The Oakley Group Joins Pinnacle Asset Management

Well-known team of six will serve the firm’s investment management unit

Pinnacle Financial Partners has added a new dimension to its wealth services team with six new associates who will work as a group within Pinnacle Asset Management, the firm’s unit for investment management and securities trading and execution. All six come from SunTrust Investment Services, Inc. where they operated under the brand of The Oakley Group.

Sam Oakley joins Pinnacle as a managing director of Pinnacle Asset Management and leader of the Oakley group. With him will be Jon Lockmiller, Brian Dixon and Taylor Francis as financial advisors, Beverly Herbert as client services director for the group and Kerry Oakley as a sales associate. They will operate out of Pinnacle’s former office on Crestmoor Road in Green Hills, just a half-mile from their previous home base.

“The Oakley group represents an unbelievable wealth of talent and experience,” said Gary Collier, manager of Pinnacle Asset Management in Tennessee. “Sam and his team have been a fixture in our community for many, many years. They are well-known in the industry and are proven and established advisors who help clients preserve and grow their assets. This is a very significant addition to our team and a huge win for our clients.”

Sam Oakley is a Nashville native and has spent his entire career – nearly 34 years – serving SunTrust Investment Services, Inc. as a private financial advisor. Under his leadership, SunTrust formed The Oakley Group, a team of investment professionals specializing in investment management, comprehensive financial planning, retirement and estate planning, business planning and more.

“In many ways, this move to Pinnacle feels like a return to my advisor and investment roots,” Oakley said. “Local management and a personalized approach were the foundations of my career. Pinnacle has recaptured that essence, and in doing so has built a stellar reputation. With the best in products, services and technology at our fingertips, our team is equipped to serve clients in the greatest capacity possible.”

Oakley has been named one of Barron’s Top 1200 Advisors¹ in the United States every year since the list began in 2009, coming in at No. 5 in 2017. He was also recognized as a top investment advisor by Bank Investment Consulting magazine from 2000-2006 and by Research magazine in 2005.  Oakley graduated from the Haslam School of Business at the University of Tennessee and earned a master’s from the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. He has also earned the Accredited Asset Management Specialist (AAMS®) designation from the College for Financial Planning.

Oakley is very active in the community through various youth groups, volunteer opportunities and fundraising at his church. He also built The Oakley House in 2005, a home for teachers in Zimbabwe.

Jon Lockmiller had been with SunTrust and SunTrust Investment Services for 20 years, joining at the tail end of his college career. He started as a teller, but after just a few years moved into investments. He earned both his bachelor’s and his MBA from Middle Tennessee State University and later his Certified Retirement Planning Consultant (CRPC®) from the College for Financial Planning. He serves St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital in various fundraising capacities and coaches his sons’ baseball teams.

Brian Dixon had worked with SunTrust Investment Services since 2004, serving first as an investment associate and then quickly moving up as a financial consultant with The Oakley Group. Prior to that, he worked in various roles for UBS and Ameriprise. Dixon earned his bachelor’s degree at Milsaps College in Mississippi and the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) designation through Belmont University’s Center for Executive Education. His volunteer work is centered on youth, serving as both a basketball and baseball coach in Williamson County.

Taylor Francis had served SunTrust Investment Services as an investment officer and sales associate since 2010 and moved into The Oakley Group in 2014. Prior to that, he was with A.G. Edwards in Missouri for four years. He graduated from Western Kentucky University with a bachelor’s in 2005 and has since earned his CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) and Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®) designations. He serves the community through a variety of volunteer projects.

Beverly Herbert had also worked with the Oakley group for 20 years as team lead, and prior to that was the marketing director for SunTrust Investment Services. She began her career as a private banker and credit advisor for Metropolitan Federal Savings and Loan. Herbert earned her bachelor’s from Belmont and is working toward her Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA®) designation. She is very active in healthcare, currently serving as host for a series of television segments called “HealthBreak” with MBC Media. She also spent 25 years as the volunteer publicity director for Christmas 4 Kids, a holiday nonprofit heavily associated with the music industry.

Kerry Oakley also comes from SunTrust Investment Services. He earned his bachelor’s degree in finance from Lipscomb University.

The team at Pinnacle Asset Management provides advice and services to businesses and individuals with significant investment needs. Advisors have access to the full suite of investment products offered by Raymond James Financial Services, Inc.

Pinnacle Financial Partners provides a full range of banking, investment, trust, mortgage and insurance products and services designed for businesses and their owners and individuals interested in a comprehensive relationship with their financial institution. The firm earned a place on Fortune’s 2017 list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in the U.S., and American Banker recognized Pinnacle as the sixth-best bank to work for in 2017.

The firm began operations in a single location in downtown Nashville, TN in October 2000 and has since grown to approximately $20.9 billion in assets as of June 30, 2017. As the second-largest bank holding company headquartered in Tennessee, Pinnacle operates in 11 primarily urban markets in Tennessee, the Carolinas and Virginia.

Additional information concerning Pinnacle, which is included in the NASDAQ Financial-100 Index, can be accessed at www.pnfp.com.