Top financial advisors working with clients approaching retirement in Topeka, KS

Cale Yost is a financial advisor at Blazing Star Financial with two years of industry experience. He holds the CFP® designation and Series 65 and 66 licenses. Prior to his current role, he worked at Maize Financial and Rademacher Financial, Inc. Additionally, he serves as Inspector General Superintendent for the Kansas Air National Guard, a position he has held since 2004. Blazing Star Financial is a state-registered advisory firm serving individuals, high-net-worth households, and select small businesses. The firm provides discretionary portfolio management and financial planning with a diversified, passive investment approach informed by Modern Portfolio Theory, supplemented by fundamental and values-based analysis upon client request.

Julie Connor is a financial advisor at Cetera with 32 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked with Cetera Advisors LLC since 2013 and Martell Financial Services since 2002. Outside of her advisory role, she is co-owner and president of Employee Benefit Services, Inc., providing group health and other insurance services. Cetera Investment Advisers LLC serves a broad client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporate and charitable clients, and institutions. The firm offers a multi-manager platform with discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and access to a variety of third-party money managers.

Valerie Nelson is a Series 66 licensed financial advisor with Edward Jones in Topeka, KS, with 16 years of industry experience. She has been with Edward Jones since 2009. Outside of her advisory role, she is involved as a Mary Kay consultant. Edward Jones is a full-service wealth management firm serving individual and institutional clients, with a broad nationwide network of advisors and branch offices and over $1 trillion in assets under management.

Lawrence Hesse is a financial advisor with LPL Financial, holding a Series 66 credential and 52 years of industry experience. His career includes long tenures at American United Life Insurance Company, Union Central, Cornerstone Advisors, LLC, and Cambridge Investment Research. He is based in Topeka, KS. LPL Financial is an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer serving individual and institutional clients nationwide. The firm offers a range of advisory programs, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and brokerage services, utilizing model portfolios, third-party research, and technology-driven investment solutions.

Nathaniel Miller is a Series 65-licensed financial advisor with AE Wealth Management, LLC in Topeka, KS, bringing 11 years of industry experience. He has been with AE Wealth Management since 2016 and owns the Miller Retirement Group, where he serves as an insurance producer focusing on life and annuity products. Additionally, he is involved in educational development through the Prepare Institute, creating college-style courses on retirement planning. AE Wealth Management provides fee-based portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement-plan consulting to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, trusts, and ERISA plan sponsors. The firm emphasizes model portfolio and direct asset management, utilizing various investment strategies and maintaining a platform that supports a large number of clients through standardized services.

Willie Myles is a financial advisor with Equitable Advisors in Cary, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 16 years of industry experience. He has worked at Equitable Advisors since 2016 and previously at AXA Advisors, LLC. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as co-chairman of a fundraising campaign for the nonprofit Alpha Light Fund Inc., focused on renovating the House of Alpha. Equitable Advisors serves a diverse client base including individual, high-net-worth, retirement plan, corporate, charitable, and institutional clients, offering financial planning, broker-dealer services, insurance distribution, and access to third-party asset management programs. The firm operates as both an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer, leveraging LPL-sponsored programs and endorsed TAMPs to deliver advisory and brokerage solutions.

Stavroula Koutsfetsoulis is a financial advisor at Ameriprise with 25 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Ameriprise and its affiliated entities since 2011. In addition to her advisory role, she is involved in fiduciary activities as an attorney-in-fact (power of attorney). Ameriprise is a large institutional firm that provides retirement-income planning services primarily to individuals with substantial investable assets. The firm combines research, modeling, and tax-efficiency analysis to deliver written recommendation reports through a centralized consulting team, focusing on tailored retirement income strategies.

Barbara Brewer is a financial advisor at RBC Capital Markets with 20 years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has been with RBC Capital Markets Corporation since 2008. RBC Wealth Management, a division of RBC Capital Markets, serves individual investors, institutional clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, corporations, and charitable organizations. The firm offers various advisory programs with discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, custody, and brokerage services, tailoring strategies to clients’ Advisory Risk Profiles through a mix of in-house and third-party providers.

Richard Martin is a financial advisor at Cetera with 29 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 63 designation and has a background that includes nearly three decades at Avantax Advisory Services and eight years at Avantax Insurance Agency. Outside of his advisory work, he is the owner and sole proprietor of Martin & Pellegrin, CPAs, a tax preparation and accounting firm. Cetera Investment Advisers LLC is an SEC-registered firm that serves a broad client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporate and charitable clients, and institutional accounts. The firm provides a multi-manager platform offering discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and access to various program structures and third-party money managers.

Lee Chen is a financial advisor with UBS Financial Services in Pasadena, California, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 28 years of industry experience. He has been with UBS since 2009. Outside of his advisory role, Chen serves on the board of directors for the San Gabriel Country Club. UBS Financial Services serves individual, corporate, and institutional clients through brokerage and investment advisory offerings, combining proprietary capital market research with a broad range of financial planning and portfolio management solutions.