Smith Barney Releases 5 of Its Top Executives

Smith Barney, Harris Upham & Co. confirmed that it dismissed five top executives in an effort to reduce costs in its public finance division.

Among those let go were Edward Tirrel, Oscar Carlson, Michael Cherry and James Williams, all managing directors, and J. Dale Lehman, a vice president, a company official said Tuesday. The official said 110 employees remain in the public finance department.

“In the context of the business environment, the firm is attempting to reduce its overhead in this particular division,” said the official, who requested anonymity.

Faced with dwindling returns in their municipal bond departments, a number of Wall Street firms abandoned the business during the past year, including Salomon Bros. and L. F. Rothschild Holdings Inc.

Despite fewer players in the business, Smith Barney has seen its ranking slip this year. According to IDD Information Services Inc., Smith Barney has underwritten $4.5 billion in tax-exempt bonds for a 7.1% share of the market so far this year.

But compared to a year ago, when the firm ranked as the No. 2 underwriter of new issues, Smith Barney has slipped to fifth place.

The firm’s share of the taxable market also slipped. According to IDD, Smith Barney has arranged $24.5 million in new issues so far this year with a 3.2% share of the market. A year ago, however, the company managed $58.7 million in new issues for a 4.3% share of the market.

Smith Barney was acquired last year by Primerica Corp. for $750 million. Primerica partly attributed its flat second-quarter earnings to declining commissions, underwriting and trading revenue from Smith Barney.