M&A roundup: KSM, Eide Bailly, Forvis and Avantax expand

Katz, Sapper & Miller, a Top 50 Firm based in Indianapolis, is expanding into Ohio by adding Cassady Schiller, one of the biggest firms in Cincinnati, effective May 31.

Cassady Schiller offers tax and accounting services to high-net-worth individuals and families, and businesses in the manufacturing and distribution, hospitality, and services industries. It also offers real estate expertise to augment KSM’s existing real estate practice. Cassady Schiller’s wealth management practice isn’t part of the deal as KSM doesn’t offer wealth management services and will continue as a separate firm under the Cassady Schiller name.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. KSM’s 2023 revenue was $144,875,000 and Cassady Schiller’s was $13,114,000, not including revenue from the wealth management practice, which is not joining KSM. KSM ranked No. 49 on Accounting Today‘s 2024 list of the Top 100 Firms.

“In Cassady Schiller, we have found a team of talented professionals whose deep commitments to their people, their clients and their community align very closely with ours,” said KSM CEO and president Tim Cook in a statement Monday. “We couldn’t ask for a better cultural fit.” 

KSM currently has 564 employees, including 57 partners. The Cassady Schiller deal will add 67 employees and eight partners to KSM, including managing partner Mike Clark and chief operating officer Heather Bucher, who will serve as co-managing partners of KSM’s new Cincinnati office. 

“Joining KSM is a perfect fit for Cassady Schiller,” said Clark in a statement. “We anticipate great benefits for our clients, including a broader range of services and resources, as well as diverse opportunities for our people to continue to grow their careers. We’re excited for our next chapter.”

Cassady Schiller will assume the KSM brand in the months ahead as it becomes fully integrated as the firm’s Cincinnati regional office. 

“Since our founding in 1990, Cassady Schiller has exceeded the expectations of our clients, actively engaged with our community, and fostered a close-knit workplace in which people come first. We look forward to many years of the same — and much more — with KSM,” Bucher stated.

Katz, Sapper & Miller acquired Noble Consulting Services, an insurance regulatory consulting firm in Indianapolis in 2021, and last year Noble acquired Eide Bailly’s insurance regulatory practice. In 2019, KSM acquired Caskey & Daily, an Indianapolis-based tax and accounting firm.