Spokane CPA firm affiliate buys another

Journal of Business, Jan 24, 2008 by Crompton, Kim

Prospera Wealth Management LLC, an affiliate of LeMaster Daniels, one of Spokane's largest accounting firms, says it has bought APC Financial Services LLC, of Bellevue, Wash., for an undisclosed sum in a related piece to a larger recent acquisition. It says it also is negotiating to acquire a wealth-management services company in Boise, which it declines to name, and hopes to complete that transaction in May.

LeMasterDaniels expanded into Western Washington in November by acquiring APC Financial's parent, Abramson Pendergast & Co., also of Bellevue, which had 40 employees and $6.5 million in annual revenue. Prospera then acquired APC Financial in a separate transaction.

"As the personal financial planning arm of Abramson Pendergast, it made good sense to bring APC Financial over as part of the acquisition package," says Bruce Bushman, Prospera's president.

"It gives us an added presence in the market, and obviously the Seattle-Bellevue area is an extraordinary market for the financial-services industry," Bushman says.

LeMaster Daniels, which changed its name from LeMaster & Daniels last year as part of a rebranding and is observing its 100th anniversary this year, made its first foray into Western Washington through its acquisition of Abramson Pendergast. With that acquisition, it says it now has 13 offices in Washington and Idaho, more than 300 employees, and annual revenues of $36 million. Its headquarters are located in downtown Spokane in the Bank of America Financial Center, at 601 W. Riverside.

APC Financial, now operating under the Prospera name, included three financial advisers and one staff support person, and Prospera is keeping that Bellevue office open. Prospera now employs 10 people, and expects to add more, Bushman says.

One of the people making the transition was Chad Parmenter, APC Financial's director of wealth care services, who Bushman says has joined Prospera as an owner and wealth planning consultant. Parmenter brings more than 400 clients to Prospera, as well as specialized financial planning services, such as a focus on women's asset transition during divorce or widowhood.

The connection to LeMaster Daniels will give both my clients and me access to professional expertise in all the financial disciplines affecting their portfolio management and total wealth planning," says Parmenter. "It's a great opportunity for everyone involved."

Founded six years ago, Prospera provides wealth and portfolio management services, insurance strategies, and estate-planning services. Two affiliated companies, Prospera Investment Advisors LLC and Prospera Insurance Solutions LLC, offer investment advisory services and insurance products, respectively. The financial advisers of Prospera Investment Advisors LLC offer securities through and are registered representatives of Securities America Inc.

Bushman says that in addition to Bellevue, Prospera has employees here and in Yakima and Wenatchee, subleasing space in LeMaster Daniels offices. He says the company will continue to explore growth through acquisitions that "probably will have a tendency to fall in line with where the LeMaster Daniels offices are."

Like Prospera, LeMaster Daniels is continuing to pursue a strategy of growth through acquisitions.

"We are continuing to look into different markets on the West Side and continue to have discussions with other CPA firms there that are looking for a succession plan," says company spokeswoman Pamela Pyre.

The company was founded by two accountants and now serves clients in a broad range of industries, including agriculture, health care, manufacturing, technology, hospitality, manufacturing, and the professional, service, and nonprofit sectors.