Wells Fargo Advisors has recruited a 17-person advisor team overseeing nearly $6 billion in client assets from Morgan Stanley, marking one of the firm's heftiest additions in New York City in recent memory.
The Taylor Group officially joined Wells Fargo Advisors on May 1, operating out of the firm's branch at the GM Building in midtown Manhattan.
The next-gen advisor team is led by James Taylor and includes private wealth financial advisors Shane Drumm, Michaella Irvine, Marcus Briscoe, Cameron Irvine, Jamison Embury, Roger McGlynn, Hunter Embury, and Kyle Drumm, along with a support staff of nine.
At Morgan Stanley, the group managed $5.94 billion in client assets. The move adds to a stretch of high-profile recruiting for Wells Fargo Advisors, which in February brought in the Weikes Slattery Group – a $3.1 billion team also from Manhattan – from JPMorgan.
Patrick Baumann, New York City market leader for Wells Fargo Advisors, said in a statement that the team is "keen to take advantage of Wells Fargo's full balance sheet, which gives them a clear runway to serve their clients holistically."
The Taylor Group has built a notable track record on industry rankings. In 2025, James Taylor ranked fourth on the Forbes Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors national list and held the top spot on the Forbes Best-In-State Top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors list for New York City.
Shane Drumm ranked fifth on the same Best-In-State list that year. In total, five members of the team have appeared on Forbes rankings, and the group has also made multiple appearances on Barron's national and best-in-state lists.
The team brings a range of professional credentials, including four certified financial planners, a chartered financial analyst, a certified investment management analyst, and a chartered retirement planning counselor.
The group could benefit from a more tight-knit team dynamic than most, as it features an unusual family makeup. The team includes three sets of relatives – three sisters and two sets of brothers, among them one pair of twins.
The Manhattan hire continues what has been a busy recruiting stretch for Wells Fargo Advisors over the past several months.
Late last year, the firm added Hingham Street Partners, a $6.3 billion team from UBS, followed by nearly $1.5 billion in additional assets across its employee and independent channels.
In early January, it also picked up a $1.2 billion ultra-high-net-worth team from Citigroup in Dallas.
Chicago-based Mesirow Fiduciary Solutions adds flexPATH's plan-level outsourced fiduciary book, boosting its retirement market reach to $164 billion.
Also, Raymond James's employee advisor channel adds breakaways from Wells Fargo and Stifel, while UBS welcomes an ex-Morgan Stanley duo in Indiana.
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