Bridgeworth Financial, one of largest financial planning firms in Birmingham, Ala., has joined LPL Financial, the nation's largest independent broker-dealer.
In addition, PinOak Advisors LLC merged with Bridgeworth to bring a total of $1 billion in assets under management to LPL. LPL will serve as broker-dealer and custodian to Bridgeworth Financial.
Bridgeworth Financial was formed in 2008 by a group of certified financial advisors and now has a total of 16 advisors. Most of the advisors at Bridgeworth have worked together for more than 20 years and recently formed their own independent registered investment advisory (RIA) firm.
PinOak managing member Pete McCarn will be senior investment strategist and Jeris Burns and David LeCompte will also join Bridgeworth as advisors.
Bridgeworth was previously with broker-dealer Lincoln Financial Advisors.
"When we formed Bridgeworth, we devised a long-range plan to allow us to be a better partner with our clients pursuing their financial goals," says Bridgeworth financial managing principal DeLynn Zell. "Today we are embarking on the next phase of that plan. This decision gives us even more flexibility, allowing us to do an even better job for our clients."
Bill Morrissey, LPL's executive vice president of business development, notes, "We look forward to utilizing our industry leading resources, scale and services to help drive the firm's ongoing growth and success."
The new affiliation comes on the heels of LPL's recent affiliation with Advantage Financial Group, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which handles $2 billion in client assets. LPL had $353 billion in total advisory and brokerage assets as of the end of June.
-Karen DeMasters