Charles Schwab’s Profit More Than Triples

Charles Schwab Corp.’s fourth-quarter earnings more than tripled as the discount brokerage slashed fees, capping the most profitable year in its 30-year history.

Net income totaled $187 million, or 14 cents a share, during the final three months of 2005, up from $53 million, or 4 cents, at the same time in 2004. The earnings matched the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial.

Revenue at San Francisco-based Schwab totaled $1.18 billion in the quarter, up 11%.

Schwab shares fell 36 cents to $14.62.

For the entire year, Schwab made $725 million, or 55 cents a share, up from $286 million, or 21 cents, a year earlier. The performance eclipsed its previous largest annual profit of $718 million posted in 2000, when the brokerage was expanding rapidly to handle the manic stock trading provoked by the dot-com boom.