Janney Montgomery Scott has appointed Andrew Kistler as senior vice president and regional manager for the Southeast, while the Philadelphia-based firm has also taken on the Palmetto Advisory group, operating from its Columbia and Hilton Head branches in South Carolina.

Kistler joins from Stifel Nicolaus, where since 2009 he had been senior vice president/Southeast regional director. At Janney, he will continue to lead the expansion of the firm’s presence across the Southeast. Back in March, the firm opened an office in Aiken, South Carolina.

"The addition of Kistler and expansion in our Southeast region, along with the addition of the Palmetto Advisor Group, demonstrates how we are concentrating our efforts within existing markets that we believe present an opportunity for growth," said Jerry Lombard, president of the firm’s private client group.  

The Palmetto Advisory group, with some $220 million in client assets, will be led by senior vice presidents of wealth management E Stanley and Geddings Crawford. Additional members of the team include: Linda Fraser, vice president of wealth management; Geoffery Forsyth, financial advisor; Carolee McKeown, senior registered private client assistant; and Henry Batts, private client assistant.

In other recent moves, at the end of August Janney hired Peter Hecht as first vice president of wealth management at its Mount Laurel, NJ, office. Hecht brought with him $100 million in assets and joined the firm with Steven Ries, account executive.

Janney Montgomery Scott is an independently-operated subsidiary of The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company and a New York Stock Exchange member firm.