All-women team managing $325M joins LPL from Merrill

investmentnews.com:

Financial advisors Megan Stirrat and Tenley Hardt have left Merrill Lynch to join LPL Financial, where they have launched a new independent practice, Revel Private Wealth.

Stirrat and Hardt, who specialize in helping women in transition and those in the sports and entertainment industry, decided to break away from the wirehouse model to affiliate with LPL Strategic Wealth Services. Based in San Juan Capistrano, California, they served approximately $325 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement plan assets as of the end of 2022.

“We are both passionate about empowering women to better understand their financial and wealth management goals,” Stirrat said in a statement. “As women, we have a sensitivity and understanding of what they may be going through, and we’re very compassionate as we help clients navigate their situations.”

Stirrat has nearly 30 years of industry experience, as well as being a former All-American rower at Michigan State. Four years ago, she teamed up with Hardt, whose background is in entertainment and strategic business consulting.

“There are huge opportunities in the sports field, especially now that college athletes can be paid,” Hardt says. “We want to educate them and help prepare them for a more confident financial future.”

Stirrat, who was at Merrill for 23 years, and Hardt said that LPL was the right place for them to “elevate [their] offering and continue keeping clients [as] the top priority.” They were drawn to LPL Strategic Wealth Services due to its “built in support system,” and the value LPL places on giving them freedom to operate on their own terms.

In naming their new independent practice, it was important to find a brand that fit their personality and aspirations for their