Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc.

Type: Public
On the web: http://www.waddell.com
Employees: 1,616
Employee growth: 8.8%

Waddell & Reed Financial is one of the oldest mutual fund managers in the US. Subsidiaries administer and distribute about 80 mutual funds under the names Waddell & Reed Advisors Funds (the company's longest-running and largest fund complex), Ivy Funds (administered by Ivy Investment Management), and Waddell & Reed InvestEd Portfolios; they also manage accounts for institutional investors and private clients. The company sells annuities and insurance through agreements with third-party providers. Waddell & Reed has about 420 locations throughout the US, including more than 250 individual advisor offices, usually in small cities and rural areas.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending December, 2011:
Sales: $1,195.2M
One year growth: 14.4%
Net income: $175.5M
Income growth: 11.8%

Officers:
Chairman and CEO: Henry J. (Hank) Herrmann
President, Chief Investment Officer, and Portfolio Manager: Michael L. Avery
SVP and COO: Michael D. Strohm

Competitors:
AllianceBernstein
Eaton Vance
Edward Jones