Stephen Wilkinson
Vice President, Financial Advisor
Phone:
(502) 562-5087(502) 562-5087
Stephen Wilkinson
Vice President,
Financial Advisor
Direct:
(502) 562-5087(502) 562-5087
My Mission Statement
Helping clients navigate important financial decisions with confidence and align their wealth strategies with their long-term personal and financial goals.
My Story and Services
Stephen G. Wilkinson is a seasoned wealth management professional with over 17 years of experience helping individuals and families achieve their financial goals. For the past six years, he has served his clients through Merrill Lynch, where he has continued to build a reputation for trusted guidance and personalized financial strategies.
Stephen works with a diverse clientele spanning from the Midwest to Southern Florida. He specializes in supporting retirees, business owners, and entrepreneurs, offering tailored solutions designed to preserve wealth, support long-term growth, and align financial plans with each client’s unique vision.
Stephen has built strong, lasting relationships through attentive listening, which informs his holistic and comprehensive approach to wealth management. As a result, many of his clients not only trust him with their financial matters, but also consider him a personal friend.
Known for his client-focused approach, Stephen is deeply committed to helping those he serves navigate complex financial decisions with confidence. His passion for his work is rooted in a genuine desire to see his clients succeed both personally and financially.
Outside of his professional life, Stephen enjoys traveling, spending time with family, and exploring his love of music. He has been married for 36 years to his high school sweetheart, Kelly Wilkinson. Together, they have two children, Joe and Kathleen, and are proud grandparents to three beautiful grandchildren. These personal passions and relationships complement his dedication to building meaningful connections and living a well-balanced life.
Stephen works with a diverse clientele spanning from the Midwest to Southern Florida. He specializes in supporting retirees, business owners, and entrepreneurs, offering tailored solutions designed to preserve wealth, support long-term growth, and align financial plans with each client’s unique vision.
Stephen has built strong, lasting relationships through attentive listening, which informs his holistic and comprehensive approach to wealth management. As a result, many of his clients not only trust him with their financial matters, but also consider him a personal friend.
Known for his client-focused approach, Stephen is deeply committed to helping those he serves navigate complex financial decisions with confidence. His passion for his work is rooted in a genuine desire to see his clients succeed both personally and financially.
Outside of his professional life, Stephen enjoys traveling, spending time with family, and exploring his love of music. He has been married for 36 years to his high school sweetheart, Kelly Wilkinson. Together, they have two children, Joe and Kathleen, and are proud grandparents to three beautiful grandchildren. These personal passions and relationships complement his dedication to building meaningful connections and living a well-balanced life.
Securities Agent: AK, CA, CO, FL, GA, IN, KS, KY, MD, MA, NV, NY, NC, OH, OR, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV, WY; General Securities Representative; Investment Advisor Representative
Check the background of Our Firm and Investment Professionals on FINRA's BrokerCheck.*
PURSUING YOUR GOALS, TOGETHER
My clients are much more than a portfolio of assets – they are families with active lives, who seek experienced advisors who will provide them with thorough, unbiased, and carefully considered guidance on a full range of financial topics. When you work with me, you will be treated with respect, care, confidentiality, and given an unwavering commitment to you and your family.
While my clients each have unique personal and professional circumstances, they all have one thing in common, achieving a financial goal to secure their family's financial future and pursue their personal ambitions.
While my clients each have unique personal and professional circumstances, they all have one thing in common, achieving a financial goal to secure their family's financial future and pursue their personal ambitions.
High Net Worth Individuals and Families
Understanding you, your family and your finances is my top priority. I understand that life can be complex and filled with important choices, and that safeguarding everything you’ve worked hard to build is essential. I can help create a personalized plan to meet your goals at every stage of your life.
Business Owners & Entrepreneurs
Business owners often face the challenge of balancing personal and business finances simultaneously. I help entrepreneurs bring clarity to both sides of their wealth by creating strategies around liquidity, succession planning, lending, retirement plans, and long-term business transition goals.
Retirees or Those Seeking Retirement
Some people look forward to retirement as their time to relax and enjoy the fruits of their decades-long career. Others worry about their ability to support their lifestyle given certain life challenges. Saving for retirement is a lifelong process that relies on defined financial planning strategies.
Professionals
I help high-achieving professionals align their financial decisions with the demands of their careers and lifestyles. Together, we create strategies around investments, equity compensation, retirement planning, cash flow, tax efficiency, and long-term wealth preservation.
YOUR GUIDE TO EFFICIENT PLANNING
Your financial plan should include more than just your investment objectives. Rather, it should be tailored to address the personal life and legacy goals you've identified and prioritized. My process begins with you, your investment objectives and your financial goals. Holistic in its approach, it may encompass all the elements of your financial life, helping to make sure they align with your goals and wealth management plan.
Financial Planning
Morgan Stanley Financial Planning can show you a single, comprehensive snapshot of your finances. I can help you create a wealth plan that's adaptable to the different stages of your life using our award-winning tools- Goals Planning System (GPS) and LifeView.
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LifeView Intelligent Planning
LifeView is a suite of planning tools that includes goal-specific analysis that I can use with my clients to create a holistic strategy that integrates the various aspects of an individual's financial life, including investments and cash management needs.
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Goals Planning System
Goals Planning System (GPS) is Morgan Stanley's own integrated planning tool. Built on the Firm's intellectual capital and capabilities, GPS is an intuitive and efficient platform used to quickly assess whether a client is "On Track" to achieving their financial goals.
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Portfolio Risk Platform
Our Portfolio Risk Platform, backed by institutional-caliber analytics, assesses thousands of risk factors using a holdings-based approach to assess a portfolio's exposures, analyze how securities behave together across portfolios and forecast how they influence risk and return moving forward.
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Spending and Budgeting
Track spending habits, categorize expenses and create budgets across your Morgan Stanley and external financial accounts with our Spending and Budgeting Tool. We make it easy for you to oversee trends in your financial life.
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Tax-Efficient Planning
Building wealth is a means to an end. Taxes can eat up a significant portion of your assets upon withdrawal. This is why it's vital to look at your entire portfolio and coordinate liquidation to help reduce the impact of taxes and potentially improve investment results.
Learn MoreKEEPING YOU CONNECTED
Morgan Stanley’s comprehensive suite of digital resources has been carefully designed to help enhance each and every aspect of your financial portfolio and life. Learn more about some of the Modern Wealth Management Tools that we offer to our valued clients.
Morgan Stanley Online
Beyond viewing your account balance and activity, Morgan Stanley Online (MSO) has a suite of features that allow you to manage your everyday finances from paying bills and sending money to transferring funds and authorizing transactions with eAuthorizations.
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Morgan Stanley Mobile App
Access your account wherever, whenever using the Morgan Stanley Mobile App. It gives you the same capabilities as Morgan Stanley Online from the convenience of your phone or tablet.
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Total Wealth View
View all your external financial accounts directly in Morgan Stanley Online or the mobile app. By linking your accounts, you'll benefit from more informed wealth planning, secure data access and convenient connectivity.
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Digital Vault
Digital Vault allows for easy sharing and convenient access to your most important documents from wills and deeds to financial statements and tax fillings. Easily manage your encrypted financial records all in one place.
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MS Reserved
Reserved Living & Giving is a tiered complimentary loyalty program that rewards Morgan Stanley's most valued clients. The program is designed to enhance your lifestyle and relationship with the firm beyond traditional wealth management services.
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Family Office Resources
Morgan Stanley Family Office Resources provides specialized, technical expertise to select clients across a broad range of family wealth management issues. Our core capabilities span three complimentary areas of focus including Governance & Legacy, Wealth Strategies and Signature Access.
Learn MoreEVERYTHING YOU NEED, ALL IN ONE PLACE
At Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, exclusive access to vast resources, combined with our unique capabilities, gives me the means to support your goals at every stage in your life.
Advice and Solutions
Our clients benefit from access to the intellectual capital of our Global Investment Committee, a group of leading market thinkers uniquely dedicated to providing high-quality, industry-leading investment ideas for Wealth Management clients.
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Investment Management
At Morgan Stanley Investment Management, our goal is to provide strong long-term performance to a diverse client base of governments, institutions, corporations, advisors and individuals worldwide. Our investment solutions include a broad range of alternative investments, active investment strategies, customization strategies, sustainability expertise and tax-management solutions.
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Lending and Cash Management
I recognize that clients and their families have unique needs that require dedicated experience and capabilities. My goal is to help simplify your financial life with a combination of cash management and lending solutions designed to complement your investment strategy and support your financial goals.
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Morgan Stanley at Work
Workplace financial solutions that help employees achieve their life goals. Our comprehensive offering spans Equity, Financial Wellness and Retirement solutions, plus Financial Empowerment, so your workforce can realize the full potential of their benefits.
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Cybersecurity
Your security is my top priority. Morgan Stanley proactively defends our systems and monitors our digital landscapes to anticipate issues before they arise and responds appropriately when they do. The Firm is actively supporting a multitude of layers of security. Read more about the cybersecurity resources used by the firm below.
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Tax Management Services
Morgan Stanley Total Tax 365 offers a full spectrum of tax-efficient solutions to help mitigate the tax drag on your portfolio—so you can keep more of what you earn and improve after-tax returns.
Learn MoreLocation
4969 US Highway 42
Suite 1200
Louisville, KY 40222
US
Direct:
(502) 562-5087(502) 562-5087
Meet My Team
Yelena Schmitt
Client Relationship Analyst
Phone:
(502) 562-5088(502) 562-5088
About Stephen Wilkinson
Stephen G. Wilkinson is a seasoned wealth management professional with over 17 years of experience helping individuals and families achieve their financial goals. For the past six years, he has served his clients through Merrill Lynch, where he has continued to build a reputation for trusted guidance and personalized financial strategies.
Stephen works with a diverse clientele spanning from the Midwest to Southern Florida. He specializes in supporting retirees, business owners, and entrepreneurs, offering tailored solutions designed to preserve wealth, support long-term growth, and align financial plans with each client’s unique vision.
Stephen has built strong, lasting relationships through attentive listening, which informs his holistic and comprehensive approach to wealth management. As a result, many of his clients not only trust him with their financial matters, but also consider him a personal friend.
Known for his client-focused approach, Stephen is deeply committed to helping those he serves navigate complex financial decisions with confidence. His passion for his work is rooted in a genuine desire to see his clients succeed both personally and financially.
Outside of his professional life, Stephen enjoys traveling, spending time with family, and exploring his love of music. He has been married for 36 years to his high school sweetheart, Kelly Wilkinson. Together, they have two children, Joe and Kathleen, and are proud grandparents to three beautiful grandchildren. These personal passions and relationships complement his dedication to building meaningful connections and living a well-balanced life.
Stephen works with a diverse clientele spanning from the Midwest to Southern Florida. He specializes in supporting retirees, business owners, and entrepreneurs, offering tailored solutions designed to preserve wealth, support long-term growth, and align financial plans with each client’s unique vision.
Stephen has built strong, lasting relationships through attentive listening, which informs his holistic and comprehensive approach to wealth management. As a result, many of his clients not only trust him with their financial matters, but also consider him a personal friend.
Known for his client-focused approach, Stephen is deeply committed to helping those he serves navigate complex financial decisions with confidence. His passion for his work is rooted in a genuine desire to see his clients succeed both personally and financially.
Outside of his professional life, Stephen enjoys traveling, spending time with family, and exploring his love of music. He has been married for 36 years to his high school sweetheart, Kelly Wilkinson. Together, they have two children, Joe and Kathleen, and are proud grandparents to three beautiful grandchildren. These personal passions and relationships complement his dedication to building meaningful connections and living a well-balanced life.
About Yelena Schmitt
Yelena K. Schmitt joined Morgan Stanley after previously working at KPMG and most recently Ventas, Inc. where she led the tax planning team analyzing REIT compliance and tax efficiency, as well as managing transfer pricing risk for all intercompany transactions. Yelena brings deep experience in multinational C corporation taxation as well as state and local tax matters.
A Certified Public Accountant, she holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and B.S., Business Administration (Accounting) both from University of Louisville.
Outside of work, Yelena enjoys spectacular views of America's National Parks and show-stopping Broadway shows.
A Certified Public Accountant, she holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and B.S., Business Administration (Accounting) both from University of Louisville.
Outside of work, Yelena enjoys spectacular views of America's National Parks and show-stopping Broadway shows.
Wealth Management
Global Investment Office
Portfolio Insights
Retirement
Working with you to understand your life goals and develop a personalized wealth strategy. Today and for the years to come.
- 401(k) Rollovers
- IRA Plans
- Retirement income strategies
- Retirement plan participants
- Annuities
A Simple Six-Step Retirement Checkup
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Investing
Working closely with you to guide your wealth and investments through the most challenging market cycles.
- Asset Management
- Wealth Planning
- Traditional Investments
- Alternative Investments
- Impact Investing
Iran Conflict: Seven Takeaways for Investors
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Family
Creating customized financial strategies for the challenges that today’s families face.
- Estate Planning Strategies
- 529 Plans / Education Savings Planning
- Long Term Care Insurance
- Special Needs Planning
- Trust Services
529 Plans: A Powerful Tool to Save for Education
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Business Planning
Helping you on key aspects of your business such as ownership, liquidity and developing opportunities.
- Succession Planning
- Business Planning
- Qualified Retirement Plans
Financial Planning for Life After Selling a Business
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Philanthropy
Making sure your philanthropic dollars are managed with the same high quality service as the rest of your wealth.
- Endowments
- Foundations
- Donor Advised Funds
- Impact Investing
Ready to start a conversation? Contact Stephen Wilkinson today.
1Morgan Stanley offers a wide array of brokerage and advisory services to its clients, each of which may create a different type of relationship with different obligations to you. Please consult with your Financial Advisor to understand these differences or review our Understanding Your Brokerage and Investment Advisory Relationships brochure available at www.morganstanley.com/wealth-relationshipwithms/pdfs/understandingyourrelationship.pdf.
For more information, please see the Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC Client Relationship Summary.
2Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is the trade name of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, a registered broker-dealer in the United States. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is a business of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC.
3Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC is a registered Broker/Dealer, Member SIPC, and not a bank. Where appropriate, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC has entered into arrangements with banks and other third parties to assist in offering certain banking related products and services.
Investment, insurance and annuity products offered through Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC are: NOT FDIC INSURED | MAY LOSE VALUE | NOT BANK GUARANTEED | NOT A BANK DEPOSIT | NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY
4Alternative Investments are speculative and include a high degree of risk. An investor could lose all or a substantial amount of his/her investment. Alternative investments are appropriate only for qualified, long-term investors who are willing to forgo liquidity and put capital at risk for an indefinite period of time.
5Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), its affiliates and Morgan Stanley Financial Advisors or Private Wealth Advisors do not provide tax or legal advice. Clients should consult their tax advisor for matters involving taxation and tax planning and their attorney for legal matters.
6Insurance products are offered in conjunction with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC’s licensed insurance agency affiliates.
Check the background of our Firm and Investment Professionals on FINRA's BrokerCheck*.
The information, products and services described here are intended only for individuals residing in states where this Financial Advisor is properly registered as described in this site.
Morgan Stanley reserves the right, to the extent permitted under applicable law, to retain and monitor all electronic communications. Morgan Stanley will not accept purchase or sale orders via any Internet site, social media site and/or its messaging systems. Morgan Stanley does not endorse and is not responsible and assumes no liability for content, products or services posted by third-parties on any Internet site, social media site and/or its messaging systems. All electronic communications are subject to terms available at the following link:
https://www.morganstanley.com/disclaimers/mswm-email.html. Any profiles and associated content are for U.S. residents only.
The securities/instruments, services, investments and investment strategies discussed in this material may not be appropriate for all investors. The appropriateness of a particular investment, investment strategy or service will depend on an investor's individual circumstances and objectives. Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC recommends that investors independently evaluate particular investments, strategies and services, and encourages investors to seek the advice of a Financial Advisor or Private Wealth Advisor. This material does not provide individually tailored investment advice. It has been prepared without regard to the individual financial circumstances and objectives of persons who receive it.
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), its affiliates and Morgan Stanley Financial Advisors or Private Wealth Advisors do not provide tax or legal advice. Individuals should consult their tax advisor for matters involving taxation and tax planning and their attorney for legal matters.
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”) is not implying an affiliation, sponsorship, endorsement with/of the third party or that any monitoring is being done by Morgan Stanley of any information contained within the website. Morgan Stanley is not responsible for the information contained on the third-party website or the use of or inability to use such site. Nor do we guarantee their accuracy or completeness.
The views, opinions or advice contained within third party websites or materials are solely those of the author, who is not a Morgan Stanley employee, and do not necessarily reflect those of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, or its affiliates. The strategies and/or investments referenced may not be appropriate for all investors as the appropriateness of a particular investment or strategy will depend on an investor's individual circumstances and objectives.
*References to length of service at Morgan Stanley include years at Morgan Stanley and predecessor firms.
Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. owns and licenses the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®, and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States to Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which authorizes individuals who successfully complete the organization's initial and ongoing certification requirements to use the certification marks.
The use of the CDFA designation does not permit the rendering of legal advice by Morgan Stanley or its Financial Advisors which may only be done by a licensed attorney. The CDFA designation is not intended to imply that either Morgan Stanley or its Financial Advisors are acting as experts in this field.
Awards Disclosures | Morgan Stanley
For more information, please see the Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC Client Relationship Summary.
2Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is the trade name of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, a registered broker-dealer in the United States. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is a business of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC.
3Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC is a registered Broker/Dealer, Member SIPC, and not a bank. Where appropriate, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC has entered into arrangements with banks and other third parties to assist in offering certain banking related products and services.
Investment, insurance and annuity products offered through Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC are: NOT FDIC INSURED | MAY LOSE VALUE | NOT BANK GUARANTEED | NOT A BANK DEPOSIT | NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY
4Alternative Investments are speculative and include a high degree of risk. An investor could lose all or a substantial amount of his/her investment. Alternative investments are appropriate only for qualified, long-term investors who are willing to forgo liquidity and put capital at risk for an indefinite period of time.
5Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), its affiliates and Morgan Stanley Financial Advisors or Private Wealth Advisors do not provide tax or legal advice. Clients should consult their tax advisor for matters involving taxation and tax planning and their attorney for legal matters.
6Insurance products are offered in conjunction with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC’s licensed insurance agency affiliates.
Check the background of our Firm and Investment Professionals on FINRA's BrokerCheck*.
The information, products and services described here are intended only for individuals residing in states where this Financial Advisor is properly registered as described in this site.
Morgan Stanley reserves the right, to the extent permitted under applicable law, to retain and monitor all electronic communications. Morgan Stanley will not accept purchase or sale orders via any Internet site, social media site and/or its messaging systems. Morgan Stanley does not endorse and is not responsible and assumes no liability for content, products or services posted by third-parties on any Internet site, social media site and/or its messaging systems. All electronic communications are subject to terms available at the following link:
https://www.morganstanley.com/disclaimers/mswm-email.html. Any profiles and associated content are for U.S. residents only.
The securities/instruments, services, investments and investment strategies discussed in this material may not be appropriate for all investors. The appropriateness of a particular investment, investment strategy or service will depend on an investor's individual circumstances and objectives. Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC recommends that investors independently evaluate particular investments, strategies and services, and encourages investors to seek the advice of a Financial Advisor or Private Wealth Advisor. This material does not provide individually tailored investment advice. It has been prepared without regard to the individual financial circumstances and objectives of persons who receive it.
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), its affiliates and Morgan Stanley Financial Advisors or Private Wealth Advisors do not provide tax or legal advice. Individuals should consult their tax advisor for matters involving taxation and tax planning and their attorney for legal matters.
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”) is not implying an affiliation, sponsorship, endorsement with/of the third party or that any monitoring is being done by Morgan Stanley of any information contained within the website. Morgan Stanley is not responsible for the information contained on the third-party website or the use of or inability to use such site. Nor do we guarantee their accuracy or completeness.
The views, opinions or advice contained within third party websites or materials are solely those of the author, who is not a Morgan Stanley employee, and do not necessarily reflect those of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, or its affiliates. The strategies and/or investments referenced may not be appropriate for all investors as the appropriateness of a particular investment or strategy will depend on an investor's individual circumstances and objectives.
*References to length of service at Morgan Stanley include years at Morgan Stanley and predecessor firms.
Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. owns and licenses the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®, and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States to Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which authorizes individuals who successfully complete the organization's initial and ongoing certification requirements to use the certification marks.
The use of the CDFA designation does not permit the rendering of legal advice by Morgan Stanley or its Financial Advisors which may only be done by a licensed attorney. The CDFA designation is not intended to imply that either Morgan Stanley or its Financial Advisors are acting as experts in this field.
Awards Disclosures | Morgan Stanley
CRC 4665150 (8/2025)
