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Item 1
Cover Page
Adkins Seale Capital Management LLC
ADV Part 2A, Firm Brochure
Dated: March 10, 2025
Contact: Philip Michael Adkins,
Chief Compliance Officer
333 Texas Street, Suite 2235
Shreveport, Louisiana 71101
This Brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of Adkins Seale
Capital Management, LLC (the “Registrant”). If you have any questions about the contents of this
Brochure, please contact us at (318) 703-3641. The information in this Brochure has not been
approved or verified by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission or by any state
securities authority.
Additional information about Adkins Seale Capital Management, LLC also is available on the SEC’s
website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
References herein to Adkins Seale Capital Management, LLC as a “registered investment adviser”
or any reference to being “registered” does not imply a certain level of skill or training.
Item 2
Material Changes
There have been no material changes to this Brochure since the Registrant made its last Annual Amendment
filing on March 13, 2024.
Item 3
Table of Contents
Item 1 Cover Page .................................................................................................................................... 1
Item 2 Material Changes .......................................................................................................................... 2
Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................... 2
Item 3
Item 4 Advisory Business ........................................................................................................................ 3
Fees and Compensation ................................................................................................................ 7
Item 5
Item 6
Performance-Based Fees and Side-by-Side Management ............................................................ 9
Types of Clients ............................................................................................................................ 9
Item 7
Item 8 Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss ..................................................... 9
Item 9 Disciplinary Information ............................................................................................................ 10
Item 10 Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations .................................................................. 10
Item 11 Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading .............. 10
Item 12 Brokerage Practices .................................................................................................................... 11
Item 13 Review of Accounts .................................................................................................................... 13
Item 14 Client Referrals and Other Compensation .................................................................................. 13
Item 15 Custody ....................................................................................................................................... 13
Item 16
Investment Discretion ................................................................................................................. 14
Item 17 Voting Client Securities .............................................................................................................. 14
Item 18 Financial Information ................................................................................................................. 14
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Item 4
Advisory Business
A. Adkins Seale Capital Management, LLC (the “Registrant”) is a limited liability company
formed in 2013 in the state of Louisiana. The Registrant became registered as an investment
adviser in April 2013. The Registrant is principally owned by Philip Michael Adkins and
Jay Kyle Binderim.
B.
INVESTMENT ADVISORY SERVICES
The Registrant generally provides discretionary investment advisory services through its
wrap fee program. See the discussion below under Adkins Seale Wrap Program. Clients in
the Program will pay a single fee for bundled services (i.e., investment advisory, brokerage,
custody).
Registrant's annual investment advisory fee includes investment advisory services, and, to
the extent specifically requested by the client, financial planning and consulting services.
In the event that the client requires extraordinary planning or consultation services (to be
determined in the sole discretion of the Registrant), the Registrant may determine to charge
for these additional services, the dollar amount of which shall be set forth in a separate
written notice to the client.
The Registrant may, in its discretion, provide services outside the Program on a
discretionary basis or non-discretionary basis.
ADKINS SEALE WRAP PROGRAM
The Registrant provides investment management services on a wrap fee basis through the
Registrant’s investment management wrap fee program (the “Program”). The services
offered under the Program are discussed in the Program Brochure a copy of which is
presented to all prospective Program participants. Under the Program, the Registrant
provides discretionary investment management services, for a single specified annual
Program fee, inclusive of trade execution, custody, reporting, and investment management
fees.
All prospective Program participants should read both the Registrant’s Brochure and the
Program Brochure, and ask any corresponding questions that they may have, prior to
participation in the Program. Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. (“Schwab”) serves as the
custodian for Program accounts.
Participation in the Program may cost more or less than purchasing such services
separately. The Program fee charged by Registrant for participation in the Program may be
higher or lower than those charged by other sponsors of comparable wrap fee programs.
The Registrant receives the balance of the Program fee after all other costs (including
account transaction fees) have been paid to Schwab. This presents a conflict of interest,
because the Registrant has an economic incentive to minimize the number of trades in the
client's account or select securities that do not incur transaction fees. Schwab does not
currently charge transaction fees on U.S. equities, exchange-traded funds, and certain “no-
transaction fee mutual funds.” We generally make investment decisions without regard to
whether they incur transaction fees or not.
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With the exception of Retirement Plan Consulting Services engagements, the Registrant
does not currently recommend non-discretionary, non-wrap fee services to any client.
RETIREMENT PLAN CONSULTING SERVICES
The Registrant may also be engaged to provide non-discretionary pension consulting
services, where it assists sponsors of self-directed retirement plans with the selection and/or
monitoring of investment alternatives (generally open-end mutual funds) that plan
participants can select for their individual plan retirement accounts. In addition, to the
extent requested by the plan sponsor, the Registrant will also provide participant education
designed to assist participants in identifying the appropriate investment strategy for their
retirement plan accounts. The terms and conditions of the engagement will generally be set
forth in a Retirement Plan Consulting Agreement between the Registrant and the plan
sponsor.
FINANCIAL PLANNING AND CONSULTING SERVICES (STAND-ALONE BASIS)
To the extent specifically requested by a client, the Registrant may determine to provide a
client with a one-time financial plan without ongoing investment management services on
a stand-alone separate fee basis.
MISCELLANEOUS
Limitations of Financial Planning and Non-Investment Consulting/Implementation
Services. To the extent requested by a client, Registrant generally provides financial
planning and related consulting services regarding non-investment related matters, such as
estate, tax, and insurance planning. In most instances, the Registrant provides these
services as part of the Program and does not charge clients additional fees. However, there
are exceptions, such as stand-alone financial planning engagements or where a client has
an extraordinary service request. In any event, the Registrant does not provide legal or tax
advice or insurance implementation services. To the extent requested by a client, Registrant
may recommend the services of other professionals for certain non-investment
implementation purposes (i.e., attorneys, accountants, insurance agents, etc.).
The client is under no obligation to engage the services of any recommended professional.
The client retains absolute discretion over all implementation decisions and is free to accept
or reject any recommendation from the Registrant.
If the client engages any recommended professional, and a dispute arises, the client agrees
to seek recourse exclusively from the engaged professional. Any recommended
professional remains responsible for the quality and competency of their services provided.
It remains the client’s responsibility to promptly notify the Registrant if there is ever any
change in their financial situation or investment objectives so that the Registrant can review
and revise its previous recommendations.
Non-Discretionary Service Limitations. Clients that determine to engage the Registrant
on a non-discretionary basis acknowledge and agree that the Registrant cannot effect any
account transactions without obtaining the client’s prior consent. In the event that
Registrant would like to make a transaction for a client's account, and the client is
unavailable, the Registrant will be unable to effect the account transaction (as it would for
its discretionary clients).
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Use of Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds: While the Registrant may
recommend or invest in mutual funds or ETFs that are not available directly to the public,
the Registrant may also recommend or invest in publicly available mutual funds or ETFs
that the client could obtain without engaging Registrant as an investment adviser. However,
if a client or prospective client determines to invest in publicly available mutual funds or
ETFs without engaging Registrant as an investment adviser, the client or prospective client
would not receive the benefit of Registrant’s initial and ongoing investment advisory
services. Certain mutual funds, such as those issued by Dimensional Fund Advisors
(“DFA”), are generally only available through select registered investment advisers.
Registrant currently uses DFA mutual funds. Therefore, upon the termination of Registrant,
restrictions regarding additional purchases of, or reallocation among other DFA funds, or
transfer of the DFA funds, will generally apply.
Retirement Rollovers-Conflict of Interest. A client or prospective client leaving an
employer typically has four options regarding an existing retirement plan (and may engage
in a combination of these options): (i) leave the money in the former employer’s plan, if
permitted, (ii) roll over the assets to the new employer’s plan, if one is available and
rollovers are permitted, (iii) roll over to an Individual Retirement Account (“IRA”), or (iv)
cash out the account value (which could, depending upon the client’s age, result in adverse
tax consequences). The Registrant generally does not provide recommendations to clients
on rollovers. However, upon client request, the Registrant may provide certain educational
materials to clients as the client determines what is best for their individual financial
situation. No client is under any obligation to roll over retirement plan assets to an account
managed by Registrant.
Cash and Cash Equivalent Positions. The Registrant could determine to hold a
significant portion of a client’s assets in cash or cash equivalents (i.e., money market
accounts, etc.). Investments in these cash-type assets may cause a client to miss market
advances. At any specific point in time, depending upon perceived or anticipated market
conditions/events (there being no guarantee that such anticipated market conditions/events
will occur), we may maintain cash positions for defensive purposes. The Registrant
continues to treat cash as an asset class. Therefore, unless the Registrant expressly agrees
otherwise in writing, account assets consisting of cash and cash equivalents are included
in the value of an account’s assets for purposes of calculation of the Program Fee or the
client’s advisory fee. Depending upon current yields, at any point in time, our advisory fee
could exceed the interest paid by the client’s money market fund.
Cash Sweep Accounts. Certain account custodians can require that cash proceeds from
account transactions or new deposits, be swept to and/or initially maintained in a
specific custodian designated sweep account. The yield on the sweep account will
generally be lower than those available for other money market accounts. When this
occurs, to help mitigate the corresponding yield dispersion Registrant shall (usually within
30 days thereafter) generally (with exceptions) purchase a higher yielding money market
fund (or other type security) available on the custodian’s platform, unless Registrant
reasonably anticipates that it will utilize the cash proceeds during the subsequent 30-day
period to purchase additional investments for the client’s account. Exceptions and/or
modifications can and will occur with respect to all or a portion of the cash balances for
various reasons, including, but not limited to the amount of dispersion between the sweep
account and a money market fund, the size of the cash balance, an indication from the client
of an imminent need for such cash, or the client has a demonstrated history of writing
checks from the account.
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The above does not apply to the cash component maintained within a Registrant actively
managed investment strategy (the cash balances for which shall generally remain in the
custodian designated cash sweep account), an indication from the client of a need for access
to such cash, assets allocated to an unaffiliated investment manager and cash balances
maintained for fee billing purposes.
The client shall remain exclusively responsible for yield dispersion/cash balance decisions
and corresponding transactions for cash balances maintained in any Registrant unmanaged
accounts.
Portfolio Activity. As part of its services, Registrant reviews client portfolios on an
ongoing basis to determine if any changes are necessary based upon various factors. There
may be extended periods of time when Registrant determines that changes to a client’s
portfolio are unnecessary. A client’s account remains subject to the Program fee or an
advisory fee during periods of account inactivity.
Cybersecurity Risk. The information technology systems and networks that Registrant
and its third-party service providers use to provide services to Registrant’s clients employ
various controls that are designed to prevent cybersecurity incidents stemming from
intentional or unintentional actions that could cause significant interruptions in Registrant’s
operations and/or result in the unauthorized acquisition or use of clients’ confidential or
non-public personal information.
In accordance with Regulation S-P, the Registrant is committed to protecting the privacy
and security of its clients' non-public personal information by implementing appropriate
administrative, technical, and physical safeguards. Registrant has established processes to
mitigate the risks of cybersecurity incidents, including the requirement to restrict access to
such sensitive data and to monitor its systems for potential breaches. Clients and Registrant
are nonetheless subject to the risk of cybersecurity incidents that could ultimately cause
them to incur financial losses and/or other adverse consequences.
Although the Registrant has established processes to reduce the risk of cybersecurity
incidents, there is no guarantee that these efforts will always be successful, especially
considering that the Registrant does not control the cybersecurity measures and policies
employed by third-party service providers, issuers of securities, broker-dealers, qualified
custodians, governmental and other regulatory authorities, exchanges, and other financial
market operators and providers. In compliance with Regulation S-P, the Registrant will
notify clients in the event of a data breach involving their non-public personal information
as required by applicable state and federal laws.
Client Obligations. The Registrant will not be required to verify any information received
from the client or from the client’s other professionals and is expressly authorized to rely
on the information in its possession. Clients are responsible for promptly notifying the
Registrant if there is ever any change in their financial situation or investment objectives
so that the Registrant can review, and if necessary, revise its previous recommendations or
services.
C. Tailoring of Advisory Services. The Registrant provides investment advisory services
specific to the needs of each client. Prior to providing investment advisory services, an
investment adviser representative will ascertain each client’s investment objective(s).
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Thereafter, the Registrant shall allocate and/or recommend that the client allocate
investment assets consistent with the designated investment objective(s). The client may,
at any time, impose reasonable restrictions, in writing, on the Registrant’s services.
D. Sponsor of Wrap Fee Program. As stated above in Item 4.B, the Registrant sponsors the
Program. Clients should review that item for more information about how it manages
Program accounts.
E. Assets under Management. As of December 31, 2024, the Registrant had a total of
$410,826,833 in assets under management, of which $355,969,442 were managed on a
discretionary basis, and $54,857,391 were managed on a non-discretionary basis.
Item 5
Fees and Compensation
A.
ADKINS SEALE WRAP PROGRAM
The Registrant’s annual investment Program fee is based on a percentage of the market
value of a client’s assets placed under the Registrant’s management as follows:
Market Value of Portfolio
First $250,000
Next $250,000
Next $500,000
Next $1,000,000
Next $3,000,000
Above $5,000,000
Annual fee as % of Assets
1.20%
1.00%
0.85%
0.70%
0.50%
Negotiable
By way of example, a client placing $350,000 under Registrant’s management under the
above fee schedule would be assessed an annual fee of 1.20% on the first $250,000 placed
under Registrant’s management, with an annual fee of 1.00% assessed on the remaining
$100,000.
FINANCIAL PLANNING AND CONSULTING SERVICES (STAND-ALONE)
To the extent requested by a client, the Registrant may determine to provide financial
planning and/or consulting services (including investment and non-investment related
matters, including estate planning, insurance planning, etc.) on a stand-alone fee basis.
Registrant’s planning and consulting fees are negotiable, but generally range from $1,500
to $5,500 on a fixed fee basis and $150 to $400 on an hourly rate basis, depending upon
the level and scope of the service(s) required and the professional(s) rendering the
service(s).
RETIREMENT PLAN CONSULTING SERVICES
The terms and conditions of the Registrant’s retirement plan consulting services are
generally outlined in a Retirement Plan Consulting Agreement with the plan sponsor.
Registrant’s negotiable retirement plan consulting fees generally range between 0.20% and
1.00% of the value of plan assets under advisement.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION POTENTIALLY RELEVANT TO ALL CLIENT
RELATIONSHIPS
B. Fee Calculations and Deductions Applicable to All Relationships. Clients may elect to
have the Registrant’s advisory fees deducted from their custodial account. Both
Registrant's Investment Advisory Agreement and the custodial/clearing agreement
authorize the custodian to debit the account for the amount of the Registrant's investment
advisory fee and to directly remit that management fee to the Registrant in compliance with
regulatory procedures. In the limited event that the Registrant bills the client directly,
payment is due upon receipt of the Registrant’s invoice. The Registrant deducts fees and/or
bills clients quarterly in advance, based upon the market value of the assets on the last
business day of the previous quarter. In determining market value, the Registrant’s
reporting software includes accrued interest, but does not include accrued dividends.
C. Additional Fees and Expenses. As discussed below, unless the client directs otherwise or
an individual client’s circumstances require, the Registrant generally recommends that
Schwab serve as the broker-dealer/custodian for client investment management assets.
Broker-dealers such as Schwab charge transaction fees for effecting certain securities
transactions or receive revenues from services they perform for your account. Schwab
currently does not charge transaction fees on U.S. equities or ETFs. In addition, as a
condition of our continued relationship with Schwab, Schwab requires us to use Schwab’s
proprietary or affiliated money market mutual funds or cash sweeps accounts, which do
not provide the highest return available. A complete list of all fees and expenses is available
upon request from your account’s custodian.
In addition, client accounts may invest in mutual funds (including money market funds)
and ETFs that have various internal fees and expenses (i.e., management fees), which are
paid by these funds and ultimately borne by clients as a fund shareholder. These internal
fees and expenses are in addition to the fees charged by the Registrant. When beneficial
to the client, individual fixed-income or equity transactions may be effected through
broker-dealers that the Registrant or the client have entered into arrangements for prime
brokerage clearing services, including effecting certain client transactions through other
broker-dealers. In that case, the client generally will incur both the transaction fee charged
by the executing broker-dealer and a “trade away” fee charged by the custodian (i.e.,
Schwab). For Program clients, commissions and trading fees, including trade away fees,
are paid for by the Registrant.
D. Timing of Fee Payments; Refunds. Registrant's annual investment advisory fee shall be
prorated and paid quarterly, in advance, based upon the market value of the assets on the
last business day of the previous quarter. In the event that the client withdraws or deposits
$10,000 or more into their accounts, the Registrant will either provide a credit against the
withdrawal or apply its fee to the contribution the following quarter. The Registrant, in its
sole discretion, charge a lesser investment management fee, or waive its advisory fee, based
upon certain criteria (i.e., anticipated future earning capacity, anticipated future additional
assets, dollar amount of assets to be managed, related accounts, account composition,
service requirements, complexity of the engagement, competition, courtesy accounts,
negotiations with client, etc.). As result of the above, similarly situated clients could pay
different fees. In addition, similar advisory services may be available from other
investment advisers for similar or lower fees.
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The Investment Advisory Agreement between the Registrant and the client will continue
in effect until terminated by either party by written notice in accordance with the terms of
the Investment Advisory Agreement. Upon termination, the Registrant shall refund the pro-
rated portion of the advanced advisory fee paid based upon the number of business days
remaining in the billing quarter.
E. No Receipt of Commissions. Neither the Registrant, nor its representatives accept
compensation related to the purchase of securities or other investment products.
Item 6
Performance-Based Fees and Side-by-Side Management
Neither the Registrant nor any supervised person of the Registrant accepts performance-
based fees.
Item 7
Types of Clients
The Registrant’s clients shall generally include individuals, business entities, trusts, estates,
charitable organizations and pensions and profit sharing plans.
Item 8
Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
A. The Registrant may utilize the following methods of security analysis:
• Fundamental - (analysis performed on historical and present data, with the goal of
making financial forecasts)
• Technical – (analysis performed on historical and present data, focusing on price
and trade volume, to forecast the direction of prices)
• Cyclical – (analysis performed on historical relationships between price and
market trends, to forecast the direction of prices)
The Registrant may utilize the following investment strategies when implementing
investment advice given to clients:
• Long Term Purchases (securities held at least a year)
• Short Term Purchases (securities sold within a year)
Investment Risk. Investing in securities involves the risk of loss that clients must be
prepared to bear. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and it
should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment
strategy (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or
undertaken by The Registrant) will be profitable or equal any specific performance level(s).
B. The Registrant’s methods of analysis and investment strategies do not present any
significant or unusual risks. However, every method of analysis has its own inherent risks.
To perform an accurate market analysis, the Registrant must have access to current/new
market information. The Registrant has no control over the dissemination rate of market
information; therefore, unbeknownst to the Registrant, certain analyses may be compiled
with outdated market information, severely limiting the value of the Registrant’s analysis.
Furthermore, an accurate market analysis can only produce a forecast of the direction of
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market values. There can be no assurances that a forecasted change in market value will
materialize into actionable and/or profitable investment opportunities.
The Registrant’s primary investment strategies - Long Term Purchases and/or Short Term
Purchases - are fundamental investment strategies. However, every investment strategy has
its own inherent risks and limitations. For example, longer term investment strategies
require a longer investment time period to allow for the strategy to potentially develop.
Shorter term investment strategies require a shorter investment time period to potentially
develop. Outside of the Program, frequent trading may result in higher transactional costs
when compared to a longer term investment strategy.
C. Currently, the Registrant primarily allocates client investment assets among various
individual equity (stocks), debt (bonds) and fixed income securities, and mutual funds
and/or ETFs, on a discretionary or non-discretionary basis in accordance with the client’s
designated investment objectives.
Item 9
Disciplinary Information
The Registrant has not been the subject of any disciplinary actions.
Item 10
Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
A. Neither the Registrant, nor its representatives, are registered or have an application pending
to register, as a broker-dealer or a registered representative of a broker-dealer.
B. Neither the Registrant, nor its representatives, are registered or have an application pending
to register, as a futures commission merchant, commodity pool operator, a commodity
trading advisor, or a representative of the foregoing.
C. The Registrant has no other relationship or arrangement with a related person that is
material to its advisory business.
D. The Registrant does not receive, directly or indirectly, compensation from investment
advisors that it recommends or selects for its clients.
Item 11
Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and
Personal Trading
A. The Registrant maintains an investment policy relative to personal securities transactions.
This investment policy is part of Registrant’s overall Code of Ethics, which serves to
establish a standard of business conduct for all of Registrant’s representatives that is based
upon fundamental principles of openness, integrity, honesty and trust, a copy of which is
available upon request.
In accordance with Section 204A of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the Registrant
also maintains and enforces written policies reasonably designed to prevent the misuse of
material non-public information by the Registrant or any person associated with the
Registrant.
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B. Neither the Registrant nor any related person of Registrant recommends, buys, or sells for
client accounts, securities in which the Registrant or any related person of Registrant has a
material financial interest.
C. The Registrant and/or representatives of the Registrant may buy or sell securities that are
also recommended to clients. This practice may create a situation where the Registrant
and/or representatives of the Registrant are in a position to materially benefit from the sale
or purchase of those securities. Therefore, this situation creates a potential conflict of
interest. Practices such as “scalping” (i.e., a practice whereby the owner of shares of a
security recommends that security for investment and then immediately sells it at a profit
upon the rise in the market price which follows the recommendation) could take place if
the Registrant did not have adequate policies in place to detect such activities. In addition,
this requirement can help detect insider trading, “front-running” (i.e., personal trades
executed prior to those of the Registrant’s clients) and other potentially abusive practices.
The Registrant has a personal securities transaction policy in place to monitor the personal
securities transactions and securities holdings of each of the Registrant’s “Access Persons”.
The Registrant’s securities transaction policy requires that an Access Person of the
Registrant must provide the Chief Compliance Officer or his/her designee with a written
report of their current securities holdings within ten (10) days after becoming an Access
Person. Additionally, each Access Person must provide or make available to the Chief
Compliance Officer or his/her designee a list of reportable transactions each calendar
quarter as well as a written annual report of the Access Person’s securities holdings;
provided, however that at any time that the Registrant has only one Access Person, he or
she shall not be required to submit any securities report described above.
D. The Registrant and/or representatives of the Registrant may buy or sell securities, at or
around the same time as those securities are recommended to clients. This practice creates
a situation where the Registrant and/or representatives of the Registrant are in a position to
materially benefit from the sale or purchase of those securities. Therefore, this situation
creates a potential conflict of interest. As indicated above in Item 11.C, the Registrant has
a personal securities transaction policy in place to monitor the personal securities
transaction and securities holdings of each of Registrant’s Access Persons.
Item 12
Brokerage Practices
A. In the event that the client requests that the Registrant recommend a broker-
dealer/custodian for execution and/or custodial services (exclusive of those clients that may
direct the Registrant to use a specific broker-dealer/custodian), Registrant generally
recommends that investment management accounts be maintained at Schwab. Prior to
engaging Registrant to provide investment management services, the client will be required
to enter into a formal Investment Advisory Agreement with Registrant setting forth the
terms and conditions under which Registrant shall manage the client's assets, and a separate
custodial/clearing agreement with each designated broker-dealer/ custodian.
Factors that the Registrant considers in recommending Schwab (or any other broker-
dealer/custodian to clients) include historical relationship with the Registrant, financial
strength, reputation, execution capabilities, pricing, research, and service. Although the
commissions and/or transaction fees paid by Registrant's clients shall comply with the
Registrant's duty to seek best execution, a client may pay a commission that is higher than
another qualified broker-dealer might charge to effect the same transaction where the
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Registrant determines, in good faith, that the commission/transaction fee is reasonable. In
seeking best execution, the determinative factor is not the lowest possible cost, but whether
the transaction represents the best qualitative execution, taking into consideration the full
range of a broker-dealer’s services, including the value of research provided, execution
capability, commission rates, and responsiveness. Accordingly, although Registrant will
seek competitive rates, it may not necessarily obtain the lowest possible commission rates
for client account transactions. Except for the Program, brokerage commissions or
transaction fees charged by the designated broker-dealer/custodian are in addition to the
Registrant's fees.
1. Non-Soft Dollar Research and Additional Benefits
Registrant receives from Schwab (and potentially other broker-dealers, custodians,
investment platforms, unaffiliated investment managers, vendors, or fund sponsors)
free or discounted support services and products. Certain of these products and
services assist the Registrant to better monitor and service client accounts maintained
at these institutions. The support services that Registrant obtains can include
investment-related research; pricing information and market data; compliance or
practice management-related publications; discounted or free attendance at
conferences, educational or social events; or other products used by Registrant to
further its investment management business operations.
Certain of the support services or products received may assist the Registrant in
managing and administering client accounts. Others do not directly provide this
assistance, but rather assist the Registrant to manage and further develop its business
enterprise.
However, as a condition of our relationship with Schwab, Schwab requires us to use
Schwab’s proprietary or affiliated money market mutual funds or cash sweeps
accounts, which do not provide the highest return available. There is no commitment
made by the Registrant to any broker-dealer or custodian or any other entity to invest
any specific amount or percentage of client assets in any specific mutual funds,
securities or other investment products because of the above arrangements.
2. The Registrant does not receive referrals from broker-dealers.
3. Directed Brokerage. Registrant recommends that its clients use the brokerage and
custodial services provided by Schwab. Registrant generally does not accept directed
brokerage arrangements in the Program (when a client requires that account
transactions be effected through a specific broker-dealer). In such client directed
arrangements, the client will negotiate terms and arrangements for their account with
that broker-dealer, and Registrant will not seek better execution services or prices from
other broker-dealers or be able to "batch" the client’s transactions for execution
through other broker-dealers with orders for other accounts managed by Registrant.
As a result, a client may pay higher commissions or other transaction costs or greater
spreads, or receive less favorable net prices, on transactions for the account than would
otherwise be the case. This is true whether the account is in the Program or not. In the
event that the client directs Registrant to effect securities transactions for the client’s
accounts through a specific broker-dealer, the client correspondingly acknowledges
that such direction may cause the accounts to incur higher commissions or transaction
costs than the accounts would otherwise incur had the client determined to effect
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account transactions through alternative clearing arrangements that may be available
through Registrant. Higher transaction costs adversely impact account performance.
Transactions for directed accounts will generally be executed following the execution
of portfolio transactions for non-directed accounts.
B. Order Aggregation. Transactions for each client account generally will be effected
independently, unless Registrant decides to purchase or sell the same securities for several
clients at approximately the same time. Registrant may (but is not obligated to) combine
or “bunch” such orders to seek best execution, to negotiate more favorable commission
rates or to allocate equitably among Registrant’s clients differences in prices and
commissions or other transaction costs that might have been obtained had such orders been
placed independently. Under this procedure, transactions will be averaged as to price and
will be allocated among clients in proportion to the purchase and sale orders placed for
each client account on any given day. Registrant shall not receive any additional
compensation or remuneration as a result of such aggregation.
Item 13
Review of Accounts
A. For those clients that the Registrant provides investment supervisory services, account
reviews are conducted on an ongoing basis by the Registrant's Principals and/or
representatives. All investment supervisory clients are advised that it remains their
responsibility to advise the Registrant of any changes in their investment objectives and/or
financial situation. All clients (in person or via telephone) are encouraged to review
financial planning issues (to the extent applicable), investment objectives and account
performance with the Registrant on an annual basis.
B. The Registrant may conduct account reviews on an other than periodic basis upon the
occurrence of a triggering event, such as a change in client investment objectives and/or
financial situation, market corrections and client request.
C. Clients are provided, at least quarterly, with written transaction confirmation notices and
regular written summary account statements directly from the broker-dealer/custodian
and/or program sponsor for the client accounts. The Registrant may also provide a written
periodic report summarizing account activity and performance.
Item 14
Client Referrals and Other Compensation
A. Registrant receives from Schwab certain free and discounted support services and products.
Clients should review Item 12 for more information about these services and products.
B. The Registrant does not compensate, directly or indirectly, any person, other than its
representatives, for client referrals.
Item 15
Custody
Registrant shall have the ability to deduct its advisory fee from the client’s Schwab account
on a monthly basis. Clients are provided with written transaction confirmation notices, and
a written summary account statement directly from Schwab (or other client custodian), at
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least quarterly. To the extent that Registrant provides clients with periodic account
statements or reports, the client is urged to compare any statement or report provided by
Registrant with the account statements received from the account custodian. The account
custodian does not verify the accuracy of Registrant’s advisory fee calculation.
Certain clients have established asset transfer authorizations that permit the qualified
custodian to rely upon instructions from Registrant to transfer client funds or securities to
third parties. These arrangements are disclosed at Item 9 of Part 1 of Form ADV. However,
in accordance with the guidance provided in the SEC’s February 21, 2017 Investment
Adviser Association No-Action Letter, the affected accounts are not subject to an annual
surprise CPA examination.
Item 16
Investment Discretion
The client can determine to engage the Registrant to provide investment advisory services
on a discretionary basis. Prior to the Registrant assuming discretionary authority over a
client’s account, the client shall be required to execute an Investment Advisory Agreement,
naming the Registrant as the client’s attorney and agent in fact, granting the Registrant full
authority to buy, sell, or otherwise effect investment transactions involving the assets in
the client’s name found in the discretionary account.
Clients who engage the Registrant on a discretionary basis may, at any time, impose
restrictions, in writing, on the Registrant’s discretionary authority (i.e., limit the
types/amounts of particular securities purchased for their account, exclude the ability to
purchase securities with an inverse relationship to the market, limit or proscribe the
Registrant’s use of margin, etc.).
Item 17
Voting Client Securities
A. The Registrant does not vote client proxies. Clients maintain exclusive responsibility for:
(1) directing the manner in which proxies solicited by issuers of securities owned by the
client shall be voted, and (2) making all elections relative to any mergers, acquisitions,
tender offers, bankruptcy proceedings or other type events pertaining to the client’s
investment assets.
B. Clients will receive their proxies or other solicitations directly from their custodian. Clients
may contact the Registrant to discuss any questions they may have with a particular
solicitation.
Item 18
Financial Information
A. The Registrant does not solicit fees of more than $1,200, per client, six months or more in
advance.
B. The Registrant is unaware of any financial condition that is reasonably likely to impair its
ability to meet its contractual commitments relating to its discretionary authority over
certain client accounts.
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C. The Registrant has not been the subject of a bankruptcy petition.
The Registrant’s Chief Compliance Officer, Philip Michael Adkins, remains available to
address any questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the above
disclosures and arrangements.
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