Davidson Cos. has not been much of a buyer during its 76-year history, executing only seven deals in all. But the Portland, Ore.-based parent of midmarket investment bank D.A. Davidson & Co. is changing its tune after its early February purchase of Costa Mesa, Calif.-based McGladrey Capital Markets LLC for an undisclosed sum.

Having "built up our team from a critical-mass perspective and maintained profitability, it's now time to grow," says Brad Gevurtz, 52, D.A. Davidson's head of investment banking. "Our strategy is to make acquisitions because we know we're a survivor."

Gevurtz, who joined Davidson in 2005 after co-founding New York-based Ion Partners LLC in 2003, won't disclose profits for the privately held company, but he says D.A. Davidson effectively managed its expenses in the years after the financial crisis. "I didn't pay my guys less than other banks, but what I didn't do was go insane and hire 10 bankers that were laid off by bulge-bracket firms and double their pay," he says. "I made sure we didn't overhire or overpay."

That strategy has left the firm well positioned to hit the acquisition trail in search of midmarket banks and boutiques that can "deepen the industries we're in."

The McGladrey deal doubled D.A. Davidson's number of investment bankers to 70 and expanded its expertise into aerospace and defense, materials, food and beverage, infrastructure, industrials, energy services and healthcare. Going forward, Davidson wants to expand, via acquisition, its financial institutions group, which advises and provides underwriting to community banks on the West Coast and in Montana and Wyoming. "FIG community banking is local," says Gevurtz. "We could add a lot to a group of FIG bankers in another geography because we bring in a public equity" underwriting capability.

Restructuring boutiques are also on Gevurtz's radar screen. "We're not really known for restructuring," he says. "That may be a good opportunity."

Before the McGladrey deal, D.A. Davidson held its head count fairly steady post-crisis, having added only three or four bankers since 2009. The new recruits include senior bankers Nathan Pund and Robert Farinholt, who joined through the late 2010 acquisition of Silver Steep Partners LLC, a Seattle boutique specializing in the active lifestyle industry. Silver Steep was D.A. Davidson's only bank acquisition before McGladrey.

The firm may now consider making more hires, as the McGladrey deal triggered interest from bankers eager to join a growth-oriented firm, Gevurtz says. "You'd be shocked at how many résumés I got after the McGladrey deal," he says. Still, these would-be job candidates may have to wait for a response, as Gevurtz is busy integrating his 35 new McGladrey bankers. But as far as acquisitions go, "We're always on the lookout."