Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel

If there were such a thing as a hipster among RIA firms, Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel Inc. would probably be it.

“We’ve been specializing in dividends since 1990 — before they were cool,” said Matthew D. McCormick, vice president and portfolio manager at Bahl & Gaynor.

The Cincinnati-based firm has seen a sharp pickup in assets and has $5.4 billion in AUM, reflecting a 47% increase from last year.

Mr. McCormick attributes that increase to growing investor interest — both on the institutional side and among high-net-worth individuals — in dividend-bearing stocks.

“People need income and downside protection. That’s been our strength,” he said.

The firm has also stepped up its outreach among wirehouse representatives via a partnership with Advisors Asset Management Inc., a provider of strategies and products to financial advisers. That company has a force of 50 wholesalers to get out the word on Bahl’s strategies nationally.

Investors can also access the firm’s strategies through separately managed accounts.