Investment process:

investment philosophy tenets:

• ProActive Management: Combines a low-cost passive index tracking approach for core asset classes with stock and bond securities that align with our investment themes.

• Intelligent Diversification: A U.S.-centric approach that seeks optimal diversification across key asset classes, emphasizing quality and simplicity.

• Fundamental Focus: Includes both top-down and bottom-up analysis. Note: Proponents of Modern Portfolio Theory tend to overlook company evolution and macroeconomic factors.

client investment process

The key to any successful investment process is a proactive, disciplined approach. The process we use for clients includes the following steps:

1. Discovery | First, we'll have a conversation about your current situation, investment experience, and goals.

2. Risk Tolerance | Next, we will determine your risk profile by evaluating your comfort level with various market scenarios. Understanding your risk tolerance refers to your ability to endure fluctuations in the value of your portfolio.

3. Investment Plan: | Then, we'll customize an investment plan that reflects our market forecasts, your risk profile, and your individual goals. This document will serve as a blueprint for constructing your portfolio, detailing the strategic asset allocation.

4. Strategic Asset Allocation | A process that involves setting target allocations for various asset classes based on your risk profile and unique financial goals. Strategic diversification of asset classes, geographies, and investment styles effectively improves risk/return dynamics.

5. Match account type with your goals | We build an investment portfolio using the right type of accounts that align with your short- and long-term investment goals. CWM employs tax-smart strategies: Appropriate asset location (higher-yielding taxable securities are placed in tax-sheltered accounts when possible), tax-loss harvesting, and specific identification cost basis methodology.

6. Portfolio Design| Thorough research helps ensure an understanding of potential risks and rewards, leading to intelligent investment selection. We use low-cost equity ETFs for core strategic asset allocation classes. The portfolio’s tactical tilt complements the core strategic asset allocation and includes high-quality equities/ETFs that pass our screens.

7. Portfolio and Performance Monitoring | Conducting ongoing due diligence and monitoring investment holdings are vital parts of the investment process. Each portfolio is rebalanced at a pre-determined interval to its original strategic asset allocation weighting. Rebalancing aims to reduce volatility in your portfolio and manage potential risk by creating a systematic process to take profits from investments that have done well.

Finding the right balance

Managing volatility is crucial to maximizing portfolio longevity for investors who are taking withdrawals or in the retirement distribution phase. Experiencing high volatility and poor risk-adjusted returns?