First Command Advisory Services (Fort Worth)

Name: First Command Advisory Services
Address: 1 Firstcomm Plaza, Fort Worth, TX, 76109
Telephone: 817-731-8621

First Command Advisory Services is a large advisory firm based in Fort Worth. It manages $12.98 billion of regulatory assets for 87,998 client accounts. It has been registered with the SEC as an adviser since 2015 and has operated in the jurisdictions of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, and 47 other states.

First Command Advisory Services provides financial planning services and portfolio management for individuals and small businesses. It prepares financial plans for approximately 27,971 clients. On top of advisory services, the firm doesn't engage in other business activities.

First Command Advisory Services: assets under management

The assets under management (AUM) of First Command Advisory Services is $12.98 billion, all of which is managed in discretionary accounts. The firm's AUM has grown by 34% since the beginning of its operation, and the company doesn't manage any assets belonging to foreign clients.

The firm manages $12.98 billion in discretionary accounts. On average, the discretionary accounts where all decisions are made on behalf of the client hold $147.52 thousand each.

Investments

The firm invests in investment and business development companies the most. They account for 77% of the total AUM. The second-largest asset type is exchange traded securities, which make up 22% of the firm’s portfolio. Investments in cash and cash equivalents form 1% of the total invested assets.

Fees & Commissions

The advisory firm has several streams of revenue. Clients pay First Command Advisory Services for their services and products based on a percentage of assets under management and fixed fees. Flat-fee based compensation is the most transparent and the one you can safely predict in advance. These fees don’t include brokerage commissions, interest, taxes, and other account expenses.

What kind of clients Mark Duane Steffe serves?

The firm provides services to individuals, charitable organizations, high net worth individuals, corporations or other businesses, and pension and profit sharing plans. The largest group of clients of Mark Duane Steffe is individuals with 87,117 clients and $12.08 billion of assets under management. Among the 8 most similar advisory firms, First Command Advisory Services has the highest percentage of individuals out of all clients.

The amount of regulatory assets under management is $12.98 billion for 87,998 clients that can include trusts, estates, and 401(k) plans and IRAs of individuals and their family members. None of the firm’s clients are foreign persons or businesses.

First Command Advisory Services doesn't advise any private funds.

Careers at First Command Advisory Services

The company employs 1,100 people that are either part- or full-time employees. 72 percent of the employees work as investment advisers or researchers. 788 employees are registered as investment adviser representatives with the state securities authorities.

There isn’t anyone with the role of looking for and bringing in new clients on behalf of the firm. The firm doesn’t compensate employees in addition to the salary for bringing in new clients. Employees don’t receive compensation from other entities for client referrals.

Mark Duane Steffe has been acting as President since 1 Apr 2017. Lance Studdard joined the executive team most recently as the Trustee.

Direct owners and executive officers

Name	Entity	Date acquired	Ownership	Employer ID
Inc. First Command Financial Services	Stockholder/owner	1 Dec 2000	75% - 100%	75-2757100
Hugh Alan Simpson	Exec vice pres/ general counsel/ secretary	1 Jan 2007	Other	5018519
Michael Francis Morrison	Cfo/ exec vice pres/ director	1 Jan 2007	Other	2776837
John Scott Spiker	Chief executive officer	1 Sep 2007	Other	2483196
Mark Duane Steffe	Exec vice president, national director, advisor operations	1 Mar 2010	Other	2204689
Jerry Alan Wackerhagen	Exec vice president, operations and technology	1 Jan 2013	Other	5882589
Murtaza Abbas Sardharwala	Vice president, co-chief compliance officer	1 Jun 2014	Other	3237773
Luis Antonio Muniz	Svp - advisory services	1 May 2015	Other	2427714
Kelleen Marie Richter	Chief marketing officer	1 Nov 2016	Other	2098017
Mark Duane Steffe	President	1 Apr 2017	Other	2204689
Michael Joseph Theres	Svp - advisory services	1 Apr 2017	Other	3143439
Thomas Richard Delaney	Svp, chief compliance officer	1 Apr 2017	Other	2222130
Kirk Barner Olliff	National director, advisor operations	1 Apr 2017	Other	2577966

Indirect Owners

The SEC currently registers 3 indirect owners.

Name	Entity	Date acquired	Ownership	Employer ID
First Command Financial Planning Inc Employee Stock Ownership Plan Trust	Owner	1 Nov 2002	75% - 100%	82-0570170
Colin Maxwell Henderson	Trustee	1 Nov 2002	Other	2619506
Lance Studdard	Trustee	1 Nov 2018	Other	7078235

Based in Fort Worth

The principal office where First Command Advisory Services performs its advisory services is located at 1 Firstcomm Plaza, Fort Worth, TX 76109 The mailing address of the firm is Po Box 2387, Fort Worth, TX 76113 2387. An additional office of the firm is in Virginia Beach, VA. It doesn’t run an office outside of the United States.

You can reach the main office by calling the phone number 817-731-8621 or by fax 817-569-2399. The normal business hours are 8:00 am - 5:00 pm on Monday - Friday. You can find more information about the New York firm at firstcommand.com.