Deals & People May 28, 2014

Fort Pitt Capital Group Names Retirement Leader

Michael Woomer has joined the Pittsburgh-based Fort Pitt Capital Group as a senior vice president in charge of the firm’s retirement plan and institutional sales division.
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Woomer joins Fort Pitt Capital Group from OneAmerica Financial Partners, where he served as a regional sales director. He joined OneAmerica after eight years at Charles Schwab and carries nearly 25 years of collective industry experience.

In the new role, Woomer will provide investment consulting and plan design expertise to plan sponsor clients. He will also assist clients with fiduciary oversight and compliance issues, both for 401(k) and 403(b) defined contribution plans.

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“Today, people’s largest asset may no be longer their home, it’s likely their 401(k) or 403(b) plan, making this an extremely important asset to manage,” says Woomer, who will also be contributing to the Fort Pitt Capital Group Blog.

Mike Blehar, managing director and principal of Fort Pitt Capital Group, says the firm can act as an ERISA 3(21) fiduciary adviser and/or as an ERISA 3(38) full investment adviser—arrangements named for the section of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) in which they are described. Woomer will also be responsible for growing this area of the practice, Blehar says.

Fort Pitt Capital Group is an independent, fee-only investment management firm that provides solutions-based portfolio management and consulting. For more information, visit www.fortpittcapital.com.

Products May 28, 2014

Guardian Products Added to Morgan Stanley Platform

Morgan Stanley will be offering retirement products from the Guardian Insurance & Annuity Company, Inc. on its wirehouse retirement platform.
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The Guardian Advantage and The Guardian Choice funding vehicles will be added to Morgan Stanley’s platform. In addition, Guardian has been selected to participate in Morgan Stanley’s Sales & Training Provider Program.

“We are extremely excited that a market leader such as Morgan Stanley is providing Guardian retirement products through its national distribution network,” says Michael B. Cefole, senior vice president of Guardian Retirement Solutions in New York. “Ninety percent of all plans in the 401(k) industry are in the small-plan market and a recent Guardian survey uncovered that 65% of financial professionals polled believe there is a large opportunity in this space. The Morgan Stanley platform allows Guardian to significantly extend our reach in this segment, which continues to be considerably underserved and holds vast prospects.”

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Guardian also launched a new website, 401k.GuardianLife.com, to provide participants with a variety of educational tools to help them better understand their own investing styles and information about how to maximize their retirement planning.

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