Stifel scoops up advisors with $468M from four rivals

Stifel poached eight advisors managing $468 million from four rivals, the firm said.

It’s the latest in a series of new hires at the St. Louis-based regional BD, which has attracted talent from its larger competitors.

To turbocharge its recruiting efforts, Stifel has in recent years built new branches and hired talent from the wirehouses. The firm has opened 17 new offices in 2019. Bob Johnson, who was previously with Merrill and now serves as a Dallas-based regional director at Stifel, says these efforts and the regional firm’s culture are attracting new talent.

“With the opening of several offices and the onboarding of several multi-million dollar teams, obviously Stifel has resonated broadly with high-net-worth advisors,” he says in a statement.

“Several [recruited] advisors are over 100% of their advertised assets, which tells me the relationship is with the advisor, not with the firm. Stifel gets this, and their entire infrastructure is built around being the firm of choice for both the advisor and the client,” Johnson adds.

Stifel’s latest recruiting surge netted advisors from a range of wirehouse and rival regional firms, furthering the St. Louis-based firm’s efforts to grow headcount through aggressive hiring.

Among the pickups were three Merrill Lynch advisors who joined Stifel in Covington, Kentucky. Brad Edwards, Tim Hummell and Christina Gianascoli oversaw $99 million in client assets at their former employer, according to Stifel.

The team is comprised of young talent at a time when firms have struggled to replace retiring advisors.

With 12 years in the business, Edwards is the most experienced advisor. Hummell and Gianascoli started their careers at Merrill in 2014 and 2018, respectively, according to FINRA BrokerCheck records.

In New York, Stifel hired former UBS advisor Anthony Small. He managed $42 million and had worked at the wirehouse since 2007.

Raymond James lost two advisors to Stifel. Kevin Byrne, who managed $130 million, joined the broker-dealer in Chicago. An advisor of 20 years, Byrne had been with Raymond James since 2008, according to BrokerCheck.

Andy Miller joined Stifel in Gainesville, Georgia, after spending 17 years at Raymond James and predecessor firm Morgan Keegan. Miller was responsible for $59 million in client assets.

Stifel also picked up two former Wells Fargo advisors, both based in California. In Carlsbad, it hired Jon Webster. He was previously responsible for $80 million in client assets, Stifel says. Webster is an industry veteran with 35 years of experience. In addition to Wells Fargo, he has worked at firms such as Smith Barney, E.F. Hutton and PaineWebber.

And in Newport Beach, Stifel enticed over Anthony Ignacio. He previously oversaw $57 million in client assets at Wells Fargo where he had worked for the past 12 years. Like Webster, Ignacio is an industry veteran with more than three decades of experience.

Spokespersons for Merrill Lynch, UBS, Raymond James and Wells Fargo were unavailable for immediate comment.