Orange County’s top wealth managers gained new clients over the past year and significantly more money under management.
The four entries on this week’s Business Journal list together manage about $5.32 billion in assets for retirees, business owners, charitable organizations and other high-net-worth individuals.
That’s a bigger sum than the total of $4.28 billion managed by six local wealth managers who were on last year’s list of wealth managers.
The list represents the OC portion of the top 100 wealth advisers in California ranked by Barron’s magazine. Barron’s uses a proprietary methodology to rank advisers in each state. The formula looks at assets under management, revenue produced and quality of practice, which includes an evaluation of each adviser’s regulatory record.
Laila Pence, president at Pence Wealth Management in Newport Beach, made No. 34 on the Barron’s list, a jump from last year’s No. 61.
Pence’s team oversees about $781 million in assets, a 23% increase from a year earlier.
Existing clients and new referrals helped the business grow, according to Pence.
Retention
“We have a tremendous rate of retention,” she said. “They know what we do. We do a lot of client functions. And we get a lot of referrals, especially from attorneys and certified public accountants.”
The majority of Pence’s clients are from Orange and Los Angeles counties. About 75% are retirees.
“Most advisers are only looking to manage the money, but we combine estate planning and wealth management,” Pence said.
“When [clients] come in, we look at their taxes and estate planning. We also advise real estate. Most clients are used to advisers recommending just stocks, or just real estate, but what we do is include all those assets in our portfolio because each one serves a purpose.”
Marc Foster at the Newport Beach office of UBS Financial Services Inc. is ranked No. 84, up from last year’s No. 93. His team of five saw total assets increase about 6% to $700 million last year, with an average account size of $3 million. A typical client has about $10 million in net worth.
Foster said he has been active in locating opportunities in the uncertain economic environment.
“Last year was a very, very challenging year for most investors and most people in business,” Foster said. “But it was a time to be more opportunistic. People are still being negative. Even though it was tough for most people, there were opportunities to be had.”
Asset Growth
Some of the areas he’s tapped into are bank loan products and master limited partnerships, which are operating businesses that Foster’s team used as fixed-income hybrids. Foster attributed his firm’s asset growth to a few factors.
“We’ve made some good investments, which worked out well,” he said. “This year already has a feel that it will be a lot better. Also we have some additional clients, and we’re trying to prune off clients in the lower end and give them to other managers.”
Some of his clients are families of four generations.
A duo from Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, part of Bank of Am-erica’s financial advisory arm, made the list.
Mark Binder was ranked No. 81. He is one of four managing directors of the Binder, Chiate, Harries and Oratz team.
The team manages about $2.29 billion of assets. A typical account size is about $30 million, and an average client has about $50 million in net worth.
The Barron’s list also included Craig Chiate who heads the Los Angeles office at No. 58.
Binder’s Back
Binder was on the Barron’s list in 2010 at No. 58 and skipped last year, when another partner was on the list.
“In perspective of asset allocation, we take a risk-based approach,” Binder said. “Wealth preservation is a key component for our clients. We tend to be conservative.”
Each of the partners manages a specific section of a portfolio, such as equities and alternative investments.
“That’s a real strength of our team,” Binder said. “We’re a big staff with a lot of specialization.”
Tom Blanchfield of Merrill Lynch was ranked No. 100 on the Barron’s list.
Blanchfield is a managing director, leading a team of five with Senior Vice President Alexander Stimpson.
The team manages about $1.55 billion of assets and serves high-net-worth individuals, families and nonprofit organizations with upward of $1 million in net worth.
Blanchfield said his team’s investment strategies have been tied to “a high level of conservatism, a high level of tax efficiency and municipal bond allocations.”
