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Advisors on the Move: Securities America Sweeps Up $120M Team

Securities America picks up a team with $120 million in client assets while a Focus partner firm brings in a wealth manager with $150 million in AUM. Here's a roundup of some of the most recent moves among independent financial advisors.
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Securities America Joint Venture Snags Advisor Pair

An advisor duo managing more than $120 million has joined Omaha-based Fortress Wealth Advisors. Thomas Kerins and Debra Hendrickson will be joining the firm from Manarin Investment Counsel, an RIA also based in the Nebraska city.
This is the first team to join Fortress' co-founders, Dana and Curren Webb. Fortress opened in mid-January and currently has $200 million in assets. The firm conducts advisory business through one of Securities America's joint ventures, Arbor Point Advisors.

Photo: Debra Hendrickson and Thomas Kerins
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EP Wealth Taps New Talent

Adam Phillips, a CFA and CFP, has joined EP Wealth Advisors as senior vice president and investment strategist. He joins the independent financial planning firm from City National Bank in Beverly Hills, Calif., where he managed nearly $700 million.
"Our firm has been growing," Brian Parker, co-founder and managing director at EP Wealth, said in a statement announcing the hire. "With his background in fixed income and equity investments, Adam brings valuable skills to the EP Wealth team.
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Focus Partner Firm Recruits Wealth Manager with $150AUM

Paul St. Onge, an East Greenwich, R.I., wealth manager, has signed on with GW & Wade, a Focus Financial firm based in Wellesley, Mass.
St. Onge had first signed a succession agreement with the firm in 2013; six months later, both parties agreed to a formal merger. St. Onge was previously a sole practitioner at his own RIA.
He brings $150 million in client assets to GW & Wade, and will continue working with his current clients. "When the day comes to transition my business, my clients will know and trust the advisory team at G.W. & Wade intimately," St. Onge said in a press release.
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Mariner Wealth Advisors Hires New Senior VP of Wealth Management

Kevin Corbett is joining Mariner Wealth Advisors as the firm's new senior vice president of wealth management. Corbett brings 17 years of experience to the firm; his most recent position was as a senior relationship manager with Fidelity.
While at Fidelity, Corbett held a number of roles throughout the retail and institutional brokerage businesses. Before working for Fidelity, Corbett worked as a head trader with Bainco International Investors.
In his new role, he will "support partner firm initiatives," according to a statement.
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Colony Group Picks Up Firm With $200M in Assets

Colony Group, a Focus Financial Partners firm in Boston, has picked up a firm with approximately $200 million in assets.
The latest acquisition, Boston-based Long Wharf Investors, brings Colony closer to $4 billion in assets, according to an announcement of the deal. Colony "remains a disciplined buyer of high-quality registered investment advisors," says Colony chief executive Michael Nathanson.
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Securities America Adds Team With $50M AUM

Stephen Trowbridge and Kristi Trowbridge of Hoover, Alaska-based Trowbridge Wealth Management have joined Securities America. The team previously managed $50 million in client assets and generated $650,000 in annual revenue at Birmingham, Ala.-based Sterne, Agee & Leach, according to a statement announcing the move.
The team has brought over 100% of its clients, according to the announcement.
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Stratos Wealth Partners' Carolina Firm Reels in Advisor Duo

Partners Robert Freitas and Robert Glance are leaving The Smith Group to join Stratos Wealth Partners' team in Aiken, N.C.
Both partners specialize in helping pre-retirees reach retirement planning and insurance goals. Freitas maintained more than $20 million in client assets and Glance boasts over 25 years in the insurance industry, according to an announcement of the move.
Stratos has had a busy year so far, recruiting 40 new financial advisors to bring its numbers up to almost 180. Currently the independent RIA has over $1 billion in client assets under management.

Photo: Robert Freitas and Robert Glance
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HighTower Names Executive Director of Business Development

Recruiter Kimberly Hollenbeck becomes HighTower's new executive director of business development on Aug. 11. Hollenbeck will be based in San Diego, where she will "provide recruitment and business development services on the West Coast," according to a statement.
Hollenbeck has 16 years of experience of recruiting to independent channels. She joins HighTower from Wells Fargo Advisors FiNet, where she served as senior VP and regional director of branch development.
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Mercury Financial Group Appoints Wealth Advisory Group VP

Dallas-based Mercury Financial Group welcomed Thomas Vilardo as vice president and planning specialist on July 21. Vilardo will be serving the Chicago area.
Vilardo has 21 years of experience in the securities industry, according to FINRA records. He specializes in business succession and executive compensation planning for ultrahigh-net-worth clients.
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Signature Promotes New Chief Operating Officer

Five-year Signature veteran Xandra Burnette has been named the wealth management firm's first chief operating officer. The position was created "in response to a need to expand the management structure" within the Virginia-based firm, according to a statement.
Burnette boasts more than 23 years in the financial services industry.
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