Janney Expands in Texas With Advisor Recruits Managing $3.3 Billion

Janney Montgomery Scott opened a new office in Houston and recruited four financial advisors who collectively managed nearly $3.3 billion in client assets at Raymond James Financial, Janney said Friday.

Janney Montgomery Scott Photo: Photography by Jeff Wojtaszek

The company’s new recruits include the Edwards Fitzpatrick Group, which is led by advisors Sean Fitzpatrick and James “Jim” Edwards. Fitzpatrick registered with Raymond James’s employee broker-dealer in 2002, according to BrokerCheck, a public database maintained by industry self-regulatory organization Finra.

Edwards got his start at UBS in 1994 and moved to Raymond James in 2003.

Fitzpatrick is ranked among Barron’s Top 1,500 Advisors for 2026.

The Edwards Fitzpatrick Group also includes advisor Christin Simon and senior registered private client associate Allison Spinelli.

Fitzpatrick said his team took a deliberate approach before choosing to join Janney. “After carefully evaluating the platforms, cultures, and capabilities available to us, Janney stood out for the combination of personal attention and sophisticated resources,” he said in a statement.

Janney also recruited Houston-based advisor Lance Murphy from Raymond James. Murphy has 27 years of industry experience and moved to Raymond James from Edward Jones in 2022, according to BrokerCheck.

Kevin Reed, president of Janney’s private client group, said the new recruits will help his firm grow its presence in Houston and Texas more broadly. Janney opened its first office in Texas in 2025, with a location in Dallas. The state has been experiencing robust population growth and has been attracting newcomers from other states such as California.

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“Texas presents tremendous opportunity for Janney, and opening an office in Houston with this group of experienced advisors gives us an outstanding foundation in the market,” said Frank Amigo, Gulf regional director at Janney and a former complex manager at Raymond James. “They bring deep experience, strong client relationships, and established practices that align extremely well with Janney. We see significant opportunity to build on this presence and continue attracting experienced advisors across Texas.”

Philadelphia-based Janney has more than 900 advisors and 130 branches in 21 states. The company said it has $187 billion in client assets under advisement.

In 2024, investment funds managed by private-equity firm KKR agreed to buy Janney from The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company. Janney recently sold its capital markets unit to focus on growing its wealth management business.

Write to Andrew Welsch at andrew.welsch@barrons.com

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