• Adjusted Net Revenues: $3 billion for the full year, a 23% increase compared to last year.
• Adjusted Operating Income: $557 million for the full year, a 45% increase versus 2023.
• Adjusted Earnings Per Share (EPS): $9.42 for the full year, a 46% increase compared to 2023.
• Adjusted Operating Margin: 18.6% for the full year, up 280 basis points from 2023.
• Adjusted Advisory Fees: $2.4 billion for the full year, up 24% compared to 2023.
• Underwriting Revenues: $157 million for the full year, a 41% increase versus last year.
• Commissions and Related Revenue: $214 million for the full year, up 6% compared to 2023.
• Adjusted Asset Management and Administration Fees: $85 million for the full year, a 16% increase from the prior year.
• Adjusted Compensation Ratio: 65.7% for the full year, 190 basis points lower than in 2023.
• Non-Compensation Expenses: $471 million for the full year, up 16% from the prior year.
• Cash and Investment Securities: $2.4 billion as of December 31, 2024, $350 million higher than last year's levels.
• Assets Under Management: $13.9 billion at year-end.

• Warning! GuruFocus has detected 5 Warning Sign with EVR.

Release Date: February 05, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

• Evercore Inc (NYSE:EVR) achieved its second-best year ever for revenue in 2024, with firm-wide adjusted net revenues exceeding $3 billion.
• The company advised on three of the seven largest global M&A deals in 2024, showcasing its strong market position.
• Evercore Inc (NYSE:EVR) has significantly diversified its revenue base, with more than 40% of total revenues coming from non-M&A sources.
• The company experienced a strong recruiting year, adding nine investment banking Senior Managing Directors and one senior adviser.
• Evercore Inc (NYSE:EVR) reported its strongest quarter for revenue since the fourth quarter of 2021, indicating a continuation of positive momentum.

Negative Points

• Geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties persist, which could impact the deal-making environment.
• The European advisory business, while showing improvement, still lags behind the United States in terms of market trends and sentiment.
• The company faces increasing competition in the private capital advisory space, with larger banks entering the market.
• January 2025 saw weaker industry-wide announcements, indicating potential volatility in market activity.
• Despite strong results, Evercore Inc (NYSE:EVR) acknowledges the need for further improvement in its adjusted compensation and non-compensation expense ratios.

Q & A Highlights

Q: Tim, you delivered almost 200 basis points of comp ratio improvement in 2024. What are your expectations for improvement in 2025? Could it be better if the revenue environment is strong? A: John Weinberg, CEO: We achieved a 190 basis point improvement in 2024, which we consider meaningful. For 2025, while we don't give specific guidance, we are striving for further meaningful improvement as the year progresses.

Q: Can you discuss your expectations for recruiting in the coming year and the impact on compensation expenses? A: John Weinberg, CEO: We are pleased with our recruiting efforts in a competitive environment and continue to work hard to build the business. Recruiting impacts compensation, but we focus on value creation rather than optimizing any single ratio. Tim Lalonde, CFO: Our commitment to recruiting remains robust, and we continue to aggressively recruit high-quality talent.

Q: Are you seeing any shift in the market for large M&A deals post-election, given changes at the FTC and expected regulation changes? A: John Weinberg, CEO: We see robust activity at the board level and with management teams. Our backlog continues to strengthen, and we believe there will be a loosening of regulatory overlays, leading to more possibilities for large deals.

Q: How much of an acceleration are you seeing in M&A today relative to the start of 2024, and is there any meaningful pull forward in M&A that contributed to the results this quarter? A: John Weinberg, CEO: There was not a significant pull forward in M&A. Our businesses are very active, and while January didn't have a high volume of announcements, the activity level remains robust, and we expect a continued build throughout the year.

Q: With increasing competition in the private capital advisory space, how do you view your competitive advantage and ability to defend market share? A: John Weinberg, CEO: We had record years in our private capital advisory businesses and are optimistic about the future. We compete effectively for new business, and our business leaders are confident in continuing to build the business despite increased competition.

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.