Advisor Group Says It's Considering New Name

What You Need to Know

The group of eight firms is said to be weighing its options ahead of a possible IPO.
Advisor Group managers have discussed merging BDs, recruiter Jon Henschen says.
The firm could also become self-clearing before going public, he says.

Advisor Group is still considering rebranding as one way to help its affiliated brokers, according to the company.

“While nothing has been finalized, we’ve made no secret of exploring this opportunity,” a company spokesman told ThinkAdvisor late Thursday.

“As we noted publicly during our ConnectEd Conference last year and recently discussed with our network of advisors, we are considering options to drive greater efficiency and leverage scale to enhance the experience and growth of affiliated financial professionals,” he explained.

But he added: “We will move in this direction only when we are certain this would be purely beneficial to our advisors and would not be a repapering event.”

The spokesperson was commenting on a report by InvestmentNews earlier in the day that said Advisor Group was “looking to reshape its brand in coming months to show a more unified front, with multiple sources confirming that the moniker ‘One Advisor Group’ will be the network’s likely name sooner rather than later.”

The plan is part of the private equity-owned Advisor Group’s ongoing push toward an eventual initial public offering, similar to the path that rival BD LPL Financial Holdings’ private backers took when that firm went public in 2010, the report said.

Advisor Group comprises eight firms: American Portfolios, FSC Securities Corp., Infinex Financial Group, Royal Alliance, SagePoint Financial, Securities America, Triad Advisors and Woodbury Financial.