NYSE - OPY

NEW YORK, July 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -

    Expressed in thousands of
     dollars, except share and    Three Months ended        Six Months ended
     per share amounts                 June 30,                June 30,
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    (unaudited)                     2009        2008        2009        2008
    Revenue                     $250,724    $256,241    $455,989    $488,116
    Expenses                    $237,748    $254,056    $445,835    $512,719
    Profit (loss) before taxes   $12,976      $2,185     $10,154    $(24,603)
    Net profit (loss)             $7,130      $1,646      $5,116    $(14,468)
    Basic earnings (loss) per
     share                         $0.55       $0.12       $0.39      $(1.07)
    Diluted earnings (loss)
     per share                     $0.54       $0.12       $0.38      $(1.07)
    Weighted average number
     of shares outstanding    13,069,014  13,508,262  13,070,547  13,567,150
    Book value per share          $33.12      $32.94
    Actual number of Class A
     non-voting and Class B
     voting common shares
     outstanding              13,070,747  13,340,094

Results

Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. reported net profit of $7.1 million or $0.55 per share for the second quarter of 2009, compared to $1.6 million or $0.12 per share in the second quarter of 2008. Revenue for the second quarter of 2009 was $250.7 million, compared to revenue of $256.2 million in the second quarter of 2008, a decline of 2%.

The net profit for the six months ended June 30, 2009 was $5.1 million or $0.39 per share compared to a net loss of $14.5 million or $1.07 per share in the first half of 2008. Revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2009 was $456.0 million compared to $488.1 million for the same period in 2008, a decline of about 7%.

Lower revenue reflected lower income from investment banking fees as mid-sized companies continued to be restricted from access to the capital markets, lower fee based revenue from investment advisory services due to declines in the value of assets under management in line with market declines and lower interest revenue partially offset by an increase in commissions and principal trading revenue. However, the Company's pre-tax results were positively impacted by the reduction in, or elimination of, many costs associated with its January 2008 acquisition of a major part of CIBC World Markets' U.S. Capital Markets Businesses. The Company's expenses for the three and six months ended June 30, 2009 decreased by approximately $16 million (6%) and $67 million (13%), respectively, compared to the same periods in 2008. Cost savings achieved during the three and six months ended June 30, 2009 were largely driven by a reduction in expenses related to deferred compensation obligations to acquired employees which decreased by $11.5 million and $23.2 million, respectively, compared to the same periods in 2008. The decrease in deferred compensation obligations for the three month period ended June 30, 2009 included a reduction of compensation expenses of $2.6 million related to changes in the assumptions used to determine the Company's ultimate obligation under these arrangements. The deferred compensation-related cost savings were offset by increases in variable compensation related to increased revenue produced in the second quarter of 2009. Overall compensation and related expenses were flat for the three months ended June 30, 2009 and decreased by 9% in the six months ended June 30, 2009 compared to the same periods in 2008.

Expenses were also reduced for the three and six months ended June 30, 2009 as a result of the migration of the acquired business to the Company's internal systems in the second half of 2008. The cost of transitional support charges for the three and six months ended June 30, 2008 was $9.8 million and $20.6 million, respectively.