LPL draws from Osaic again, Raymond James from Merrill: Advisor moves

December 13, 2024 2:02 PM

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Advisor moves and big mergers and acquisition deals again showed no signs of slowing down for the holidays.

This week, LPL goes back to Osaic — again — to draw another big team. And the Atlanta-based RIA Homrich Berg buys up a $6.4 billion multifamily office and advisory practice.

LPL Financial pulls $540M group from Osaic

LPL Financial has recruited Prestige Wealth Group, a firm formerly managing $540 million at Osaic.

Prestige Wealth Group — which has its headquarters in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, and Westchester, Pennsylvania — was established in 2007 by Mark Fleksher, who's still a consultant to the practice. Prestige Wealth is now led by Rich Galgano and Matt Geraci, who played hockey on the same team in college and have been working together since 2020.

Galgano began his career at Securities America, one of various independent practices now rolled into the Osaic brand, in 2008. Geraci began at Northwestern Mutual in 2007, moved to Janney Montgomery Scott in 2012 and joined Securities America in 2020.

LPL has been recruiting often in recent months from Osaic, now completing an internal consolidation of eight different brokerage brands. In September, it announced it had pulled over a team managing $150 million from Osaic, formerly named Advisor Group. The month before, it announced recruiting two Osaic teams previously managing roughly $4 billion.

Raymond James draws $400M advisor from Merrill

Raymond James has brought an advisor formerly managing $400 million at Merrill to its employee channel.

Carol Heil is joining Raymond James & Associates, the St. Petersburg, Florida-based independent broker-dealer's channel for direct employees. Heil comes from Merrill Lynch, where she started her career in 1996.

Her practice is called Heil & Associates Wealth Management of Raymond James and she'll operate out of the firm's Louisville, Kentucky, branch. She'll be joined by senior registered client relationship associate Whitney Woodford and senior client service associates Brody Heil and Kathleen McConnell.

Cetera recruits $231M team to Summit Financial

Cetera Financial Group has recruited a team of three to its Summit Financial Networks subsidiary.

Eric Bottolsfen, Howard Gershkowitz and Robert Gershkowitz formerly had $231 million under management under the name allwealth Planning at MML Investors Services. They operate out of Scottsdale, Arizona, and specialize in wealth planning and helping individual clients, business owners and retirees.

LPL pulls $200M advisor from JPMorgan

LPL Financial has hired Francisco Blanco, an advisor formerly managing $200 million in client assets at JPMorgan.

Blanco is joining Stonebrook Wealth Management at LPL, a practice founded in 2019 by his fellow former JPMorgan employee Joe Mazzucco. The two are forming Stonebrook Wealth Partners.

Blanco, who works out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, specializes in financial and retirement planning, tax-efficient investing and estate investment planning.

Homrich Berg to acquire $6.4B family office firm and RIA

The Atlanta-based RIA Homrich Berg Wealth Management is acquiring WMS Partners, a multifamily office and registered investment advisor managing $6.4 billion.

The deal, expected to close in the first quarter next year, will bring HB Wealth's AUM total to more than $24 billion. WMS Partners, which has its headquarters in Townson, Maryland, will become part of HB Wealth's family office unit.

WMS was founded in 1993 and has more than 80 employees and partners. The purchase deal, terms of which were not disclosed, comes as part of HB Wealth's extension into the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S.

HB Wealth is one of many firms in wealth management financing their expansion plans with help from private equity. The private equity firm TPG Growth announced in September that it was taking a minority stake in HB Wealth.

HB Wealth now has 10 offices in five states and more than 300 team members. The deal with WMS will make the 21 people who are now shareholders in that firm owners of HB, pushing the combined firm's shareholder count above 70.

Hightower takes stake in $800M advisory practice

Hightower Advisors is taking an ownership interest in Dechtman Wealth Management, a firm with $800 million in assets.

Dechtman Wealth Management, in the Denver suburb of Centennial, Colorado, consists of an eight-member team led by three partners and wealth managers: Jordan Dechtman, the firm founder, and his two sons, Sam and Adam.

The deal with Dechtman Wealth Management marks Hightower's sixth investment in other firms this year. Hightower is one among many large wealth managers relying on private equity support to finance mergers and acquisitions in the wealth management industry. Hightower is owned by the private equity firm Thomas E. Lee Partners.

Hightower now has 140 advisory businesses in 35 states and the District of Columbia. It has roughly $156 billion in assets under management.

Steward Partners forms new hybrid branch on West Coast

Steward Partners is bringing on a team managing $180 million to form a new advisory group on the West Coast.

Steward Partners is rolling Trost Financial, a small firm in Los Angeles' Century City business district, into its existing Lindsey Group. The resulting Lindsey-Trost Group will manage $712 million.

The partnership will operate throughout the West Coast. The Lindsey Group will continue to work out of its office in Lake Oswego, Oregon, and Trost will stay in Century City.

RBC appoints head for Pacific Northwest region

RBC Wealth Management has named Carla Novak as the head of its Pacific Northwest region.

Novak, who joined RBC in 2023 from UBS, will oversee 10 offices in her new position and will serve as a branch director in Tacoma, Washington. Novak started her career in financial services in 2006 at Wachovia and moved to UBS in 2008, according to BrokerCheck.

"Carla is dedicated to helping others unlock their capabilities, and ensure that everyone thrives together," Colin Hawkes, RBC west divisional director, said in a statement. "I'm thrilled to see her elevated in this new leadership role as she continues to listen to financial advisors, understand their needs and help them and their clients flourish."