Baird nabs million-dollar Morgan Stanley team

NEW YORK, March 29 (Reuters) - Baird Private Wealth Management has lured a million-dollar team from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney to join its Scottsdale, Arizona, office.

Baird said Russ Guard and Jacob Duffy oversaw $150 million in client assets at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney and generated more than $1 million in fees and commissions.

Guard has spent nearly 24 years as a financial adviser, starting out in 1986 with Merrill Lynch, now a division of Bank of America Corp (BAC.N). He has spent the past 15 years with Smith Barney, according to FINRA filings. Smith Barney, formerly a division of Citigroup (C.N), was merged with Morgan Stanley's (MS.N) wealth management group in June 2009.

Duffy has spent the past five years at Smith Barney, according to FINRA filings.

Baird, an employee-owned company based in Milwaukee, has two offices in the Phoenix-Scottsdale market employing 50 advisers and support staff. (Reporting by Helen Kearney; editing by John Wallace)