamlining PlanSchwab’s planned sale of Forge Trust to Alto is strategically positive, allowing the company to refine its private-market operations only months after acquiring Forge Global. The deal’s financial impact remains uncertain, but the transaction fits Schwab’s broader focus on optimizing its business portfolio. Continued client-asset growth and earnings momentum support the long-term outlook, although elevated expenses and premium valuation remain key risks.

Over the past six months, shares of Schwab have risen 0.1%, underperforming the industry’s 5.6% growth.

6-Month Price Performance

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

At present, Schwab carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Similar Steps Taken by Other Financial FirmsIn the previous month, Truist Financial Corporation (TFC - Free Report) exited the near-prime auto lending business by selling $5.5 billion of loans tied to its Regional Acceptance Corporation (RAC) subsidiary. The move was part of new CEO Mike Lyons’ broader strategic review to reduce exposure to businesses that do not align with Truist’s strategic priorities or profitability goals and redirect resources toward core, higher-return franchises.

The transaction is expected to generate $5.2 billion of net proceeds and a $535 million loan-loss reserve recapture. The sale is also projected to create approximately $945 million, or 22 basis points (bps), of Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital, while reducing non-performing loans and annualized net charge-offs by roughly 10 bps each.

Likewise, HSBC Holdings plc (HSBC - Free Report) is winding down its transaction services business in Germany, affecting approximately 320 positions by 2028. The move is part of the company’s broader simplification strategy to reduce exposure to lower-priority operations and redirect resources toward core franchises and higher-growth markets.

The restructuring affects around 300 positions at HSBC Transaction Services GmbH and 20 at HSBC Service Company Germany GmbH. The business provides securities processing, administration, and custody services. HSBC’s earlier exit from private banking in Germany and planned carve-out of custody and fund administration businesses reduced domestic processing volumes supporting the operation.

If you are looking for a stock that has a solid history of beating earnings estimates and is in a good position to maintain the trend in its next quarterly report, you should consider The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW - Free Report) . This company, which is in the Zacks Financial - Investment Bank industry, shows potential for another earnings beat.

This company has an established record of topping earnings estimates, especially when looking at the previous two reports. The company boasts an average surprise for the past two quarters of 4.38%.

For the most recent quarter, Charles Schwab was expected to post earnings of $1.53 per share, but it reported $1.62 per share instead, representing a surprise of 5.88%. For the previous quarter, the consensus estimate was $1.39 per share, while it actually produced $1.43 per share, a surprise of 2.88%.

Price and EPS Surprise

Thanks in part to this history, there has been a favorable change in earnings estimates for Charles Schwab lately. In fact, the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) for the stock is positive, which is a great indicator of an earnings beat, particularly when combined with its solid Zacks Rank.

Our research shows that stocks with the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time. In other words, if you have 10 stocks with this combination, the number of stocks that beat the consensus estimate could be as high as seven.

The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter; the Most Accurate Estimate is a version of the Zacks Consensus whose definition is related to change. The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier.

Charles Schwab currently has an Earnings ESP of +0.58%, which suggests that analysts have recently become bullish on the company's earnings prospects. This positive Earnings ESP when combined with the stock's Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) indicates that another beat is possibly around the corner. We expect the company's next earnings report to be released on October 15, 2026.

With the Earnings ESP metric, it's important to note that a negative value reduces its predictive power; however, a negative Earnings ESP does not indicate an earnings miss.

Many companies end up beating the consensus EPS estimate, but that may not be the sole basis for their stocks moving higher. On the other hand, some stocks may hold their ground even if they end up missing the consensus estimate.

Because of this, it's really important to check a company's Earnings ESP ahead of its quarterly release to increase the odds of success. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Although it's thrilling when an investor's company hits an all-time high in one of its fundamentals, that investor has to be careful. It's difficult to top a record, and there are many examples of companies that hit peaks they never scaled again.

So Charles Schwab (SCHW +0.34%) shareholders -- myself included -- should take a careful look at the company's second quarter, in which the veteran financial services company reported a historic high in quarterly revenue.

Image source: Getty Images.

High-water mark Let's put a number or two on that peak, then analyze the reasons for it. In the quarter, Schwab's total revenue came in at almost $7.1 billion. That was a robust 21% higher year over year, but despite being a new record, it was overshadowed by the growth of net income not under generally accepted accounting principles (non-GAAP, or adjusted). This surged 32% higher to more than $2.9 billion.

What was the rocket fuel that sent those numbers flying so high? Basically, it was a mix of high growth in Schwab's foundational business, i.e., its brokerage operations, with energetic client take-up of offerings that lie more in the financial services sphere.

As for those brokerage functions, the company's customers simply traded much more actively.

Daily average revenue trades (DARTs; a standard performance metric for brokerages) zoomed 57% higher to total 11.9 million. That, perhaps not surprisingly, was a new quarterly record for the company. Other metrics showing this larger appetite for trading included a recent pop in margin loan balances (up 30% sequentially to over $165 billion).

Many casual observers might not be aware that Schwab has a banking license, all the better to generate another revenue stream. This seems to be working well, thank you very much, as evidenced by a 33% year-over-year rise in bank loan balances to $67 billion. Not to be outdone, the specialized and lucrative Schwab Wealth Advisory service saw its net flows grow by 80%.

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$

98.63

Branching out again In that earnings report, Schwab made sure to tout newer offerings, like the recently introduced Schwab Crypto (no prizes for guessing what investors can buy with that service). Some might consider the company a crypto-jockey-come-lately, but such things were likely said about those other non-brokerage services before they started contributing meaningfully.

Given that, I wouldn't underestimate Schwab's ability to build such a business into a handsome revenue earner.

I'd imagine more than a few analysts tracking the stock would agree with me. After all, their consensus estimate for the company's annual earnings per share (EPS) growth this year is 33%, before cooling to a still-high 20% in 2027. The average pundit projections for revenue growth are 18% and 12%, respectively.

Meanwhile, Schwab is priced to move, as they say. Forward P/E lies under 13, which seems unsustainably cheap given the percentage figures above.

Equity markets are up and down by their nature, so the current frothiness in financial markets might not last (same with demand for non-brokerage services). But for those of us who are at least cautiously optimistic that the upward trend will continue, Schwab's a fine stock to own.

22.9.2026 19:00

Index Dow Jones -0,34 % na 51869,27 b. S&P 500 +0,02 % na 7765,99 b. Nasdaq Composite +0,31 % na 27204,89 b.

Včerejší růst rozšiřují technologie, které měřeno indexem Nasdaq Composite připisují tři desetiny. Index současně rozšířil své historické intradenní maximum. V širokém indexu S&P 500 převládla zelená barva a kosmeticky posiluje. Brzdí jej především sektor financí, kde vyšší úrokové sazby tlačí na nově poskytované úvěry a trh se tak obává slabších bankovních výsledků. V nemilosti je dnes index Dow Jones, který se mimo finančních titulů potopil do červených čísel díky Cisco Systems (- 6,1 %).

Netflix klesá o 1,9 % po snížení investičního doporučení HSBS na stupeň Hold s cílovou cenou USD 76. HSBC upozorňuje na pokles podílu Netflixu na sledování a zostřený souboj s Youtube.

Shopify roste o 7,6 %. Meta Platforms jej zapojí do svého nového AI agenta, který může vyhledávat produkty v obchodech provozovaných na Shopify. Benefity pro obchodníka by tak bylo generování transakčních příjmů i bez zákaznické návštěvy obchodu.

V USA obchodované ADR Alibaba Group dnes připisují 0,6 %. Čínský technologický gigant představil plány na významné rozšíření kapacity datových center a představil čip nové generace pro umělou inteligenci.

Společnost Lennar (5,8 %) se může pochlubit zařazením do portfolia Berkshire Hathaway, která nakoupila 2,7 mil. kusů jejich akcií.

Poskytovatel diagnostických služeb Quest Diagnostics klesá o 4 % po zveřejnění zprávy o vyšších platbách za laboratorní služby pro Medicare ve srovnání se soukromými plátci o 16 %. CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid) zveřejnil návrh na změnu úhrad laboratorních testů od ledna 2027, kde předpokládá pokles cen o 15 %.

Futures na ropu WTI klesají po zprávách o výzvě Iránu k deeskalaci konfliktu s možností znovuotevření plavby Hormuzským průlivem do týdne. Prezident Trump se nechal slyšet, že učiní velké rozhodnutí o tom, zda uzavře dohodu, anebo zemi anihiluje. Cena barelu klesá o 0,9 % k USD 91,4.

Index S&P 500 +0,02 % na 7765,99 b. Nejsilnější sektory S&P Změna Nejslabší sektory S&P Změna Základní materiály +1,5 % Finanční sektor -1,7 % Nezbytná spotřeba +1,2 % Komunikační služby -0,9 % Zdravotní péče +0,7 % Zbytná spotřeba -0,2 % Nejsilnější akcie S&P Změna Nejslabší akcie S&P Změna Monolithic Power Systems (MPWR) +7,6 % Gen Digital (GEN) -6,6 % Sandisk Corp (SNDK) +6,9 % Cisco Systems (CSCO) -5,9 % AutoZone (AZO) +6,3 % Charles Schwab Corp (SCHW) -5,8 % Lennar Corp (LEN) +5,8 % Allstate Corp (ALL) -5,1 % O'Reilly Automotive (ORLY) +4,5 % Ameriprise Financial (AMP) -4,6 %
Marek Kameništiak
Fio banka, a.s.
Prohlášení

Most retirees write four estimated tax checks a year without realizing the IRS offers a completely different accounting treatment for one type of December payment that retroactively satisfies every quarterly deadline they missed.

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

Here is a piece of tax code most retirees never hear about: federal income tax withheld from an IRA distribution counts as if you paid it evenly across all four quarters, even if the money leaves your account on December 30.

That single rule lets you skip the April, June, September, and January estimated-payment ritual. You let your RMD sit in the market all year, then withhold enough from the December check to cover your whole federal tax bill. The IRS treats it as timely. No underpayment penalty.

Fidelity, Vanguard, Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW | SCHW Price Prediction), and every other custodian will do the same withholding on request, because the rule lives in the Internal Revenue Code. Schwab makes the election easy inside the RMD tool, and one advisor on the Clark Howard podcast noted that Schwab will auto-recalculate the RMD each year and adjust monthly distributions accordingly. The withholding trick works the same at any custodian.

Why December Withholding Beats Four Quarterly Checks Estimated payments are dated. If you owe $18,000 in 2026 and send $4,500 in April, June, September, and January, each check is credited on the day it clears. Miss a quarter, and the underpayment penalty accrues from that date until you make it up.

Withholding is different. Whether the custodian remits it in January or the last week of December, the IRS treats every dollar as paid ratably, one-quarter per quarter. That is the entire mechanism. It turns a late lump sum into on-time payments retroactively.

Consider a 74-year-old widow with a $1.2 million traditional IRA, $32,000 in Social Security, and a projected 2026 federal tax bill of $22,000. Her RMD comes in around $45,000. She takes the whole distribution on December 15, tells the custodian to withhold $22,000 for federal (plus whatever her state requires), and pockets the remaining $23,000. The IRS logs $5,500 as paid on each quarterly due date. No Form 2210 penalty. No four calendar reminders on the fridge.

Safe Harbor: How Much You Actually Have to Withhold The withholding has to be enough to clear one of the standard safe harbors for the 2026 tax year:

90% of your current-year total tax liability, or 100% of last year’s total tax (the number on the prior 1040), or 110% of last year’s total tax if your prior-year adjusted gross income was over $150,000 ($75,000 if married filing separately). Hit any one and the penalty disappears. The prior-year safe harbor is the friendliest for retirees, because you already know the number. Pull last year’s 1040, multiply by 1.0 or 1.1 depending on income, and that is your target withholding for the December distribution.

State rules vary. Most piggyback on the federal ratable-withholding treatment, but a few compute their own penalty periods. If you live in a high-tax state, confirm the state safe harbor separately.

Cash-Flow Cost Nobody Mentions One big December withholding is elegant on paper and uncomfortable in a checking account. You hand the IRS $22,000 in a single week instead of $5,500 four times a year. If that money would otherwise have earned interest, you gave up the yield.

The FDIC national average 12-month CD sits at 1.71% as of August 2026, and top online banks routinely pay three to five times the national average. On $22,000, holding cash all year instead of remitting it in quarters is worth a few hundred dollars at best. For most retirees, the simplicity is worth the giveback.

The real risk is behavioral: forgetting to make the election or discovering in late December that the custodian needs several business days to process the change. Set a November calendar reminder.

Who This Works Best For Anyone already taking an RMD large enough to cover the year’s tax bill. That is most retirees over age 73, when RMDs kick in under current law. It also works with withholding from a Roth conversion, a pension, or Social Security (via Form W-4V), because all periodic-payment withholding gets the same ratable treatment.

It does not help W-2 earners who already have paycheck withholding, and it does not help anyone whose income is mostly capital gains or self-employment, since those have no withholding hook.

One more household-specific wrinkle: retirees planning around the 2027 Social Security COLA, currently tracking at 3.3%, should rerun the safe-harbor math each January, because a bigger benefit changes both the tax bill and the withholding target.

This is the kind of election worth confirming with a CPA the first time you make it, especially if your income is close to an IRMAA tier or a bracket edge. The ratable-withholding trick is one of nine quiet IRS rules we mapped for retirees in a free tax trap guide, and the others can move real money too.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or investment advice. Consult a qualified tax professional about your specific situation.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

A Texas family used ChatGPT to build an income plan around a brokerage account, and a certified financial planner stopped them before they made a move that would have triggered taxes they never needed to pay.

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A Texas mother named Angela called into the Clark Howard show on Tuesday with a plan her family built with ChatGPT. Her 28-year-old daughter wants a year off from her fast food job to try content creation, but needs to stay above roughly $14,000 of income to keep her Affordable Care Act subsidy. The daughter has about $40,000 in a brokerage account and $10,000 at Vanguard. ChatGPT told them to realize gains. The family concluded she should withdraw the funds and then redeposit them.

Wes Moss, the Atlanta-based certified financial planner filling in on the show, cut the plan in half with one line: You do not need to take money out of an account in order to create the income. Get the mechanic wrong here and the daughter could pay taxes she does not owe, trigger a withdrawal she never needed, and still fail to qualify for the subsidy she was trying to protect.

Why the Withdrawal Is the Wrong Move Moss is right, and the mistake is a common one. A realized capital gain counts as income on your tax return whether or not a single dollar leaves the brokerage account. Selling a fund inside the account and immediately buying something else creates the reportable gain. Wiring cash to a checking account has nothing to do with it. The family’s plan to withdraw and redeposit adds friction, potentially disrupts cost basis tracking, and accomplishes nothing the internal trade would not.

Run the numbers with the daughter’s actual position. Say the $40,000 taxable account has a cost basis of $20,000. Selling the entire position would generate a $20,000 long-term capital gain. That would blow well past the ACA target and force her to realize more gain than she needs in year one, leaving less runway for year two. Moss’s guidance: sell only as much as you need to get to that, let’s call it, $15,000 line. If half the position clears the threshold, sell half. Then rebuy the same fund or a similar one the same day.

The wash-sale rule does not interfere. That 30-day rule disallows losses when you repurchase substantially identical securities. It does not apply to gains. You can sell an S&P 500 index fund at a gain in the morning and buy it back in the afternoon without penalty. The cost basis simply resets higher, which is the entire point.

How the 0% Long-Term Capital Gains Bracket Does the Real Work Here is what makes the maneuver powerful at this income level. Long-term capital gains, meaning gains on assets held more than a year, are taxed at 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on total taxable income. For a single filer whose taxable income sits below the 0% threshold, a qualifying long-term gain is taxed at nothing. Moss said it plainly on air: at her income, her long term capital gain rate should be zero.

The 2026 standard deduction for a single filer is $16,100, per the IRS inflation adjustments released last October. That deduction alone erases a meaningful chunk of adjusted gross income before any bracket math starts. A young filer with modest earned income and a carefully sized long-term gain can land inside the 0% capital-gains band and owe federal tax of zero on the sale. That is the free lunch Moss is pointing at, and it disappears the moment you realize more gain than the bracket accommodates. Financial advisor Wes Moss has spent years arguing that the biggest retirement mistakes come from moving money you did not need to move.

Moss, who takes listener questions at wesmoss.com/ask, lays out the framework in The Retire Sooner Method.

One Variable That Flips the Math The single factor that decides whether this trick is a gift or a tax bill is the filer’s total taxable income for the year, gain included. Below the 0% threshold, federal tax on the long-term gain is nothing. Cross into the next band and every additional dollar of gain is taxed at 15%. On a $20,000 realized gain, that is the difference between owing $0 and owing $3,000. State tax may still apply and does not follow the federal 0% treatment.

That is why Moss keeps saying to sell only what is needed. Overshooting the ACA line by a few thousand dollars of gain is harmless when you are inside the 0% band. Overshooting by $20,000 can push part of the gain into the 15% bracket, cost real money, and still leave the subsidy math intact. Precision matters more than size.

Why the Schwab Angle Is Where This Actually Happens Most readers running this play will execute it at a large retail broker. Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW | SCHW Price Prediction) opened 1.4 million new brokerage accounts in the second quarter of 2026 and now sits on $13.1 trillion in total client assets. CEO Rick Wurster told analysts on the July call that clients with concentrated positions and large embedded gains often prefer to borrow against shares rather than sell, describing the pledged asset line as “incredibly easy”. That is a different tool for a different problem. For the ACA subsidy case, a trade ticket inside the account is all it takes. Schwab preferred series SCHW-PD and SCHW-PJ are fixed-income instruments and are not the vehicle for this decision.

What to Do Before You Click Sell Pull the cost basis for every lot in the taxable account and separate long-term lots (held more than one year) from short-term lots. Only long-term lots qualify for the 0%, 15%, or 20% rates. Estimate total taxable income for the year including wages, self-employment income, interest, and dividends. Subtract the standard deduction to get an approximate taxable income figure. Look up the current 0% long-term capital gains threshold on IRS.gov for your filing status, and calculate how much gain you can realize before crossing into the 15% band. Sell only the specific lots that produce the target gain, using specific-lot identification at the broker rather than the default first-in, first-out method. Rebuy the same or a similar fund the same day if you want to maintain exposure. Confirm your state’s treatment. Several states tax capital gains as ordinary income and do not honor the federal 0% rate. The takeaway is narrow and useful: realizing a gain is simply a trade inside the account, and at low income the federal tax on it can be zero, so size the sale to the threshold and stop.

Data Sources Clark Howard Ask An Advisor With Wes Moss, September 15, 2026: caller facts, Moss’s on-air correction, and the wash-sale point. IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32: 2026 standard deduction and inflation-adjusted tax figures. Charles Schwab second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript: retail brokerage scale and pledged asset line commentary. Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

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