NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - The Securities and Exchange Commission and the New York Stock Exchange announced a $5.2 million settlement Monday with two Wall Street specialist firms that were under joint investigation for violating both federal securities laws and Exchange rules.

The SEC said in a statement that the two firms -- SIG Specialists Inc. and Performance Specialist Group LLC -- will pay a total of $5.2 million in penalties and disgorgement, consisting of $1.7 million in civil penalties and $3.5 million in disgorgement.

Additionally, the firms settled "without admitting or denying the findings" by the SEC, and will take steps to improve their regulatory compliance procedures and systems, the SEC said.

In a joint investigation, the NYSE and SEC found that between 1999 and 2003, the two firms, through particular transactions by certain of their registered specialists, had violated federal securities laws and Exchange rules firms by putting their own interests ahead of those of their customers

The agencies found that the firms violated securities laws by executing their own orders for the shares they managed ahead of customers' orders, thus depriving clients of fair trades and possibly better prices, the statement said.