Overview of Merrill Edge and WellsTrade
Both Merrill Edge and WellsTrade are owned by major banks—Bank of America and Wells Fargo. But the similarities between the two brokers mostly stop there. Let’s
compare these two brokerage firms against each other, and see which one is the better value.
Research & Education Tools
The Merrill Edge site has a large selection of learning materials that will be of value to both seasoned and beginning traders. These resources include free equity reports, videos, webinars, and articles. There is a wide variety of tools and calculators that can be used for education planning, personal finance, investing, and retirement savings. The broker’s website also hosts information on taxation, foreign markets, commodities, and debt management. Effective screeners are available for stocks, options, fixed-income, and funds.
WellsTrade also has screeners for the securities it offers. However, some of these search tools have fewer criteria to search by, compared to Merrill Edge’s screeners. Market commentary from Wells Fargo Advisors, an affiliated security advisor and research firm, is also available on the WellsTrade site free of charge. Information on markets and indices can be accessed in easy-to-read format.
Overall, Merrill Edge has more information and calculators; so WellsTrade loses the first category.
Customer Service
Both brokers provide customer service over the phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Neither firm offers on-line chat. They also both lack brick-and-mortar locations for general customer service needs. The Merrill site has more information on its self-help page, including paperless and website settings. Surprisingly, WellsTrade doesn’t offer internal messaging (Merrill does). Merrill Edge also provides a phone number for customers outside the U.S., while WellsTrade does not.
Looks like Merrill has the Edge here.
Trading Technology
Merrill Edge provides an easy-to-navigate website with a good menu system at the top of the page. Search fields make navigation even easier. Charting on the website includes comparisons and technical indicators, although a graph cannot be shown full-screen. A trade bar appears at the bottom of the Merrill site. Conveniently called TradeBar, it can place orders for stocks and ETF’s. There is also an advanced desktop platform for active traders.
WellsTrade customers have neither a desktop platform nor a trade bar. Instead, they have the broker’s website, which isn’t very much. Pages seem slow to load sometimes. Charting is available, and it includes drawing tools and technical indicators. Because there is little information on the WellsTrade site, navigating it isn’t that difficult.
Merrill Edge is the better choice here.
Mobile Trading
Both firms have mobile apps. WellsTrade’s platform can be used on devices running Android, Apple, and Windows 10 Mobile. Market news is available along with account information. There is a mobile check deposit function, along with a watchlist and alerts. There is a charting feature on the platform, but it’s fairly rudimentary. WellsTrade forgot to include video business news.
Merrill Edge traders can buy and sell securities on Apple, Android, and mobile web. Funds transfer, bill pay, and mobile check deposit are included. Charting is better on Merrill’s platform than on its competitor’s. There are business news articles on the Merrill platform, although like WellsTrade, the broker has failed to provide streaming financial news. Unlike WellsTrade, Merrill has built an app for Apple Watch.
Once again, Merrill Edge is the victor.
The Cost of Trading
Buying and selling equities at WellsTrade costs $0. Derivative contracts are $0.65 each. Placing a trade with a living, breathing representative costs an additional $25. The
broker’s ACAT outgoing fee is at $50.
Merrill Edge charges $0 for stock and ETF trades. Options cost 65¢. Representative-assisted trades
are an extra $25. A brokerage account comes with no annual fee, and paper statements are $5 each.
Merrill’s charge for moving an account is $49.95.
Neither broker requires a minimum deposit to open a securities account. There is no minimum balance
requirement, and neither firm has any required activity level.
This category is a draw.
Mutual Funds and ETF’s
Merrill Edge’s mutual fund screener returns just 3,909 products that are available for purchase.
Only 825 of these come with no load and no transaction fee. An NTF fund sold in less than 3 months
after purchase incurs a $39.95 fee. Funds that have a transaction fee cost $19.95.
WellsTrade customers have access to 9,716 mutual funds that are open to new investors. Of these,
2,530 carry neither load nor transaction fee. The firm imposes a $35 charge for transactions of
non-NTF funds. Surprisingly, there are no short-term redemption fees that are broker-imposed.
WellsTrade wins its first category.
Managed Accounts
Account holders who don’t have the confidence or time to do their own investing can turn over their assets to trained financial specialists at either firm. Merrill Edge offers a portfolio called Guided Investing for on-line customers that costs just 45 basis points per year and requires a $5,000 deposit. It invests in low-cost ETF’s.
Both WellsTrade and Merrill Edge offer in-person services at select Wells Fargo and Bank of America locations. Merrill seems to be the more transparent of the two by publishing its rates on-line: 85 basis points for a diversified portfolio with a $20,000 deposit.
Merrill wins the last category.
Alternatives
Summary
Wells Fargo brokerage was successful in one category, there was one tie, and Bank of America Merrill Edge won
the other five. Merrill is the winner by a landslide. Despite the results,
WellsTrade would be a good choice for mutual fund investors.
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