STREET MOVES: Morgan Stanley Hires 53 Brokers From Peers
Eighteen of the brokers had about $13 million in combined production and managed nearly $1.3 billion in assets at their prior firms. Production and asset figures for the other 35 brokers weren't available.
Over the past three weeks, the firm has recruited 105 advisors with $80 million in combined production and more than $8 billion in assets under management.
The large group of new hires underscores Morgan Stanley's ability to benefit from the recent turmoil in the brokerage industry and overcome concerns about its own falling stock price, independence, and transition to a bank holding company.
Yet, some say questions about the firm remain.
"I think people still view them as worrisome, with their ability to stay independent," said Danny Sarch, a recruiter with Leitner Sarch Consultants.
Other recruiters and industry experts, however, say that despite the firm's own issues, Morgan Stanley's reputation and the size of its compensation package still make it attractive to brokers looking to make a move.
"The top two recruiting firms right now are Morgan Stanley and UBS," said Michael King, a recruiter with Michael King Associates.
With industry changes ranging from Bank of America Corp.'s (BAC) deal to acquire Merrill Lynch & Co. (MER) to Wells Fargo & Co.'s (WFC) agreement to buy Wachovia Corp. (WB), brokers are considering switching firms more than ever before in an effort to recover lost wealth. Many advisors' deferred compensation levels plunged with the financial crisis.
"I think that it's across the board because people know that deals are rich and there's uncertainty at every firm," said Mindy Diamond, president of Diamond Consultants, a New Jersey-based recruiting firm.
Some have suggested that Merrill Lynch, in particular, could see many broker departures over their displeasure with Bank of America's retention package.
Selena Morris, a spokeswoman for Merrill Lynch, said that of the brokers that were eligible to receive the package, 97% accepted the deal. In addition, 99% of those producing $1.7 million and above who were offered the deal agreed to stay with the combined firm.
Some of Morgan Stanley's recent hires include Charles Bird, his wife, Tracy Bird and John Rocco, who joined the firm's New York office, located on Sixth Avenue, from Merrill Lynch. The team had more than $2.6 million in production and managed $250 million in prior assets.
Other recruits from Merrill include Robert Iannazzo, William Sherlach and Sal Trombetta. The three brokers had more than $1.6 million in production and had $225 million in assets under management. They are now based in the firm's Fairfield, Conn. office.
Morgan Stanley also hired Merrill brokers, Glen Pomeroy, his brother Keith Pomeroy and Michael Judd to work in its Westborough, Mass. office. The team had more than $1.4 million in production and $200 million in prior assets.
In addition, Morgan Stanley recruited Julia Karasik and Howard Senescu from Citigroup Inc.'s (C) Smith Barney brokerage. The team, which joined the firm's Riverwoods, Ill. office, had more than $2 million in production and managed $190 million in assets.
Merrill Lynch and Smith Barney confirmed that the brokers had left the firm.
Matthew Bienfang, senior research director of brokerage and wealth management at research firm TowerGroup, said that with all of the changes in the industry, Morgan Stanley is "in a position where they can cherry pick the really great producers" from other firms.
-By Brett Philbin, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5393; brett.philbin@dowjones.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 19, 2008 17:13 ET (22:13 GMT)
Publié le 19 novembre 2008 Copyright © 2008 Dowjones
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