Who owns Kestra Financial?

Kestra Holdings, the parent, is majority owned by funds managed by Stone Point Capital, a private-equity firm, since a recapitalization completed February 3, 2025 that replaced Warburg Pincus. Oak Hill Capital holds a minority stake, and the management team and a large number of Kestra-affiliated advisors hold equity. Stone Point also owned the majority from 2016 to 2019.

What entities make up Kestra?

Kestra Holdings is the parent of Kestra Investment Services, LLC (the broker-dealer), Kestra Advisory Services, LLC and Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC (the two advisor-facing RIAs), Kestra Investment Management, LLC, Kestra Institutional Services, LLC, Bluespring Wealth Partners, LLC and Arden Trust Company, a Delaware limited purpose trust company. Kestra Financial is the marketing name for the broker-dealer and RIA platform, headquartered at 5707 Southwest Parkway, Austin, Texas.

Is Kestra in the Broker Protocol?

Yes. On J.S. Held's member list dated September 8, 2026, Kestra Investment Services has been a member since April 2, 2009 and Kestra Advisory Services since June 2, 2016, both with joinder qualifications added in May 2026; Kestra Private Wealth Services has been a member since November 5, 2010 with no qualification noted.

What is Kestra Private Wealth Services?

The Kestra channel for advisors leaving a wirehouse or W-2 firm. It describes a fully supported independence model in which Kestra Private Wealth Services pays for and manages real estate, equipment, technology and compliance so the advisor can launch an independent firm, with access to Kestra Financial's resources. Its own materials put the average advisor's take at around 70 percent of gross dealer concession and top advisors at up to 85 percent.

What is Bluespring Wealth Partners?

Kestra Holdings' acquisition and succession arm. Bluespring invests in established wealth management firms through flexible partnership models; a partner firm keeps its name and culture and gains back-office, technology, marketing and succession support. In June 2026 it added a Bluespring RIA channel in which partner RIAs join Bluespring RIA's Form ADV under the Bluespring Wealth brand with centralized compliance.

Is Kestra a good firm for a financial advisor?

That depends on the practice. The public record shows a mid-sized independent broker-dealer and RIA platform, a supported-independence channel for wirehouse exiters with published payout ranges, an acquisition arm for owners seeking succession, and a private-equity majority owner whose identity has changed three times since 2016. Which of those matters most is a question about your book and what you want to own.

Back to the profiles

Kestra Financial

Independent broker-dealer·Kestra Financial, Inc., a subsidiary of Kestra Holdings; broker-dealer Kestra Investment Services, LLC (FINRA/SIPC); RIAs Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (CRD 283330) and Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC (CRD 155193); majority owned by funds managed by Stone Point Capital LLC

Kestra Financial is the Austin, Texas independent broker-dealer and RIA platform of Kestra Holdings, a privately held company majority owned by Stone Point Capital since February 2025, with Oak Hill Capital, management and affiliated advisors holding minority equity; its corporate RIA Kestra Advisory Services reported $79.8 billion in regulatory assets under management and 1,359 employees performing advisory functions on the SEC's September 1, 2026 Form ADV file. An advisor affiliates as an independent practice under Kestra Advisory Services and Kestra Investment Services, through Kestra Private Wealth Services' supported-independence model for advisors leaving a wirehouse or W-2 firm, or by selling into Bluespring Wealth Partners, the group's acquisition and succession arm.

$79.8B

Regulatory AUM, Kestra Advisory Services

[1]

1,359

Employees performing advisory functions, Kestra Advisory Services

[1]

$169B

Assets under advisement, Dec 31 2025, per the firm

[2]

1,300+

Producing financial professionals, per the firm

[2]

Facts last reviewed Sep 10, 2026. Every figure on this page carries a numbered source.

01 · Destination profile

What Kestra Financial is

Kestra Financial, Inc., a subsidiary of Kestra Holdings; broker-dealer Kestra Investment Services, LLC (FINRA/SIPC); RIAs Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (CRD 283330) and Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC (CRD 155193); majority owned by funds managed by Stone Point Capital LLC

Kestra Holdings describes itself as the direct or indirect parent of Arden Trust Company, Bluespring Wealth Partners, LLC, Kestra Investment Services, LLC (member FINRA/SIPC), and the federally registered investment advisers Kestra Investment Management, LLC, Kestra Advisory Services, LLC, Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC and Kestra Institutional Services, LLC. Its chief executive is James Poer.^[3]
The Kestra broker-dealer and RIA were established in 1997. In 2016 Stone Point Capital supported the company's spin-out from National Financial Partners (NFP) as a private company; the firm states that Stone Point remains the majority investor today, with minority equity held by the Kestra Holdings management team, a large number of Kestra-affiliated advisors, and Oak Hill Capital.^[2]
On June 27, 2016 funds managed by Stone Point Capital completed the purchase of a majority stake in Kestra Financial, Inc., formerly NFP Advisor Services, from NFP, which kept a minority stake; the firm was headquartered in Austin and supported more than 1,700 independent financial advisors at the time.^[4]
On February 25, 2019 Kestra Financial announced that Warburg Pincus would acquire a majority interest, with Stone Point retaining a minority stake and management and a number of advisors retaining equity positions.^[5]
On September 30, 2022 Oak Hill Capital acquired the minority equity position in Kestra Holdings' parent partnership previously held by Stone Point, alongside majority owner Warburg Pincus; Kestra reported $122 billion in assets under administration at the time.^[6]
On October 15, 2024 Kestra Holdings announced that funds managed by Stone Point Capital would acquire a majority interest in its parent partnership, replacing Warburg Pincus, with Oak Hill Capital remaining a minority owner; trade press reported roughly 1,700 financial professionals and $117 billion in client assets under advisement at announcement, with terms undisclosed.^[7]
On February 3, 2025 Kestra Holdings announced completion of its acquisition by funds managed by Stone Point Capital, replacing Warburg Pincus as majority owner; Oak Hill Capital remains a minority owner, and management and affiliated financial advisors retain equity positions.^[8]
Kestra Advisory Services' Form ADV brochure states that Kestra Financial, Inc. and the Kestra affiliates are ultimately owned by Kingfisher Topco Holdings, LP, that some advisors own equity in Kingfisher, and that Stone Point Capital owns a majority interest in the ultimate parent of Kestra Advisory Services, Kestra Private Wealth Services and Kestra Investment Services.^[9]
Grove Point Financial, the Rockville, Maryland broker-dealer and RIA formerly known as H. Beck, was sold by Kestra Holdings to Atria Wealth Solutions in a deal announced April 18, 2023; it is no longer part of the Kestra group.^[10]
John Amore is President of Kestra Financial, appointed April 2025; Kelly Apple was appointed Executive Vice President, Head of Wealth Management in August 2026, joining from BlackRock; Robert Bartenstein is Founder and President of Kestra Private Wealth Services.^[11]

02 · Destination profile

How an advisor affiliates

The channels, in the firm's own terms.

Kestra Financial independent advisor

1099, Kestra corporate RIA

Kestra Advisory Services states that it supports independent Advisors who are investment adviser representatives of the firm, most of whom are also registered representatives of the affiliated broker-dealer Kestra Investment Services; it oversees their advice but does not dictate the products, platforms or services an Advisor recommends within the options it makes available, and the firm's recruiting page says an advisor operating under an independent brand (DBA) is not obligated to use Kestra Financial branding beyond what regulation requires.^[9]

Kestra Private Wealth Services

Supported independence, hybrid RIA

Kestra Private Wealth Services describes a full-service independence model in which it pays for and manages real estate, equipment, technology and compliance so an advisor can launch an independent firm; the firm reports $18.4 billion in assets under advisement and 78 office locations in 22 states as of December 31, 2025, with partner firms also receiving access to Kestra Financial's resources.^[12]

Bluespring Wealth Partners

Acquisition and succession

Bluespring Wealth Partners, Kestra Holdings' acquisition arm, states that it invests in entrepreneurial wealth management firms with flexible partnership models and deal structures, that a partner firm keeps its name and culture, and that it helps identify merger opportunities, offload back-office tasks and prepare a successor; in June 2026 it added a Bluespring RIA channel in which partner RIAs join Bluespring RIA's Form ADV and adopt the Bluespring Wealth brand with centralized compliance.^[13]

Traditional and hybrid RIAs on the Kestra platform

Own RIA or hybrid

Kestra Financial describes itself as an independent wealth management platform, a division of Kestra Holdings established in 1997, that empowers independent financial professionals and wealth management firms, including traditional and hybrid RIAs, with personalized support, integrated business management technology and a collaborative community.^[14]

03 · Destination profile

The economics, as publicly reported

Published ranges and filings, not an offer. What a specific practice is offered is a question for the room.

Kestra Financial does not publish a payout grid or transition-deal range for its Kestra Advisory Services and Kestra Investment Services channel; what it publishes is $844,000 average gross revenue per financial professional as of December 31, 2025 (excluding advisors producing under $50,000 or with under one year of tenure) and a 3:1 advisor-to-employee ratio.^[2]
For Kestra Private Wealth Services, the firm's own August 29, 2025 article states that the average advisor in its fully supported independent model takes home around 70 percent of gross dealer concession and that top advisors can keep as much as 85 percent, against the 35 to 50 percent it attributes to the wirehouse model; the model covers real estate, equipment, technology and compliance costs in exchange.^[15]
On the client side, Kestra Advisory Services' brochure sets a maximum client fee of 2.5 percent of assets on its Advisor as Portfolio Manager programs, with a program fee of 0.02 to 0.14 percent (tickets) or 0.02 to 0.19 percent (wrap) deducted from the negotiated client fee; the AdvisorEnterprise platform is provided by Envestnet and costs Kestra less as more assets are placed on it.^[9]
Kestra Private Wealth Services' wrap brochure states that an Advisor receives additional economic benefit from placing business with the firm in the form of reduced platform charges and an increased payout, with a maximum client fee of 2.5 percent and a program fee of 0.02 to 0.08 percent (tickets) or 0.02 to 0.14 percent (wrap) on the AdvisorEnterprise platform.^[16]
Advisor equity is part of the published economics: the firm states that a large number of Kestra-affiliated advisors hold minority equity in Kestra Holdings, and the brochure discloses that some advisors own equity in the ultimate parent, Kingfisher Topco Holdings, LP.^[9]

04 · Destination profile

Protocol for Broker Recruiting

Membership per the official J.S. Held list, with the joinder qualifications that matter on the day you resign.

Kestra's entities are Protocol members with qualifications. Kestra Investment Services (formerly NFP Advisor Services and NFP Securities) has been a member since April 2, 2009, with joinder qualifications added May 18, 2026; Kestra Advisory Services, LLC since June 2, 2016, with joinder qualifications added May 26, 2026; Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC (formerly Washington Wealth Management, LLC) since November 5, 2010, with no qualification noted, per the J.S. Held master list. The text of the 2026 qualifications sits in J.S. Held's separate master list of members with joinder qualifications and is worth reading before a move.^[17]

What the Protocol does and does not protect: the explainer.

05 · Destination profile

Who tends to move there

The pattern in the public record and the trade press. A pattern, not a recommendation.

Kestra runs three doors into one platform, and the practice that walks through each is different. Kestra Private Wealth Services is built for the wirehouse or W-2 team that wants to own its firm without building the office, the technology stack or the compliance function itself; its own materials describe a model that pays for those and charges for it in the payout. The Kestra Financial channel is where an already independent advisor or hybrid RIA lands when the question is platform, service and community rather than a transition. Bluespring is the exit and succession route for an owner who wants capital and a successor path while keeping the firm's name. The common thread across all three is a mid-sized, privately held counterparty whose majority owner has changed three times since 2016, which is the diligence question an advisor considering any of the doors should put first.

06 · Destination profile

The twelve diligence questions, applied

The list from how to choose a platform, answered where the public record answers and left as the question where it does not.

2 of 12

questions about Kestra Financial are not answered anywhere public. They are answered in the room, for a specific practice, and the answers move the number more than anything above.

01What are the actual terms of the custody agreement, at my asset mix?: Kestra Advisory Services places most transactions through its affiliated broker-dealer, Kestra Investment Services, and its unaffiliated clearing broker-dealer and custodian, National Financial Services (NFS), and also makes Charles Schwab and Fidelity IWS available on the AdvisorChoice platform; it states that trading charges, administrative costs and tools vary by custodian and platform. The agreement terms themselves are not published.^[9]
02What is the cash sweep arrangement, and who keeps the spread?: Cash in brokerage accounts at NFS can sweep to money market funds or FDIC-insured bank accounts. The brochure discloses that advisory accounts are credited back 12b-1 fees Kestra Investment Services receives from mutual funds, except 12b-1 fees on sweep money market funds, which NFS pays to Kestra IS and Kestra IS retains, a conflict the firm names.^[9]
03What is the all-in cost, in basis points and in dollars, at my revenue and asset mix?: Asked in the room
04What is bundled, and what is charged separately?: Kestra Advisory Services offers two Advisor as Portfolio Manager programs on the AdvisorEnterprise platform: APM-Tickets, where transaction charges are assessed separately, and APM-Wrap, where they are included in the client fee and priced for about 60 trades per account per year, with the advisor bearing the cost of trades beyond that; account maintenance charges from the broker-dealer's fee schedule apply in either case.^[9]
05What moves the number over time?: Asked in the room
06Who owns the client data, contractually, and in what form do I get it if I leave?: Kestra Financial's recruiting page lists Client Ownership and Data Ownership among its commitments to independent advisors. The contractual form of that ownership, and the form in which data is delivered on departure, is not published.^[18]
07Who holds the technology contracts?: Kestra does. The brochure states that Kestra and its affiliates have an agreement with Envestnet for the AdvisorEnterprise platform and pay Envestnet based on the number of accounts and total client assets on it, and that the firm's costs decrease as more assets are placed there.^[9]
08Whose ADV is it?: In the Kestra Financial channel the advisor is an investment adviser representative of Kestra Advisory Services' ADV; in Kestra Private Wealth Services, of that firm's ADV; in both, most advisors are also registered representatives of Kestra Investment Services. In Bluespring's RIA channel, a partner RIA is added to Bluespring RIA's Form ADV and adopts the Bluespring Wealth brand.^[16]
09What happens if the platform is sold?: The record shows what a sale has looked like here three times: Stone Point bought the majority from NFP in 2016, Warburg Pincus bought the majority from Stone Point in 2019, and Stone Point bought it back from Warburg Pincus in a deal completed February 3, 2025. In each case management and affiliated advisors retained equity and the operating entities kept their names.^[8]
10Who owns the platform, and what is their exit horizon?: Funds managed by Stone Point Capital, a private-equity firm, hold the majority since February 2025; Oak Hill Capital holds a minority; management and affiliated advisors hold equity. The exit horizon is not published; the prior majority owner held for about six years.^[8]
11How do I leave, and what does it cost?: The brochure describes the client side of a departure: when an Advisor terminates the relationship, Kestra Advisory Services notifies clients, resigns as fiduciary on Advisor-managed accounts, and converts them to commissionable accounts, while assets with third-party strategists or in separately managed accounts continue to be managed and billed. The cost to the advisor is not published.^[9]
12What do I take with me?: Kestra Investment Services, Kestra Advisory Services and Kestra Private Wealth Services are Protocol members, the first two with joinder qualifications added in May 2026, so client information moves under the Protocol between member firms subject to those qualifications.^[17]

07 · Destination profile

Questions advisors ask about Kestra Financial

Who owns Kestra Financial?: Kestra Holdings, the parent, is majority owned by funds managed by Stone Point Capital, a private-equity firm, since a recapitalization completed February 3, 2025 that replaced Warburg Pincus. Oak Hill Capital holds a minority stake, and the management team and a large number of Kestra-affiliated advisors hold equity. Stone Point also owned the majority from 2016 to 2019.
What entities make up Kestra?: Kestra Holdings is the parent of Kestra Investment Services, LLC (the broker-dealer), Kestra Advisory Services, LLC and Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC (the two advisor-facing RIAs), Kestra Investment Management, LLC, Kestra Institutional Services, LLC, Bluespring Wealth Partners, LLC and Arden Trust Company, a Delaware limited purpose trust company. Kestra Financial is the marketing name for the broker-dealer and RIA platform, headquartered at 5707 Southwest Parkway, Austin, Texas.
Is Kestra in the Broker Protocol?: Yes. On J.S. Held's member list dated September 8, 2026, Kestra Investment Services has been a member since April 2, 2009 and Kestra Advisory Services since June 2, 2016, both with joinder qualifications added in May 2026; Kestra Private Wealth Services has been a member since November 5, 2010 with no qualification noted.
What is Kestra Private Wealth Services?: The Kestra channel for advisors leaving a wirehouse or W-2 firm. It describes a fully supported independence model in which Kestra Private Wealth Services pays for and manages real estate, equipment, technology and compliance so the advisor can launch an independent firm, with access to Kestra Financial's resources. Its own materials put the average advisor's take at around 70 percent of gross dealer concession and top advisors at up to 85 percent.
What is Bluespring Wealth Partners?: Kestra Holdings' acquisition and succession arm. Bluespring invests in established wealth management firms through flexible partnership models; a partner firm keeps its name and culture and gains back-office, technology, marketing and succession support. In June 2026 it added a Bluespring RIA channel in which partner RIAs join Bluespring RIA's Form ADV under the Bluespring Wealth brand with centralized compliance.
Is Kestra a good firm for a financial advisor?: That depends on the practice. The public record shows a mid-sized independent broker-dealer and RIA platform, a supported-independence channel for wirehouse exiters with published payout ranges, an acquisition arm for owners seeking succession, and a private-equity majority owner whose identity has changed three times since 2016. Which of those matters most is a question about your book and what you want to own.

Sources

18 numbered sources behind this page

[1] SEC Form ADV data, Information About Registered Investment Advisers and Exempt Reporting Advisers, file ia09012026-registered.zip, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Sep 1, 2026.
[2] Kestra Financial, About Us, Kestra Financial, Sep 10, 2026.
[3] Kestra Holdings Announces Recapitalization in Renewed Partnership With Stone Point Capital, Stone Point Capital (Business Wire release), Oct 15, 2024.
[4] Stone Point Capital LLC Completes Purchase of Majority Stake in Independent Broker-Dealer & RIA Kestra Financial, Stone Point Capital, Jun 27, 2016.
[5] Kestra Financial Announces Recapitalization to Include Warburg Pincus, Warburg Pincus, Feb 25, 2019.
[6] Kestra Holdings Announces Recapitalization as Oak Hill Capital Joins Partnership Alongside Warburg Pincus, Stone Point Capital (Business Wire release), Sep 30, 2022.
[7] Kestra recapitalizes again with Stone Point Capital, Financial Planning, Oct 15, 2024.
[8] Kestra Holdings Completes Recapitalization Including Stone Point Capital, Stone Point Capital (Business Wire release), Feb 3, 2025.
[9] Form ADV Part 2A, Kestra Advisory Services, LLC, dated May 29, 2026, Kestra Advisory Services (SEC Form ADV filing), May 29, 2026.
[10] Kestra Holdings sells Grove Point Financial to Atria Wealth Solutions, Financial Planning, Apr 18, 2023.
[11] Kestra Financial, Leadership, Kestra Financial, Sep 10, 2026.
[12] Kestra Financial, Wirehouse Exiters (Kestra Private Wealth Services), Kestra Financial, Sep 10, 2026.
[13] Bluespring Wealth Partners, The Bluespring Advantage, Bluespring Wealth Partners, Sep 10, 2026.
[14] Kestra Financial Appoints Kelly Apple as Next Head of Wealth Management, Business Wire via Yahoo Finance, Aug 19, 2026.
[15] Independent Advisor Model vs The Wirehouse Model, Kestra Financial, Aug 29, 2025.
[16] Form ADV Part 2A Appendix 1 (Wrap Fee Program Brochure), Kestra Private Wealth Services, LLC, dated May 29, 2026, Kestra Private Wealth Services (SEC Form ADV filing), May 29, 2026.
[17] The Broker Protocol Member Firms list, dated September 8, 2026, J.S. Held, Sep 8, 2026.
[18] Kestra Financial, Independent Advisors, Kestra Financial, Sep 10, 2026.

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