Waverly Advisors, a Birmingham, Alabama-based registered investment advisor, has completed its acquisition of Heartwood Wealth Advisors, a Richmond, Virginia firm managing approximately $1.7 billion in client assets. The transaction, announced Tuesday, deepens Waverly's footprint in the Mid-Atlantic region at a time when the broader RIA M&A market is showing signs of cooling.
Heartwood, founded in 2013, is led by Steve Clarke, Sid Martin, Ben Gurley, and Wes Kaufman, with a team of nine additional professionals. The firm focuses on comprehensive financial planning for families and business owners. Martin, who has nearly three decades in the industry, previously worked at Wells Fargo and Merrill Lynch, according to his IAPD record.
This acquisition marks Waverly's 36th transaction since Wealth Partners Capital Group and HGGC's Aspire Holdings platform took an equity stake in December 2021. Waverly's CEO Justin Russell emphasized the cultural alignment between the two firms, noting shared values around client relationships and collaborative cultures.
The deal is part of a steady cadence for Waverly, which has closed seven transactions since late January. Its 2026 dealmaking began with Pure Portfolios, a Lake Oswego, Oregon firm with roughly $437 million in assets. In the summer, Waverly acquired Smithfield Trust, a Pittsburgh-based trust company with about $3 billion in assets, marking its first purchase of a state-chartered trust company.
According to Echelon Partners, Waverly completed three acquisitions in the second quarter, totaling approximately $6.35 billion in assets, including two sellers with $1 billion or more. That tied Waverly with Hightower Advisors and Emigrant Partners for the most billion-dollar-plus deals in Q2, though all trailed Corient's four. As of July 27, Waverly reported approximately $35.6 billion in assets across 53 offices.
The broader RIA M&A market is showing signs of deceleration. Echelon counted 93 deals involving sellers with $1 billion or more in the first half of 2026, including 53 in Q1. Those deals represented 35.5% of all announced transactions. Echelon projects about 188 billion-dollar-plus deals for the full year, which would slightly exceed 2025's record of 185.
However, Devoe & Company reports that Q3 M&A activity through September 22 totaled 72 transactions, down 19% from 89 in the same period last year. David DeVoe, founder and CEO, attributes the slowdown to the lag between a seller's decision and the public announcement, which typically spans 6 to 18 months. He cited economic volatility from tariffs, the war with Iran, and gasoline price surges as factors that have caused some advisors to pause their sale plans.
DeVoe noted that during turbulent markets, advisors often shift focus to client service, deprioritizing strategic moves. Despite the September dip, he expects a rebound in the coming months, pointing to a pipeline of over 15 transactions forecast to close in the next six months. This suggests the M&A market could regain momentum in the near term.
For Waverly, the Heartwood acquisition adds scale in a key region and continues its strategy of acquiring established firms with strong client relationships. The firm's recent moves, including the Smithfield Trust purchase, indicate a focus on expanding capabilities in trust and high-net-worth planning. As the RIA landscape consolidates, Waverly's active dealmaking positions it among the more acquisitive firms in the industry.
