Newton, Massachusetts, and Traverse City, Michigan, July 10, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Adviser Investments, LLC (“Adviser”), an independent wealth advisor providing customized financial planning solutions to clients nationwide, announced today that it has acquired LeJeune Puetz Investment Counsel, LLC (“LeJeune Puetz”).
LeJeune Puetz, one of the oldest and largest investment advisory firms in Northern Michigan, manages $350 million in client assets and serves 75 households. Adviser Investments, established in 1994, manages $8.3 billion in client assets along with its affiliates and provides tailored wealth solutions through a planning-first, fiduciary-only model.
The combination significantly enhances LeJeune Puetz’s service offering, adding comprehensive financial, tax and estate planning and settlement. Meanwhile this transaction will expand Adviser’s footprint into Northern Michigan, an attractive and growing market.
John Puetz joins Adviser as partner and wealth advisor. He will continue to work closely with clients to serve their complex planning needs while also focusing on growing his extensive book of business.
“John’s service-centric approach and focus on high-net-worth clients are part of what makes this such an exciting transaction,” Adviser CEO Mario Ramos said. “We are extremely glad to partner with a firm so complementary in values and growth goals.”
LeJeune Puetz benefits from Adviser’s established infrastructure, enabling the firm to enhance its service lineup without sacrificing the high level of responsiveness its clients have come to expect.
“We are elated to join Adviser—and are confident that this move will allow us to spend more time helping clients achieve their financial goals and less time on administrative tasks and regulatory and compliance issues,” Puetz said.
Adviser recently aquired other like-minded fiduciaries with growth ambitions and client-focused business models. Last month it announced a deal to acquire Boston-based Ropes Wealth Advisors, a $6.5 billion AUM advisory that offers estate and financial planning services to families, trusts and institutions. In April 2022, Adviser acquired Polaris Wealth Advisory Group, a $1.5 billion AUM RIA based in San Rafael, California, specializing in comprehensive financial planning and proprietary tactical investment management services.
These partnerships and the firm’s differentiated service offering position Adviser to be a formidable leader in the wealth advisory space.
About Adviser Investments
For 30 years, Adviser Investments, LLC has served families, businesses, trusts, foundations and institutions, providing tailored wealth management services including financial, tax and estate planning, 401(k) advisory services, and balanced portfolios of core index funds, ETFs and select alternative investments. Adviser is a nationally recognized brand with over 5,000 clients across the U.S. and multiple offices in locations including Boston, the San Francisco Bay Area and Dallas. The firm employs over 130 professionals including fully staffed client service, research, operations, marketing, technology and M&A teams. Over the last decade, the firm has expanded both organically and through targeted partnerships.
Adviser Investments is routinely named among Barron's top independent financial advisors and the Financial Times’ 300 top registered investment advisors, and it has been consistently chosen as one of the best places to work in financial services in national and regional surveys.
About LeJeune Puetz Investment Counsel
LeJeune Puetz Investment Counsel provides customized investment advisory services for individuals, foundations and corporations.
The firm was founded in 1988, when Dennis LeJeune, formerly an executive vice president for the Harris Bank in Chicago, began providing investment advisory services to clients throughout the Midwest. John Puetz joined the firm in 1996, and LeJeune Puetz Investment Counsel was formed in 1997.
As a fee-only independent investment advisor that focuses on larger accounts, LeJeune Puetz creates custom portfolios based on each investor's individual needs.
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Awards and recognitions referenced above do not evaluate client experience or investment returns, nor are such a guarantee of future performance or satisfaction. Adviser Investments did not pay a fee to participate in the awards referenced herein.
The Barron’s America’s Best Independent Advisors ranking (awarded to Adviser Investments, LLC, 2013–2020) considers factors such as assets under management, revenue produced for the firm and quality of practice as determined by Barron’s editors. The award sponsor has not disclosed how many firms were surveyed or considered for this recognition nor the percentage of total participants that ultimately received recognition. Prior to 2019, the award was called the Barron’s Top 100 Independent Wealth Advisors.
The Barron’s Top Advisor Rankings by State (Massachusetts) (awarded to Adviser Investments, LLC, 2014–2021), also referred to as Barron’s Top 1,200 Financial Advisors, considers factors such as assets under management, revenue produced for the firm, regulatory record, quality of practice and philanthropic work. According to Barron’s, “around 4,000” advisory firms were considered for this recognition in 2021, with about 1,200 firms receiving recognition.
The InvestmentNews Best Places to Work for Financial Advisers award (awarded to Adviser Investments, LLC, 2018–2022) is conducted in partnership with employee survey firm Best Companies Group. Winners are selected based on a two-part survey completed by employers and employees. Employers report their organization’s workplace policies, practices and demographics. Employees complete a survey designed to measure the employee experience in areas such as leadership and planning, pay and benefits, corporate culture and communications, and work environment. Scores from the employee survey represent three-quarters of the weight of the final rankings. Firms do not pay a fee to participate. To be eligible for the award, a firm must be a registered investment advisor or broker-dealer, have been in business for at least one year and have at least 15 full-time employees. In 2018, 50 firms were named to the list; in 2019–2022, 75 were named. The award sponsor has not disclosed how many firms were surveyed or considered for this recognition nor the percentage of total participants that ultimately received recognition.
