Hightower has acquired a stake in Financial Planning and Information Services, a registered investment advisor managing more than $1.1 billion in assets under management out of De Pere, Wis. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
This represents Hightower’s fifth investment this year and follows news last week that it agreed to take a majority stake in NEPC, an institutional consulting firm and outsourced chief investment officer.
FPIS was founded in 1985 by Lon Mishler, and the firm is currently led by President and CEO Ryan Wempe and vice presidents Dan Budinger and Rachel Brown. The Hightower deal will allow the RIA to promote Brock Becker and Carl Ekstrom, associate advisors, to partners. The 16-person team will retain its brand.
“As our client-centric practice continues to grow, we’re pleased to join the Hightower team, gaining access to new services and tools that will help us better guide our clients through the triumphs and the challenges of life,” Wempe said.
Advisor Growth Strategies advised FPIS on the deal.
Hightower’s services for firms include boosting organic and inorganic growth through business development consulting, marketing and tech support, as well as compliance, accounting, payroll and human resources services.
Chicago-based Hightower operates as an RIA and works with firms in 35 states and Washington, D.C. With the addition of NEPC, Hightower and its affiliates will represent over $1.8 trillion in assets under advisement and $258 billion in assets under management.
Hightower is owned by private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners; in May, WealthManagement.com reported the private equity firm took Hightower off the market because it didn’t get the price it was looking for from potential buyers, according to sources close to the firm and the investment bankers involved.
In April, Hightower named Gurinder Ahluwalia, the lead director of the firm’s board of directors, as president, a newly created position. Ahluwalia is an executive partner in THL’s financial technology and services vertical.