Top Financial Advisors in St. Louis, MO

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Moneta Group Financial Advisors is a fee-only firm that works with individuals, though the majority of these clients have a high net worth. Institutional clients at Moneta include pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and corporations.

The advisor team at Moneta has earned a number of certificaions including certified financial planner (CFP), chartered financial advisor (CFA), certified public accountant (CPA), financial paraplanner qualified professional (FPQP), accredited wealth management advisor (AWMA), certified divorce financial advisor (CDFA), accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), accredited investment fiduciary analyst (AIFA), chartered life underwriter (CLU) and chartered financial consultant (ChFC).

Moneta Group Investment Advisors Background

Moneta was founded in 1869, making it older than most firms in the U.S. It is wholly owned by Moneta Group, LLC, which in turn is owned by Moneta Partners.

Services offered at the firm include financial management, investment management, retirement plan services and retirement consulting. 

Moneta Group Investment Advisors Investing Strategy

A variety of asset types are used at Moneta Group Investment Advisors. These include:

• Equities: these are used to produce dividend income and control capital gains exposure
• Fixed Income: this can include individual bonds, bond funds and CDs
• Alternative investments: these could include hedge funds or private capital.

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Buckingham Strategic Wealth has more than 6,000 individual clients, most of whom do not have high net worths. Beyond individuals, this firm also serves charitable organizations, businesses, foundations and qualified retirement plans. Buckingham does not institute a specific minimum account size, but rather has a variable requirement based on client type.

This fee-only firm boasts a large variety of advisor certifications. This includes certified financial planners (CFPs), certified public accountants (CPAs), chartered financial analysts (CFAs), chartered retirement plans specialists (CRPSes), chartered life underwriter (CLU), chartered financial consultant (ChFC), chartered retirement planning counselor (CRPC), accredited estate planner (AEP), certified divorce financial analyst (CDFA), certified plan fiduciary advisor (CPFA) and financial paraplanner qualified professional (FPQP).

The firm is fee-only, so no commissions are collected from third-parties. Client fees are generally based on a percentage of assets under management.

Buckingham Strategic Wealth Background

Buckingham Strategic Wealth was founded in 1994. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Focus Financial Partners, LLC, a financial services holding company that has a nationwide presence in the market at various levels.

There are a wide variety of different services you’ll find here, such as:

• Education/529 plan planning
• Cash flow planning
• Estate planning
• Tax planning/minimization
• Divorce financial planning
• Investment management
• Disability income analysis
• Retirement planning

Buckingham Strategic Wealth Investing Strategy

Buckingham does not believe in stock-picking and attempting to beat the market. Instead, it prefers to choose reliable investments that have low fees and are generally tax-efficient. For the most part, these are mutual funds and investment grade bond portfolios.

To avoid a static portfolio, the firm makes sure to diversify your investments not only domestically, but internationally as well. In addition to using diversification to reduce volatility, Buckingham uses fixed income investments to keep as constant an influx of return as possible into your account.

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Plancorp is a fee-only firm with a client list whose individual clients are nearly evenly split between those who do and don't have high net worths. Institutional clients include pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and corporations. There is no set account minimum at Plancorp.

Certifications earned by advisors at the firm include certified financial planner (CFP), accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), chartered financial analyst (CFA) and certified public accountant (CPA).

Plancorp Background

Plancorp was founded in 1983. Nearly 30% of the firm is owned directly by Primentum Group, Inc., while more than 55% is owned indirectly by the firm's board of managers and leadership, and around 17% is owned by employees of the firm. Services at Plancorp include financial planning, cash flow analysis, retirement planning, education funding analysis, estate planning, asset protection and wealth management.

Plancorp Investment Strategy

Modern portfolio theory is the main strategy used at Plancorp. This involves systemic diversification of a portfolio across asset classes, including stocks and bonds. According to SEC data, securities issued by registered investment companies (such as mutual funds) and business development companies are by far the biggest investment class at Plancorp, making up 83% of client investments. Around 3% is put into stocks, 7% in bonds, 6% in cash and 1% into certificates of deposit.

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The team at Visionary Wealth Advisors includes advisors with a few different advisory certifications. For example, you’ll come across certified financial planners (CFPs), chartered advisors for senior living (CASLs) and chartered financial analysts (CFAs), among others. These advisors work almost entirely with non-high-net-worth individuals, though the firm also manages assets for businesses and high-net-worth individuals.

There is no specific account minimum for new clients of this firm. Visionary is fee-based, which means some advisors can receive commissions from securities sales. Despite this, advisors are required to act in your best interest due to their inherent fiduciary duty.

Visionary Wealth Advisors Background

Brett Gilliland and Tim Hammett founded Visionary Wealth Advisors in 2014. They still work at and own the firm today, with Gilliland serving as CEO and Hammett operating as president. The firm also runs offices in Buena Vista, Colorado; Edwardsville, Illinois; Jackson, Missouri; O’Fallon, Illinois; Overland Park, Kansas; and Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Like most financial advisors, the primary service at Visionary is investment management. However, there are many different versions of financial planning you can also take advantage of.

Visionary Wealth Advisors Investment Strategy

Before investing your hard-earned money, Visionary Wealth Advisors will do a deep dive into the type of investor you are. For example, your advisor should know if you’re years away from retirement or if it’s around the corner. This will also involve identifying your risk tolerance, liquidity and income needs, time horizon, investment preferences and more.

Once it’s time to invest, the firm may choose to allocate your assets in multiple places. These typically include equities, ETFs, mutual funds, third-party model portfolios and cash equivalents.

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At Argos Capital Partners, all the individual clients have ultra-high net worths. These clients number less than 50, though the firm also works with their charitable organizations, trusts, partnerships and other business entities. There is technically no set account minimum at this fee-only firm.

The staff of advisors at this firm boasts designations like chartered financial analyst (CFA), certified public accountant (CPA), chartered alternative investment analyst (CAIA), chartered retirement planning counselor (CRPC) and certified financial planner (CFP). Argos may charge performance-based fees if your account overperforms.

Argos Capital Partners Background

Although Argos Capital Partners is entirely its own financial advisor firm, another firm called Black Swan Investments, LLC actually owns it. Argos has been in business since 2008.

If you’re looking for very particular advisory services at your next firm, Argos probably isn’t your best choice. Instead its service selection is fairly small and fluid, including the likes of retirement analysis, third-party investment reporting, in-person investment planning, investment portfolio review and investment policy statement creation.

Argos Capital Partners Investing Strategy

Argos Capital Partners mainly practices passive index investing. However, you will not be rigidly forced into a portfolio style based on this strategy. Rather your advisor will take the time to design and build an asset allocation that aligns with your liquidity needs, time horizon, tax situation and risk tolerance.

ETFs and index funds in general have become all the rage in the investment world, and for good reason. Argos has followed this strategy, although it supplements these investments with other mutual funds, private equity funds, stocks, bonds, REITs, hedge funds and separately managed accounts.

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For every one high-net-worth individual Krilogy Financial works with, it has more than three non-high-net-worth counterparts. This ratio reflects the firm’s more significant focus on clientele with lower net worths compared to other firms on the list. Its $250,000 minimum account size supports this. Estates, trusts, pension/profit-sharing plans, businesses and charitable organizations are clients of this firm as well.

This firms employs certified financial planners (CFPs), accredited investment fiduciaries (AIFs), certified public accountants (CPAs), certified trust and financial advisors (CTFAs), certified fund specialists (CFSs), certified investment management analyst (CIMA), certified IRA services professional (CISPs), certified income specialists (CISs) and chartered financial consultant (ChFCs).

This fee-based firm employs certain advisors that sell insurance policies for commissions. However, the firm is a fiduciary, meaning it is legally bound to act in your best interests.

Krilogy Financial Background

One of the younger firms on this list, Krilogy Financial opened in 2008. Although one leader, president Kent Skornia runs the firm, and is its principal owner through a holding company.

This firm offers rather nonspecific advisory services, but personalizes them to its clients’ needs. Therefore you can subscribe to offerings like financial independence, money management, tax loss planning, estate planning, investment planning and risk management.

Krilogy Financial Investing Strategy

Risk tolerance and liquidity are two of the most essential factors that dictate what stocks will be in your investment portfolio. These can sometimes be incongruent, of course. For example, a high risk tolerance is not in sync with a need to maintain liquidity. Krilogy is prepared to handle issues such as these.

As far as investment choices go, this firm keeps things simple, utilizing mostly exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, bonds and equities. Krilogy uses these to keep your portfolio diversified.

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Acropolis Investment Management is a fee-only financial advisory firm that provides clients with individual investment programs. Acropolis charges annual fees for these services based on a percentage of your assets under management. As a fee-only firm, it doesn’t collect commissions or other forms of revenue from third parties for recommending certain products or investments over others.

To open an account with the Acropolis, you’d generally need a minimum investment of $1 million. The minimum drops to $500,000 for those introduced through the Schwab Advisor Network. However, SEC records show that the firm’s individual client base consists of mostly non-high-net worth individuals.

The team includes 14 certified financial planners (CFPs), four chartered financial advisors (CFAs), three certified public accountants (CPAs) and one certified exit planning advisor (CEPA).

Acropolis Investment Management Background

Acropolis Investment Management has been in business since 2002. It is owned by four of the firm's partners. The two with principal ownership (between 25% and 50%) are Christopher Lissner and David Ott.

Services include investment management, institutional advisory and retirement plan advisory services.

Acropolis Investment Management Investing Strategy

Acropolis begins its investment advisory process by holding meetings with individual clients. The firm utilizes this time to gather as much relevant financial information as it can to develop a comprehensive investment strategy. This would be detailed in your personalized investment policy statement. It will detail your asset allocation based on your risk appetite, financial objectives and more.

Based on your financial profile, the firm may invest your assets in individual stocks, bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds and separately managed accounts.

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JAG Capital Management has a variety of different clients, though a majority of its client base is high-net-worth individuals. Other clients of the firm include non-high-net-worth individuals, charities, businesses, retirement plans, investment companies, insurance companies and a single nursing facility. The firm generally adheres to a minimum investment of $100,000, though it may waive this at its discretion.

The team of advisors at this firm averages nearly 30 years of experience between them. The firm employs three chartered financial analysts (CFAs).

Some of the advisors at fee-based JAG Capital Management can receive commissions from securities sales. The firm is required to act in clients’ best interests at all times, though.

JAG Capital Management Background

JAG Capital Management has been around for quite a long time, as it was originally founded in 1945. Today, the firm is under the ownership of CEO and chief investment officer (CIO) Norman Conley III, who has worked in financial services since 1994.

Investment management services at JAG can be had through either a normal or wrap fee structure. The firm also offers limited financial planning.

JAG Capital Management Investment Strategy

The investment philosophy at JAG Capital Management is based on the following core strategies:

• Growth Equity: Invests in stocks that show strong growth and characteristics
• JAG Capital Funds: Invests specifically for the long term
• Intermediate Fixed-Income: Invests in mid-duration fixed-income instruments with low risk
• SRI Quality Growth: Invests with an eye toward social responsibility and growth
• ESG & SRI Investing: Invests strictly in SRI- and ESG-centric securities

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RubinBrown Advisors provides a range of investment advisory services to a diverse group of clients including individuals and charities. If it deems appropriate, the firm may also recommend the use of one or more third-party investment advisors. 

RubinBrown Advisors is affiliated with RubinBrown Financial Services, an insurance agency. Its representatives may recommend insurance products and earn commissions. However, as a fiduciary, RubinBrown Advisors is obligated to always work in clients' best interests.

The firm’s network of advisors includes certified financial planners (CFPs), certified public accountants (CPAs), chartered financial analysts (CFAs) and personal finance specialists (PFSs).

RubinBrown Advisors Background

RubinBrown Advisors is a wholly-owned subsidiary of RubinBrown, LLP. The firm has been providing investment advisory services since 2002. Today, it manages offices in St. Louis, Denver, Kansas City and Leawood, Kansas.

Services include investment advisory, strategic asset allocation and consulting.

RubinBrown Advisors Investing Strategy

The firm can assist you in constructing an investment portfolio with an appropriate asset allocation based on your risk profile and financial goals. Its advisors can also create one for you utilizing mutual funds and exchange-traded funds based on your financial situation and outlook. The firm manages these portfolios on a non-discretionary basis, meaning it will request your permission before making trades in your accounts. 

Depending on your situation, RubinBrown Advisors may allocate assets to the following:

• Exchange-traded funds (ETFs)
• Mutual fund shares
• Investments held by the client at the start of the advisory relationship
• Separately managed accounts
• Certificates of deposit (CDs)
• Investment elections within variable life insurance
• Investment elections within variable annuities

If it deems the move appropriate, RubinBrown will suggest the assistance of third-party advisors. In these cases, you’d enter into a separate agreement with the third-party advisor, but RubinBrown would periodically monitor the performance of the outside manager.

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Fiduciary Advisors primarily works with corporate retirement plan sponsors and other major profit-sharing plans. However, it also offers financial planning and investment advisory services to individual clients. According to SEC documents, the firm works with fewer than 100 individuals. Most of these are high-net-worth individuals.

The firm does not require a minimum asset level for financial planning services. However, it recommends an investment of at least $250,000 for ongoing portfolio management services. The current minimum annual fee for investment advisory services is $1,500.

The firm’s team includes chartered financial analysts (CFAs), accredited investment fiduciaries (AIFs) and certified public accountants (CPAs).

Fiduciary Advisors Background

Fiduciary Advisors was incorporated in 2000 by John Hefele, who remains the owner of the firm. Fiduciary Advisors primarily extends its services to pension, profit-sharing and 401(k) plans. But the company states: “Our firm will also offer these services, where appropriate, to individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, other business entities, and government entities."

Fiduciary Advisors Investing Strategy

The firm’s investment philosophy is driven by modern portfolio theory. This means the firm prioritizes portfolio diversification and strategic asset allocation. Fiduciary Advisors states in its filing with the SEC: “Client assets are allocated among various asset classes in an attempt to capture the potential returns associated with groups of securities (asset classes) having certain characteristics.”

Depending on your risk tolerance and other factors, the firm may invest your assets in the following:

• Mutual funds
• Exchange-traded funds (ETFs)
• Certificates of deposit (CDs)
• Individual bonds