Independent, equity compensation tax strategy financial advisors in Trenton, NJ

Santo Costa is a financial advisor at Merrill with four years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has previously worked at DME Capital and Tink Construction LLC, as well as having a background unrelated to finance at Burn the Floor. Merrill, along with its affiliate Managed Account Advisors LLC, provides managed account services to Bank of America fiduciary clients through the Select Portfolio Solutions Program. The firm offers various model-based and discretionary investment strategies for individuals, high-net-worth clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, corporations, and charitable organizations.

Ralph Puzio is a financial advisor at Mercer Financial Group, Inc. in Trenton, NJ, with 42 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 63 designation and has worked with U.S. Discount Brokerage, Inc. and Jefferson Pilot Securities Corporation for over two decades. His other business activities include tax preparation, insurance and annuity sales, and financial planning. Mercer Financial Group, Inc. is a single-advisor independent firm serving individual clients with portfolio management and related advisory services, typically on a primarily non-discretionary basis. The firm manages approximately $11.5 million in assets across 12 client accounts and is noted for its combination of advisory, brokerage, accounting, and insurance relationships.

Hardy Hodges III is a Series 66-registered financial advisor with Fidelity in Trenton, NJ, bringing 18 years of industry experience. His career includes 15 years at Merrill, along with roles at Bank of America and Fidelity Investments. Outside of finance, he operates small businesses selling flavored green teas and engages in affiliate marketing. He works with Strategic Advisers LLC, a Fidelity Investments company that provides investment management and advisory services to retail and institutional clients. The firm employs a combination of fundamental research, quantitative analysis, and algorithmic portfolio construction across various investment vehicles.

Edward Adams is a financial advisor with Cetera, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 26 years of industry experience. He has worked with Cetera since 2006 and has been involved in multiple related business activities, including serving as an adjunct professor at Rider University since 1988 and managing his own CPA practice focused on tax and audit services. He also holds board roles in organizations such as Paedeia, Inc., a medical development company, and the Trenton Cycling Revolution. Cetera Investment Advisers LLC serves a broad client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporate, charitable, and institutional clients through a multi-manager platform offering discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and access to both affiliated and unaffiliated third-party managers.

Gilbert Varnes Jr. is a financial advisor with Gcvsvc1 LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and 24 years of industry experience. He worked at U.S. Allianz Securities, Inc. from 1999 to 2006 and Multi Financial Securities Corporation from 2006 to present. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in tax services, credit repair, and serves as a notary public. Gcvsvc1 LLC is an independent firm serving clients with personalized financial solutions.

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.

James Cannon is a financial advisor at Cannon Wealth Group LLC in Eagle, Idaho, with 14 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has led his independent firm since 2014. Cannon Wealth Group LLC is a fee-based financial planning and investment management firm serving individuals, high-net-worth clients, and employer retirement plans. The firm offers tailored investment programs, comprehensive planning, and specialized pension consulting, including ERISA advisory and discretionary investment manager services.

Joseph Niehaus is a financial advisor at Jefferies Investment Advisers LLC with three years of industry experience. He holds the CFA® designation and Series 63 license. Prior to joining Jefferies in 2023, he worked at Golden 1 Credit Union and SAFE Credit Union. He also serves as a part-time lecturer at California State University, Sacramento, teaching a graduate-level financial markets course. Jefferies Investment Advisers LLC provides fee-based financial planning services to individuals, trusts, estates, foundations, charitable organizations, corporations, and other business entities through a customized planning process that includes balance sheet reviews, tax and estate planning, executive compensation, and philanthropic planning.

Seth Halley is a financial advisor with Goldman Sachs Wealth Services in Dallas, TX, holding a Series 66 designation and six years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at The Ayco Company, L.P./Mercer Allied and Tyson Foods/GDH Consulting. Goldman Sachs Wealth Services advises a diverse client base ranging from individual investors to institutional clients, offering financial planning, portfolio management, and specialized services such as Private Family Office and Executive Wealth programs. The firm integrates strategic allocation models, manager selections, and advanced analytics within the broader Goldman Sachs network to tailor solutions for client objectives.

Eldin Foco is a financial advisor at Sterling Advisory Group LLC with 18 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at several firms including CIG Capital Advisors and Cco Investment Services Corp. since 2012. Sterling Advisory Group provides portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement-plan consulting to individuals, families, trusts, foundations, businesses, and employer-sponsored plans. The firm manages client accounts on a tailored basis and also serves institutional clients, offering a range of strategic investment models that emphasize asset allocation, diversification, and Shariah-compliant selection.

Jared Fruth is a financial advisor at Northwest Asset Management with four years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Securities America, Inc., KMS Financial Services, Inc., Oppenheimer Funds, and John Paul Mitchell Systems. Northwest Asset Management is a registered investment adviser managing approximately $3.6 billion for nearly 3,000 clients, including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charities, and corporations. The firm employs a customized, fiduciary approach using Modern Portfolio Theory and strategic asset allocation, combining fundamental and technical analysis to build diversified portfolios with periodic rebalancing.

Edwina Martin is a Series 65 licensed financial advisor with two years of industry experience, currently with Waverly Advisors, LLC. She previously worked at 9258 Wealth Management for five years and was employed at Teradata Corp for eleven years. Martin also serves as assistant director of tax planning at 9258 Tax and Planning, a non-investment related business. Waverly Advisors is a multi-team registered investment adviser managing portfolios for individuals, retirement plans, and pooled investment vehicles. The firm combines traditional equity and fixed-income strategies with alternative and private-market allocations, offering a range of investment management and financial planning services.

Craig Mcdaniel Jr. is a financial advisor with Capital Investment Advisory Services, LLC in Columbia, SC. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 13 years of industry experience. He has been with Capital Investment Group, Inc. and The McDaniel Corporation since 2012. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in life insurance sales and serves as an independent agent for annuities and related products. Capital Investment Advisory Services, LLC provides investment advisory and supervisory services to individuals, retirement plans, corporations, trusts, estates, and charitable organizations. The firm offers customized investment management through discretionary mandates, third-party managers, and private-label model portfolios, using a blend of analytical methods with ongoing portfolio monitoring.

David Hart is a financial advisor with Martin Wealth Management, LLC in Irvine, CA. He holds a Series 65 credential and has 15 years of industry experience. Hart previously worked with Safeguard Investment Advisory Group and LifePro Asset Management. He is also a Certified Financial Fiduciary and volunteers as an instructor with the Foundation for Fiduciary Education, providing unbiased fiduciary financial education to the public. Martin Wealth Management offers investment advisory services primarily to individuals and high-net-worth clients by co-advising and directing accounts to a third-party money manager, Matson Money. The firm focuses on client onboarding, documentation, and ongoing review of third-party manager accounts rather than direct asset management.

Sarah Currier Barrella is a CFP® professional with 26 years of experience in financial advisory services. She currently works at Santander Securities LLC and Santander Bank, NA, having previously held positions at TD Bank and Citizens Securities, Inc. Barrella is based in Boston, MA. Santander Securities LLC serves a broad retail client base with approximately $3.14 billion in regulatory assets under management across 10,800 client relationships. The firm offers investment advisory services, portfolio management through wrap-fee programs, and financial planning, operating both as a registered investment adviser and a FINRA-registered broker-dealer.