Investment process:

The Strategy Story:

In the aftermath of the dot-com bubble, our founder made it his Mission to find a better way to manage portfolio volatility that transcended the 60/40 asset mix and Modern Portfolio Theory, which tends to overlook macroeconomics and company evolution. While at UBS, he developed a strategy focused on controlling volatility and improving risk-adjusted returns. Managing volatility is crucial to maximizing portfolio longevity for investors who are taking withdrawals. The 2008 Global Financial Crisis put his new-found strategy to the ultimate test, and he’s happy to say: "Mission accomplished!”

Investment Strategy:

• Strategic Asset Allocation: A U.S.-centric approach that combines passive equity index tracking ETFs for core strategic asset classes with stock and bond model portfolio’s that align with our investment themes

• Dividend-growth and Tactical Models are incorporated into the strategic asset allocation based on the risk profile for portfolios and typically consists of up to 5 high-conviction stocks. These selections focus on high-quality business’s that possess competitive or comparative advantages over their peers, along with sustainable cash flow growth

• Buying a portfolio investment: The portfolio manager seeks to capitalize on the disparity between market sentiment and fundamentals by investing in high-quality companies with a goal of delivering alpha

• Selling a portfolio investment: A portfolio investment will be sold when the portfolio manager recognizes that a macroeconomic and/or fundamental investment assumption is flawed, identifies an unfavorable structural change in a specific business, or has any other valid investment-related reasons

About Risk:

• Dynamic hedging: If the portfolio manager anticipates poor near-term prospects for equity markets, he may adopt a defensive strategy for clients’ accounts by investing in fixed income securities and/or money market instruments. He may also utilize low, non- or negative correlated investments through ETF’s, thereby limiting losses and reducing risk. At certain intervals, the portfolio manager will use an option purchase to limit the potential upside and downside of a security in your portfolio, thereby limiting losses and reducing risk. There can be no guarantee that the use of defensive techniques will be successful in avoiding losses.

• Equity securities are volatile and can decline significantly due to broad market and economic conditions.

• Investments in small and mid-size companies can be more volatile than those of larger companies.

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 build 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.

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?