Reports Q1 revenue $49.678M, consensus $52.17M. "Our first quarter revenue showed modest improvement from last year’s level despite what was obviously a very challenging operating environment. But notwithstanding what was a relatively quiet revenue quarter, we are seeing a level of engagement, particularly with our corporate clients, that feels stronger than recent M&A market commentary has been suggesting. We are also seeing restructuring activity accelerate from last year’s slow pace. Accordingly, we expect our year to date revenue improvement to grow significantly in the second quarter, leading to our best first half in recent years. On the cost side, our compensation costs were elevated for the quarter as a result of the timing of an accounting charge for incentive compensation. But already in the second quarter the absolute dollar level of compensation will fall to a more typical level, and our compensation ratio should do likewise as these costs decline and higher revenue materializes. Looking further ahead, we are well positioned to benefit as markets continue to stabilize, credit conditions improve, a more robust level of deal activity develops and costs normalize," Scott L. Bok, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented.
Published first on TheFly
