Sterne Agee Group agrees to acquires Richmond, Va., investment firm

 By Russell Hubbard -- The Birmingham News

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- Brokerage and investment bank Sterne Agee Group said today it has agreed to buy a Virginia wealth management firm, continuing with its most robust acquisition phase in the more than 100 years it has been in business.  Birmingham-based Sterne Agee said it has signed a letter of intent to buy Richmond's Anderson & Strudwick, which operates 18 offices serving wealthy investors and professionals. "Our cultures and organizations are very similar," said Jim Holbrook, Sterne Agee's chief executive.  Terms weren't disclosed.

Sterne Agee, whose $350 million in annual revenue makes it one of the largest brokerages not based on Wall Street, has now bought or offered to buy four other companies in the past year or so.