Matt Sommer, PhD, CFA, CFP®
Matt Sommer is Head of Specialist Consulting Group at Janus Henderson Investors. His team consists of various subject matter experts across several disciplines including retirement planning, wealth advisory, practice management, and investment strategies. They provide clients actionable insight and expertise they can implement into their business practice to retain and gain clients. Before assuming his current role in 2023, Matt was head of the firm’s defined contribution and wealth advisor services team and lead behavioral finance researcher and wealth strategist. Prior to joining Janus in 2010, Matt spent 17 years at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and its predecessors, Citi Global Wealth Management and Smith Barney, during which time his roles included director of financial planning and director of retirement planning.
Matt received his bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Rhode Island and an MBA with a concentration in finance from Pace University, Lubin School of Business. He received a doctorate degree (dissertation: Three Essays Investigating the Bequest Intentions and Expectations of Older Adults) from Kansas State University. His doctoral candidacy research was selected for publication in the Journal of Financial Planning and the Journal of Personal Finance. Matt is a frequent guest on CNBC and Bloomberg TV, a regular contributor to Kiplinger’s Building Wealth column and has been extensively quoted in various industry publications including the Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, and Investment News. He has 31 years of financial industry experience.
Articles Written
What types of U.S. investors are most likely to have named a trusted contact for their brokerage accounts?
Research found that a lack of basic financial knowledge is the main reason affluent investors use less tax-efficient and cost-effective debt vehicles, creating an education opportunity for advisors.
Does gender play a role in the selection of a financial advisor?
Why did we do this research? While females control 51% of the personal wealth in the U.S., they represent only 32% of the financial advisor population. If individuals prefer to work with teams that include both women and men, the industry would benefit by redoubling efforts to attract and recruit female financial advisors. Why is
Why do affluent individuals carry credit card debt rather than borrow against securities?
Why did we do this research? A national representative sample of 1,046 investors with at least $50,000 on deposit at their brokerage firm collected by FINRA revealed that 15% of individuals carried a monthly balance on their credit cards, compared to 13% who had a securities-based loan. Why is this research important? Individuals who assume
Do personality traits influence the intention to leave unequal bequests to children?
Research shows that certain personality traits, such as agreeableness, make clients more likely to leave unequal bequests.
Do overconfident investors seek professional investment advice?
Overconfident investors were found to be more likely to seek recommendations from financial advisors but less likely to hand over trading discretion.
Investor Survey: Advisors offer much more than investment advice
Our survey found that advised clients tend to be more confident and less likely to make investing mistakes due to emotions.
Investor Survey: Uncovering the factors that lead to client satisfaction
Findings from our latest Investor Survey reveal what factors appear to influence clients’ satisfaction with their advisor relationship.
Study: Financial literacy and naming a trusted contact for brokerage accounts
A new study examines the relationship between financial literacy and naming a trusted contact for brokerage accounts.