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August 03, 2018 at 01:30 PM
One week after it became a publicly traded firm, Focus Financial Partners says it has a new member: Edge Capital Group of Atlanta, which as some $3.5 billion of client assets and six offices.
“We are very impressed by the Edge team’s commitment to excellence in everything they do,” Focus CEO Rudy Adolf said in a statement. “Edge would be an exemplary M&A platform for other entrepreneurial RIAs in the region.”
(Related: More Mega-Teams Are Breaking Away: Schwab’s Clark)
Focus’ shares now trade just under $39. In mid-July, before it went public, the RIA consolidator had set it a target price at $35 to $39 for the 16.2 million shares it planned to issue.
The firm, which has more than 55 partner RIAs, went public at $33 on July 26, but ended its first trading day at around $37.50. As of early Friday, its market capitalization was over $2.5 billion.
Focus’ IPO is a “huge deal” for the RIA industry as it “provides a way for others to follow in its footpath,” said Louis Diamond, executive vice president of Diamond Consultants, in an interview. “It validates the fact that the RIA space is not only a trend.”
With the Focus IPO, the RIA industry has “a great real success story,” Diamond says. “This lets advisors, employees and partners recognize the value of the equity. They can monetize their equity, and there is a liquid market for those who buy the equity.”
