Wealth Enhancement, formerly Wealth Enhancement Group, has made its first acquisition of the year with a $618 million registered investment advisor in the Pacific Northwest. The deal brings Wealth Enhancement’s assets to more than $102.7 billion. The firm did not disclose the terms of the transaction.
Capstone Wealth Advisors, an independent advisory team of five advisors and four support staff led by Ryan Skogstad, will join Wealth Enhancement and take the firm's name. One member of the team will not be moving over and will continue to operate under the Capstone Wealth name.
The advisory is based in Salem, Ore., with offices in Washington and Nevada. It specializes in investment, tax, and estate planning and works with clients ranging from retirees to professional athletes. Skogstad had been with Bank of America’s Merrill Lynch before starting the firm.
“We look forward to leveraging [Wealth Enhancement’s] resources to support our continued growth and enhance our capabilities for our clients, who remain our top priority,” Skogstad said in a statement.
Wealth Enhancement, founded in 1997 in part by advisor Bruce Helmer, has 141 offices around the country.
There is some dispute about whether Gerald Bernard was another founder; he sued Wealth Enhancement last June, alleging that the firm reneged on paying him “finder’s fees” for deals. The firm has not commented on the pending litigation.
The firm continues a buying spree that included 15 deals in 2024, most recently with a Summit, N.J.-based RIA with $536 million in client assets. Wealth Enhancement completed 18 deals in 2023, 14 in 2022 and 16 in 2021.
The Minneapolis-based RIA’s acquisitions are partly fueled by private equity firms Onex Partners and TA Associates, both of which have stakes in the firm. In June, it disaffiliated from LPL Financial after 17 years with the broker/dealer.
