Penny Pennington

Penny Pennington
Penny Pennington, Managing Partner, Edward Jones Investments
Penny Pennington
Born	24 10, 1963
Birthplace	Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Businesswoman
Title	Managing Partner of Edward Jones Investments
Known for	Managing Partner of Edward Jones
Education	Northwestern University (MBA)
Spouse(s)	Mike Fidler
Children	2

Penny Pennington (born October 24, 1963) is an American businesswoman who has served as the managing partner of Edward Jones Investments since January 2019. In that role, she leads one of the largest financial services firms in the United States, which serves approximately 9 million clients and oversees assets of roughly $2.2 trillion. Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Pennington rose through the ranks of Edward Jones over the course of more than two decades, holding positions in financial advising, leadership development, and firm strategy before being named to the firm's top post. Her tenure as managing partner has been characterized by a strategic expansion of the firm's services beyond traditional brokerage into financial planning and banking, as well as an emphasis on what she has described as an "interdependence" model of advisor partnership and ownership. Pennington has been recognized as one of the most influential women in finance, ranking fourth on American BankerTemplate:'s 2025 list of the Most Powerful Women in Finance and appearing on FortuneTemplate:'s Most Powerful Women list.

Early Life

Penny Pennington was born on October 24, 1963, in Nashville, Tennessee. Details about her upbringing and family background prior to her professional career are limited in publicly available sources. She grew up in the southeastern United States before pursuing higher education at the University of Virginia and later at Northwestern University.

Education

Pennington earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia. She subsequently obtained a Master of Business Administration from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, one of the most selective graduate business programs in the United States. Her educational background in both the liberal arts and business provided a foundation for her eventual career in financial services leadership.

Career

Early Career at Edward Jones

Pennington joined Edward Jones and began her career at the firm as a financial advisor. Over the ensuing years, she gained experience across multiple areas of the firm's operations, taking on roles of increasing responsibility. Her progression through the organization reflected the firm's long-standing tradition of promoting leaders from within its own ranks, a hallmark of the Edward Jones partnership structure.

Rise to Senior Leadership

Prior to being named managing partner, Pennington served in several senior leadership capacities at Edward Jones. She held responsibilities in areas including the development of financial advisors, client strategy, and firm growth initiatives. Her work in leadership development and organizational strategy positioned her as a prominent figure within the firm's governance structure.

In May 2018, Edward Jones announced that Pennington had been selected to succeed Jim Weddle as the firm's next managing partner. The announcement was reported by the Wall Street Journal, which noted the significance of the appointment in the context of one of the largest brokerage firms in the country. Financial Advisor magazine also reported on her selection, noting the transition in leadership at the firm. At the time of the announcement, Barron's profiled Pennington's strategic vision for the firm, describing her approach as one of continuity combined with forward-looking adaptation to changing client needs.

Managing Partner of Edward Jones

Pennington officially assumed the role of managing partner in January 2019, becoming the leader of a firm that operates as one of the largest partnerships in the financial services industry. As managing partner, she serves as the chief executive of the firm, overseeing its network of financial advisors across North America. Edward Jones operates with a distinctive business model in which individual financial advisors work from branch offices, typically with a single advisor per location, and the firm functions as a limited partnership.

Under Pennington's leadership, Edward Jones has pursued a strategic shift toward a more comprehensive financial planning and advice model, moving beyond the firm's traditional focus on brokerage services. American Banker noted in 2025 that Pennington has led the firm's expansion into financial-planning advice and banking services, with the goal of accelerating the firm's growth rate. This transition has involved broadening the scope of services available to the firm's approximately 9 million clients, who collectively account for roughly $2.2 trillion in assets under care.

A central theme of Pennington's leadership philosophy has been what she terms "interdependence" — a model emphasizing collaboration among advisors, support staff, and the firm's home office to deliver integrated client service. In a December 2025 interview with AdvisorHub, Pennington discussed how the firm has made "consistent investments" designed to allow employees and advisors to "grow and prosper," relying on this framework of interdependence rather than a purely independent advisory model. In a separate AdvisorHub feature, Pennington elaborated on why Edward Jones has continued to invest in its partnership structure and advisor ownership model at a time when the broader wealth management industry has been debating the merits of various corporate structures.

In a July 2025 interview with Fortune, Pennington described Edward Jones as "a health and wellbeing company," framing the firm's financial advisory services within a broader context of client welfare and holistic life planning. This characterization reflects Pennington's public emphasis on the relationship between financial security and overall quality of life for clients.

In October 2025, Pennington appeared on Bloomberg Television, where she discussed market conditions and client sentiment. She noted that while volatility was likely ahead, signs pointed to continued client confidence in the firm's approach.

Pennington's tenure has also encompassed the firm's continued growth in scale. Under her leadership, the firm has maintained and expanded its position as one of the largest wealth management firms in the United States, serving millions of individual investors through its extensive network of branch offices.

Industry and Civic Involvement

Beyond her role at Edward Jones, Pennington has been active in business leadership organizations and civic institutions. She is a member of the Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of leading American companies that advocates on economic and policy issues. She is also a member of the Business Council.

In the St. Louis area, where Edward Jones is headquartered, Pennington has been involved in community and civic organizations. She has served in connection with Forest Park Forever, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the restoration and maintenance of Forest Park in St. Louis.

In July 2025, Washington University in St. Louis announced that its Board of Trustees had elected new members, with the announcement coinciding with Pennington's continued involvement in the university's governance structure.

Personal Life

Pennington is married to Mike Fidler. The couple has two children. She resides in the St. Louis metropolitan area, where Edward Jones maintains its headquarters in Des Peres, Missouri. Pennington has been profiled in St. Louis Magazine as a notable figure in the region's business community.

Recognition

Pennington has received significant recognition within the financial services industry and the broader business community. In 2025, American Banker ranked her fourth on its annual list of the Most Powerful Women in Finance, citing her leadership of Edward Jones's strategic expansion into financial planning and banking services. She has also appeared on FortuneTemplate:'s annual Most Powerful Women list, which recognizes women in leadership positions across industries.

In 2020, Fortune included Pennington on its Most Powerful Women list, an honor reported by the St. Louis Business Journal as notable for the St. Louis business community.

Wealth Management magazine named Pennington to its "Ten to Watch" list for 2019, recognizing her as one of the most notable incoming leaders in the financial services sector at the time she assumed the managing partner role.

Pennington has also been recognized by Diversity Woman for her leadership in promoting diversity and inclusion within the financial services industry. International Business Times has also profiled her as a prominent figure in American business.

Legacy

As the managing partner of Edward Jones, Pennington leads one of the few major American financial services firms that operates as a partnership rather than a publicly traded corporation. Her appointment in 2019 made her one of the most senior women in the U.S. financial services industry, and her continued tenure has coincided with a period of significant strategic transformation at the firm.

Pennington's emphasis on expanding Edward Jones from a traditional brokerage firm into a more comprehensive financial services provider — encompassing financial planning, advisory services, and banking — represents a notable shift in the firm's long-standing business model. Her articulation of an "interdependence" framework for the advisor-firm relationship has contributed to broader industry discussions about the future of wealth management and the role of partnership structures in financial services.

Her membership in organizations such as the Business Roundtable and the Business Council reflects her standing as a leading voice among American business executives. In the St. Louis region, her involvement with institutions such as Washington University and Forest Park Forever has underscored her role as a civic leader in the firm's home community.

Under Pennington's leadership, Edward Jones has continued to grow its client base and assets under care, positioning the firm to serve an expanding population of individual investors through its distinctive branch-office model. Her tenure has also coincided with increased industry-wide attention to the role of women in senior leadership positions within financial services, and her consistent recognition on lists such as FortuneTemplate:'s Most Powerful Women and American BankerTemplate:'s Most Powerful Women in Finance has made her one of the most visible female executives in the sector.