Baird said Thursday that it hired former-Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (MS) branch manager Mark T. Stevanovic to open a wealth-management office in Portland, Maine. This will be Baird’s first branch first in the state.
Stevanovic (left), a non-producing manager, previously oversaw about 50 financial advisors who managed more than $4 billion dollars in client assets at offices in Portland and Bangor. He began his financial services career as a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch.
Milwaukee-based Baird says it has recruited close to 250 advisors over the past two years or so, and its veteran reps have been boosting average fees and commissions by about 12.5% in 2010 and 2011, putting its year-over-year performance ahead of some larger rivals.
“Mark is a tremendous addition to our private wealth-management business and to Baird,” said John Mabee, vice chairman of Baird’s private wealth-management group, in a statement. “With his deep industry knowledge and appreciation for Baird’s unique culture, he is well suited to help us establish a presence in Maine. We couldn’t be more pleased that he has chosen to continue his career at Baird.”