Catherine Ellis is an institutional retirement plan advisor based in Austin, TX.
Catherine utilizes a client-centric approach to help retirement plan sponsors, investment committees, and board members create and implement plan initiatives to improve retirement outcomes for their people.
Catherine joined CAPTRUST’s Austin, Texas, office as a financial advisor responsible for helping institutional retirement plan sponsors prioritize and execute on plan design initiatives. She specializes in institutional investment consulting, asset allocation, retirement income solutions, defined contribution and defined benefit plans, and nonqualified and nonprofit plans.
Catherine served as a vice president, regional retirement consultant, for American Century Investments prior to joining CAPTRUST. She received her Bachelor of Business Administration degree in finance from Missouri Western State University, where she played volleyball. She has worked in the industry since 2006.
When she is not in the office, you can find her running or biking the local roads and area trails. She is an avid participant in marathons, half marathons, and other long-distance road running competitions. Catherine loves being outdoors and being in nature almost as much as she enjoys spending time with her husband and their three children.
Education
- Bachelor of Business Administration degree in finance from Missouri Western State University
Industry Designations
- Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist℠
Memberships
- Member—Texas Regional Chapter of WE Inspire Promote Network (WIPN)
Awards & Recognition
- NAPA Top DC Advisor Teams | 2022, 2024, and 2025 (CAPTRUST Austin)
- NAPA 2024 Top Women of Excellence
- NAPA Top Women Advisor, Rising Stars | 2023
Disclosures
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on “NAPA’s 2026 Top DC Advisor Multi-Office Firms” list was based on defined contribution (DC) assets under advisement (AUA) as of Dec. 31, 2025. CAPTRUST is a paid member of The National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA).
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on “Barron’s 2024 Top RIAs list” was based on both qualitative and quantitative data, including assets managed, technology spending, and staff diversity, along with other metrics, as of June 30, 2024. CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Barron’s to obtain or use the ranking
- CAPTRUST teams named on the “Barron’s 2025 Top 100 Institutional Consulting Teams” ranking were evaluated using a proprietary formula including 1) assets, 2) revenue, and 3) quality of practice for the year ending December 31, 2024. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Barron’s to obtain or use the ranking. For more information on the methodology, please click here.
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on the “Financial Advisor magazine’s 2025 RIA Discretionary & Non-Discretionary ranking” was based on CAPTRUST’s total assets as of December 31, 2024. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Financial Advisor magazine to obtain the ranking, but does pay a licensing fee for the use of the award logo.
- CAPTRUST advisors named on the “PLANADVISER Magazine 2026 Top Retirement Plan Advisers list” were based on advisor assets among other quantitative metrics, as of Dec. 31, 2025. To be listed, advisors had to have a minimum requirement of 50 plan clients or retirement plan assets under advisement of $400 million or more. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to PlanAdviser to obtain or use the ranking.
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on “NAPA’s 2026 Top DC Advisor Multi-Office Firms” list was based on defined contribution (DC) assets under advisement (AUA) as of Dec. 31, 2025. CAPTRUST is a paid member of The National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA). Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) to obtain or use the ranking.
- CAPTRUST advisors named on the “NAPA’s 2026 Aces: Top 100 Retirement Plan Advisors Under 40 list” were based on a combination of data submitted by the nominees including the following: Plan size managed, advisor revenue percentage relative to total assets under advisement, total dollar value of defined contribution/defined benefit book of business managed, and other criteria as of October 2025. CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) to obtain or use the ranking.
- CAPTRUST’s ranking on the “Best Investment Consultant – Service & Investment Counseling – Large Investment Consultants for Institutional Investors in the U.S.” by Crisil Coalition Greenwich for 2025 was based on interviews conducted between February and September 2024 by Crisil Coalition Greenwich. They held interviews with 699 individuals from 563 of the largest tax-exempt funds in the U.S. These U.S.-based institutional investors are corporate, public, union, and endowment and foundation funds with either pension or investment pool assets greater than $150 million. Study participants were asked to provide quantitative and qualitative evaluations of their asset management and investment consulting providers, including qualitative assessments of those firms soliciting their business and detailed information on important market trends. Neither CAPTRUST nor its advisors paid a fee to Crisil Coalition to obtain or use the ranking.