Overview
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, CA
- Average Client Assets
- $2.6 million
- Minimum Account Size
- $500,000
- SEC CRD Number
- 177514
Fee Structure
Primary Fee Schedule (FORM ADV PART 2A, APP 1 - WRAP FEE BROCHURE)
| Min | Max | Marginal Fee Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $1,000,000 | 0.95% |
| $1,000,001 | $3,000,000 | 0.85% |
| $3,000,001 | $5,000,000 | 0.75% |
| $5,000,001 | $7,500,000 | 0.65% |
| $7,500,001 | $10,000,000 | 0.50% |
| $10,000,001 | and above | 0.25% |
Illustrative Fee Rates
| Total Assets | Annual Fees | Average Fee Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $1 million | $9,500 | 0.95% |
| $5 million | $41,500 | 0.83% |
| $10 million | $70,250 | 0.70% |
| $50 million | $170,250 | 0.34% |
| $100 million | $295,250 | 0.30% |
Clients
- HNW Share of Firm Assets
- 60.14%
- Total Client Accounts
- 470
- Discretionary Accounts
- 463
- Non-Discretionary Accounts
- 7
Services Offered
Services: Financial Planning, Portfolio Management for Individuals, Portfolio Management for Institutional Clients, Pension Consulting
Regulatory Filings
Additional Brochure: ADV PART 2A - FIRM BROCHURE (2026-03-31)
View Document Text
Item 1: Cover Page
Part 2A of Form ADV: Firm Brochure March
March 31, 2026
January Capital Advisors, LLC
CRD# 177514
333 Bush Street, 4th Floor
San Francisco, California 94104
www.JanuaryCapital.co
Firm Contact:
Jeffrey Hodges
Chief Compliance Officer
This brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of January
Capital Advisors, LLC. If clients have any questions about the contents of this brochure, please contact us
at (415) 494-2790. 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 our firm is also available on the SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov by
searching CRD #177514.
Please note that the use of the term “registered investment adviser” and description of our firm
and/or our associates as “registered” does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Clients are
encouraged to review this Brochure and Brochure Supplements for our firm’s associates who advise
clients for more information on the qualifications of our firm and our employees.
Item 2: Material Changes
January Capital Advisors, LLC is required to notify clients of any information that has changed since
the last annual update of the Firm Brochure (“Brochure”) that may be important to them. Clients can
request a full copy of our Brochure or contact us with any questions that they may have about the
changes.
Since the last annual amendment filed on 03/11/2025, there have been no following material
changes to disclose.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Item 3: Table of Contents
Item 1: Cover Page ....................................................................................................................................... 1
Item 2: Material Changes............................................................................................................................. 2
Item 3: Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ 3
Item 4: Advisory Business ........................................................................................................................... 4
Item 5: Fees & Compensation ..................................................................................................................... 5
Item 6: Performance-Based Fees & Side-By-Side Management ............................................................... 6
Item 7: Types of Clients & Account Requirements .................................................................................... 6
Item 8: Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies & Risk of Loss ......................................................... 7
Item 9: Disciplinary Information .............................................................................................................. 21
Item 10: Other Financial Industry Activities & Affiliations .................................................................... 22
Item 11: Code of Ethics, Participation, or Interest in .............................................................................. 22
Item 12: Brokerage Practices .................................................................................................................... 23
Item 13: Review of Accounts or Financial Plans ..................................................................................... 26
Item 14: Client Referrals & Other Compensation .................................................................................... 27
Item 15: Custody ........................................................................................................................................ 27
Item 16: Investment Discretion ................................................................................................................ 28
Item 17: Voting Client Securities .............................................................................................................. 28
Item 18: Financial Information ................................................................................................................. 29
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Item 4: Advisory Business
Our firm is dedicated to providing individuals and other types of clients with a wide array of
investment advisory services. Our firm is a limited liability company formed under the laws of the
State of California in 2014 and has been in business as an investment adviser since 2015. Our firm is
wholly owned by Jeffrey Hodges.
The purpose of this Brochure is to disclose the conflicts of interest associated with the investment
transactions, compensation and any other matters related to investment decisions made by our firm
or its representatives. As a fiduciary, it is our duty to always act in the client’s best interest. This is
accomplished in part by knowing our client. Our firm has established a service-oriented advisory
practice with open lines of communication for many different types of clients to help meet their
financial goals while remaining sensitive to risk tolerance and time horizons. Working with clients to
understand their investment objectives while educating them about our process, facilitates the kind
of working relationship we value.
Types of Advisory Services Offered
Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management:
Please see our Form ADV Part 2A: Appendix 1 (Wrap Brochure) for comprehensive information
regarding our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management service.
Pension Consulting:
We provide pension consulting services to employer plan sponsors on a one-time or ongoing basis.
Generally, such pension consulting services consist of assisting employer plan sponsors in
establishing, monitoring, and reviewing their company’s participant-directed retirement plan. As the
needs of the plan sponsor dictate, areas of advising could include investment options, plan structure
and participant education. All pension consulting services shall be in compliance with the applicable
state law(s) regulating pension consulting services. This applies to client accounts that are pension
or other employee benefit plans (“Plan”) governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act
of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”). If the client accounts are part of a Plan, and we accept appointments
to provide our services to such accounts, we acknowledge that we are a fiduciary within the meaning
of Section 3(21) of ERISA (but only with respect to the provision of services described in section 1 of
the Pension Consulting Agreement).
Non-Discretionary Investment Management Services
These services are designed to allow the Sponsor to retain full discretionary authority or control over
assets of the Plan. We will solely be making recommendations to the Sponsor. We will perform these
Non-Discretionary investment advisory services through our IARs and charge fees as described in
this Form ADV and the Agreement. If the Plan is covered by ERISA, we will perform these investment
advisory services to the Plan as a "fiduciary" defined under ERISA Section 3(21). The Sponsor may
engage us to perform one or more of the following Non-Discretionary investment advisory services:
INVESTMENT POLICY STATEMENT ("IPS")
Our Firm will review with Sponsor the investment objectives, risk tolerance and goals of the Plan. If
the Plan does not have an IPS, we will provide recommendations to Sponsor to assist with
establishing an IPS. If the Plan has an existing IPS, our Firm will review it for consistency with the
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Plan's objectives. If the IPS does not represent the objectives of the Plan, we will recommend to
Sponsor revisions to align the IPS with the Plan's objectives.
ADVICE REGARDING DESIGNATED INVESTMENT ALTERNATIVES ("DIAs")
Based on the Plan's IPS or other guidelines established by the Plan, our Firm will review the
investment options available to the Plan and will make recommendations to assist Sponsor with
selecting DIAs to be offered to Plan participants. Once Sponsor selects the DIAs, we will, on a periodic
basis and/or upon reasonable request, provide reports and information to assist Sponsor with
monitoring the DIAs. If a DIA is required to be removed, our Firm will provide recommendations to
assist Sponsor with replacing the DIA.
ADVICE REGARDING QUALIFIED DEFAULT INVESTMENT ALTERNATIVE ("QDIA(s)")
Based on the Plan's IPS or other guidelines established by the Plan, our Firm will review the
investment options available to the Plan and will make recommendations to assist Sponsor with
selecting or replacing the Plan's QDIA(s).
PARTICIPANT INVESTMENT ADVICE
Our Firm will meet with Plan participants, upon reasonable request, to collect information necessary
to identify the Plan participant's investment objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon, etc. We will
provide written recommendations to assist the Plan participant with creating a portfolio using the
Plan's DIAs or Models, if available. The Plan participant retains sole discretion over the investment
of his/her account.
ADVICE REGARDING INVESTMENT OF TRUST FUND
Based on the Plan's IPS, our Firm will review the investment options available to the Plan and will
make recommendations to assist Sponsor with selecting investments that meet the IPS criteria. Once
Sponsor selects the investment(s), we will, on a periodic basis and/or upon reasonable request,
provide reports and information to assist Sponsor with monitoring the investment(s). If the IPS
criteria require any investment(s) to be replaced, our Firm will provide recommendations to assist
Sponsor with replacing the investment(s).
Retirement Plan Consulting Services
Retirement Plan Consulting Services are designed to allow our IARs to assist the Sponsor in meeting
his/her fiduciary duties to administer the Plan in the best interests of Plan participants and their
beneficiaries. Retirement Plan Consulting Services are performed so that they would not be
considered “investment advice” under ERISA. The Sponsor may elect for our IARs to assist with any
of the following services:
ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT
✓ Assist Sponsor in reviewing objectives and options available through the Plan
✓ Review Plan committee structure and administrative policies/procedures
✓ Recommend Plan participant education and communication policies under ERISA 404(c)
✓ Assist with development/maintenance of fiduciary audit file and document retention policies
✓ Deliver fiduciary training and/or education periodically or upon reasonable request
✓ Recommend procedures for responding to Plan participant requests
SERVICE PROVIDER SUPPORT
✓ Assist fiduciaries with a process to select, monitor and replace service providers
✓ Assist fiduciaries with review of Covered Service Providers ("CSP") and fee benchmarking
✓ Provide reports and/or information designed to assist fiduciaries with monitoring CSPs
✓ Coordinate and assist with CSP replacement and conversion
INVESTMENT MONITORING SUPPORT
✓ Periodic review of investment policy in the context of Plan objectives
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
✓ Assist the Plan committee with monitoring investment performance
✓ Educate Plan committee members, as needed, regarding replacement of DIA(s) and/or QDIA(s)
PARTICIPANT SERVICES
✓ Facilitate group enrollment meetings and coordinate investment education
✓ Assist Plan participants with financial wellness education, retirement planning and/or gap
analysis
Potential Additional Retirement Services Provided Outside of the Agreement
We and our IARs, in the course of providing Retirement Plan Services or otherwise, may establish a
client relationship with one or more plan participants or beneficiaries. Such client relationships
develop in various ways, including, without limitation:
• as a result of a decision by the plan participant or beneficiary to purchase services from us
not involving the use of plan assets;
•
• as part of an individual or family financial plan for which any specific recommendations
concerning the allocation of assets or investment recommendations relating to assets held
outside of a plan; or
through a rollover of an Individual Retirement Account ("IRA Rollover").
In providing these optional services, we may offer employers and employees information on other
financial and retirement products or services offered by us and our IARs. If we are providing
Retirement Plan Services to a plan, IARs may, when requested by a participant or beneficiary, arrange
to provide services to that participant or beneficiary through a separate agreement.
When participant requests assistance with an IRA Rollover from his/her plan to an account advised
or managed by us, we will have a conflict of interest if our fees are reasonably expected to be higher
than those we would otherwise receive in connection with the Retirement Plan Services. For
participants invested in plans which we do not advise, we also have a conflict of interest given that
we may not earn any compensation if they remain invested in their current plan. We will disclose
relevant information about the applicable fees charged by us prior to opening an IRA account. Any
decision to affect the rollover or about what to do with the rollover assets remain that of the plan
participant or beneficiary alone.
Tailoring of Advisory Services
Our firm offers individualized investment advice to our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management
clients. General investment advice will be offered to our Pension Consulting clients.
Each Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management client has the opportunity to place reasonable
restrictions on the types of investments to be held in the portfolio. Restrictions on investments in
certain securities or types of securities may not be possible due to the level of difficulty this would
entail in managing the account.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Participation in Wrap Fee Programs
Our firm offers and sponsors a wrap fee program, as further described in Part 2A, Appendix 1 (the
“Wrap Fee Program Brochure”). Our firm does not manage wrap fee accounts in a different fashion
than non-wrap fee accounts. All accounts are managed on an individualized basis according to the
client’s investment objectives, financial goals, risk tolerance, etc.
Regulatory Assets Under Management
Our firm manages $175,896,588 on a discretionary basis and $17,316,276 on a non-discretionary
basis as of 12/31/2025, totaling $193,212,864 in aggregate Assets Under Management.
Item 5: Fees & Compensation
Compensation for Our Advisory Services
Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management:
Please see our ADV 2A Appendix 1: Wrap Fee Program Brochure for details on the fees and
compensation arrangements pertinent to our Portfolio Management services.
Pension Consulting:
Our Pension Consulting services are billed a fee based on the percentage of Plan assets under
management. The total estimated fee, as well as the ultimate fee charged, is based on the scope and
complexity of our engagement with the client. Fees based on a percentage of managed Plan assets
will not exceed 1.00%. The fee-paying arrangements will be determined on a case-by-case basis and
will be detailed in the signed consulting agreement.
Other Types of Fees & Expenses
Non-Wrap Clients will incur transaction fees for trades executed by their chosen custodian via
individual transaction charges. These transaction fees are separate from our firm’s advisory fees and
will be disclosed by the chosen custodian. Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”) does not charge
transaction fees for U.S. listed equities and exchange traded funds.
Clients may also pay holdings charges imposed by the chosen custodian for certain investments,
charges imposed directly by a mutual fund, index fund, or exchange traded fund, which shall be
disclosed in the fund’s prospectus (e.g., fund management fees and other fund expenses), distribution
fees, surrender charges, variable annuity fees, IRA and qualified retirement plan fees, mark-ups and
mark-downs, spreads paid to market makers, fees for trades executed away from custodian, wire
transfer fees and other fees and taxes on brokerage accounts and securities transactions. Our firm
does not receive a portion of these fees.
Wrap clients will not incur transaction costs for trades by their chosen custodian. More information
about this can be found in our separate Wrap Fee Program Brochure.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Termination & Refunds
Either party may terminate the advisory agreement signed with our firm for Wrap Comprehensive
Portfolio Management services in writing at any time. Upon notice of termination our firm will
process a pro-rata refund of the unearned portion of the advisory fees charged in advance.
Either party to a Pension Consulting Agreement may terminate at any time by providing written
notice to the other party. Full refunds will only be made in cases where cancellation occurs within 5
business days of signing an agreement. After 5 business days from initial signing, either party must
provide the other party 30 days written notice to terminate billing. Billing will terminate 30 days
after receipt of termination notice. Clients will be charged on a pro-rata basis, which takes into
account work completed by our firm on behalf of the client. Clients will incur charges for bona fide
advisory services rendered up to the point of termination (determined as 30 days from receipt of
said written notice) and such fees will be due and payable.
Commissionable Securities Sales
Our firm and representatives do not sell securities for a commission in advisory accounts.
Item 6: Performance-Based Fees & Side-By-Side Management
Our firm does not charge performance-based fees.
Item 7: Types of Clients & Account Requirements
Our firm has the following types of clients:
•
Individuals and High Net Worth Individuals;
• Trusts, Estates or Charitable Organizations;
• Pension and Profit Sharing Plans;
• Corporations, Limited Liability Companies and/or Other Business Types
Our requirements for opening and maintaining accounts or otherwise engaging us:
• Our firm requires a minimum account balance of $500,000 for our Wrap Comprehensive
Portfolio Management service. This minimum account balance requirement may be waived
at our firm’s sole discretion.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Item 8: Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies & Risk of Loss
Methods of Analysis
We use the following methods of analysis in formulating our investment advice and/or managing
client assets:
Fundamental Analysis: The analysis of a business's financial statements (usually to analyze the
business's assets, liabilities, and earnings), health, and its competitors and markets. When analyzing
a stock, futures contract, or currency using fundamental analysis there are two basic approaches one
can use: bottom up analysis and top down analysis. The terms are used to distinguish such analysis
from other types of investment analysis, such as quantitative and technical. Fundamental analysis is
performed on historical and present data, but with the goal of making financial forecasts. There are
several possible objectives: (a) to conduct a company stock valuation and predict its probable price
evolution; (b) to make a projection on its business performance; (c) to evaluate its management and
make internal business decisions; (d) and/or to calculate its credit risk.; and (e) to find out the
intrinsic value of the share.
Technical Analysis: A security analysis methodology for forecasting the direction of prices through
the study of past market data, primarily price and volume. A fundamental principle of technical
analysis is that a market's price reflects all relevant information, so their analysis looks at the history
of a security's trading pattern rather than external drivers such as economic, fundamental and news
events. Therefore, price action tends to repeat itself due to investors collectively tending toward
patterned behavior – hence technical analysis focuses on identifiable trends and conditions.
Technical analysts also widely use market indicators of many sorts, some of which are mathematical
transformations of price, often including up and down volume, advance/decline data and other
inputs. These indicators are used to help assess whether an asset is trending, and if it is, the
probability of its direction and of continuation. Technicians also look for relationships between
price/volume indices and market indicators. Technical analysis employs models and trading rules
based on price and volume transformations, such as the relative strength index, moving averages,
regressions, inter-market and intra-market price correlations, business cycles, stock market cycles
or, classically, through recognition of chart patterns. Technical analysis is widely used among traders
and financial professionals and is very often used by active day traders, market makers and pit
traders. The risk associated with this type of analysis is that analysts use subjective judgment to
decide which pattern(s) a particular instrument reflects at a given time and what the interpretation
of that pattern should be.
Trend Analysis: We often apply trend-following aspects to the portfolio management of some of our
strategies. Trend analysis is a technique used in technical analysis that attempts to anticipate stock
or market price movements based on recently observed trend data, such as moving averages, relative
strength, momentum indicators, and support/resistance trend lines.
Security Analysis: Analysis of tradeable financial instruments called securities. These can be
classified into debt securities, equities, or some hybrid of the two. More broadly, futures contracts
and tradeable credit derivatives are sometimes included. Security analysis is typically divided into
fundamental analysis, which relies upon the examination of fundamental business factors such as
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
financial statements, and technical analysis, which focuses upon price trends and momentum.
Quantitative analysis may use indicators from both areas.
Sector Analysis: Sector analysis involves identification and analysis of various industries or
economic sectors that are likely to exhibit superior performance. Academic studies indicate that
the health of a stock's sector is as important as the performance of the individual stock itself. In
other words, even the best stock located in a weak sector will often perform poorly because that
sector is out of favor. Each industry has differences in terms of its customer base, market share
among firms, industry growth, competition, regulation and business cycles. Learning how the
industry operates provides a deeper understanding of a company's financial health. One method
of analyzing a company's growth potential is examining whether the amount of customers in the
overall market is expected to grow. In some markets, there is zero or negative growth, a factor
demanding careful consideration. Additionally, market analysts recommend that investors
should monitor sectors that are nearing the bottom of performance rankings for possible signs
of an impending turnaround.
Investors considering such strategies should be aware that taking such factors into account may
result in underperformance for a given level of risk.
Investment Strategies & Securities We Use
We use the following strategies in managing client accounts, provided that such strategies are
appropriate to the needs of the client and consistent with the client's investment objectives, risk
tolerance, and time horizons, among other considerations:
Proprietary Models: January designs proprietary asset allocation models and investment
strategies as part of our investment process. The purpose of these models and strategies is to
create a diverse foundation for clients’ investment portfolios based on their individual risk
tolerance, investment timeframe, and specific investment goals. Our models pull from the
various methods of analysis discussed above and result in a recommended range of allocation
to targeted asset classes based on risk tolerance. Our risk tolerance models range from
aggressive to conservative, with several levels in between. Our firm tailors each investment plan
to fit clients’ individual investment needs and goals with a particular emphasis on growth needs
required for specific goals offset by a client’s tolerance threshold for drawdowns and volatility.
The risks associated with our proprietary models reflect risks similar to that of asset allocation
strategies. This includes that a client may not participate in sharp increases in a particular
security, industry or market sector. Another risk is that a client’s actual holdings may deviate
from the model over time and if not corrected, may no longer be appropriate for the client’s
goals.
Asset Allocation: The implementation of an investment strategy that attempts to balance risk
versus reward by adjusting the percentage of each asset in an investment portfolio according to
the investor's risk tolerance, goals and investment time frame. Asset allocation is based on the
principle that different assets perform differently in different market and economic conditions. A
fundamental justification for asset allocation is the notion that different asset classes offer
returns that are not perfectly correlated, hence diversification reduces the overall risk in terms
of the variability of returns for a given level of expected return. Although risk is reduced as long
as correlations are not perfect, it is typically forecast (wholly or in part) based on statistical
relationships (like correlation and variance) that existed over some past period. Expectations
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
for return are often derived in the same way.
An asset class is a group of economic resources sharing similar characteristics, such as riskiness
and return. There are many types of assets that may or may not be included in an asset allocation
strategy. The "traditional" asset classes are stocks (value, dividend, growth, or sector-specific [or
a "blend" of any two or more of the preceding]; large-cap versus mid-cap, small-cap or micro-
cap; domestic, foreign [developed], emerging or frontier markets), bonds (fixed income
securities more generally: investment-grade or junk [high-yield]; government or corporate;
short-term, intermediate, long- term; domestic, foreign, emerging markets), and cash or cash
equivalents. Allocation among these three provides a starting point. Usually included are hybrid
instruments such as convertible bonds and preferred stocks, counting as a mixture of bonds and
stocks. Other alternative assets that may be considered include: commodities: precious metals,
nonferrous metals, agriculture, energy, others.; Commercial or residential real estate (also
REITs); Collectibles such as art, coins, or stamps; insurance products (annuity, life settlements,
catastrophe bonds, personal life insurance products, etc.); derivatives such as long-short or
market neutral strategies, options, collateralized debt, and futures; foreign currency; venture
capital; private equity; and/or distressed securities.
There are several types of asset allocation strategies based on investment goals, risk tolerance,
time frames and diversification. The most common forms of asset allocation are: strategic,
dynamic, tactical, and core-satellite.
• Strategic Asset Allocation: The primary goal of a strategic asset allocation is to create an
asset mix that seeks to provide the optimal balance between expected risk and return
for a long- term investment horizon. Generally speaking, strategic asset allocation
strategies are agnostic to economic environments, i.e., they do not change their allocation
postures relative to changing market or economic conditions.
• Dynamic Asset Allocation: Dynamic asset allocation is similar to strategic asset allocation
in that portfolios are built by allocating to an asset mix that seeks to provide the optimal
balance between expected risk and return for a long-term investment horizon. Like
strategic allocation strategies, dynamic strategies largely retain exposure to their
original asset classes; however, unlike strategic strategies, dynamic asset allocation
portfolios will adjust their postures over time relative to changes in the economic
environment.
• Tactical Asset Allocation: Tactical asset allocation is a strategy in which an investor takes
a more active approach that tries to position a portfolio into those assets, sectors, or
individual stocks that show the most potential for perceived gains. While an original
asset mix is formulated much like strategic and dynamic portfolio, tactical strategies are
often traded more actively and are free to move entirely in and out of their core asset
classes
Long-Term Purchases: When utilizing this strategy, we may purchase securities with the idea
of holding them for a relatively long time (typically held for at least a year). A risk in a long-term
purchase strategy is that by holding the security for this length of time, we may not take
advantage of short-term gains that could be profitable to a client. Moreover, if our predictions
are incorrect, a security may decline sharply in value before we make the decision to sell.
Typically, we employ this sub-strategy when we believe the securities to be well valued; and/or
we want exposure to a particular asset class over time, regardless of the current projection for
this class. The potential risks associated with this investment strategy involve a lower-than-
expected return for multiple years. Lower-than-expected returns that last for a long time and/or
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
that are severe in nature would have the impact of dramatically lowering the ending value of
your portfolio, and thus could significantly threaten your ability to meet financial goals.
Short-Term Purchases: When utilizing this strategy, we may also purchase securities with the
idea of selling them within a relatively short time (typically a year or less). We do this in an
attempt to take advantage of conditions that we believe will soon result in a price swing in the
securities we purchase. The potential risk associated with this investment strategy is associated
with the currency or exchange rate. Currency or exchange rate risk is a form of risk that arises
from the change in price of one currency against another. The constant fluctuations in the foreign
currency in which an investment is denominated vis-à-vis one's home currency may add risk to
the value of a security. Currency risk is greater for shorter-term investments, which do not have
time to level off like longer term foreign investments.
Types of Securities JCA utilizes a wide variety of investment securities we deem most
appropriate in implementing the strategies discussed above. These include the following:
Individual Stocks: A common stock is a security that represents ownership in a
corporation. Holders of common stock exercise control by electing a board of directors
and voting on corporate policy. Investing in individual common stocks provides us with
more control of what you are invested in and when that investment is made. Having the
ability to decide when to buy or sell helps us time the taking of gains or losses. Common
stocks, however, bear a greater amount of risk when compared to certificate of deposits,
preferred stock and bonds. It is typically more difficult to achieve diversification when
investing in individual common stocks. Additionally, common stockholders are on the
bottom of the priority ladder for ownership structure; if a company goes bankrupt, the
common stockholders do not receive their money until the creditors and preferred
shareholders have received their respective share of the leftover assets.
Debt Securities (Bonds): Issuers use debt securities to borrow money. Generally,
issuers pay investors periodic interest and repay the amount borrowed either
periodically during the life of the security and/or at maturity. Alternatively, investors
can purchase other debt securities, such as zero coupon bonds, which do not pay current
interest, but rather are priced at a discount from their face values and their values
accrete over time to face value at maturity. The market prices of debt securities
fluctuate depending on such factors as interest rates, credit quality, and maturity. In
general, market prices of debt securities decline when interest rates rise and increase
when interest rates fall. Bonds with longer rates of maturity tend to have greater interest
rate risks.
Certain additional risk factors relating to debt securities include: (a) When interest rates
are declining, investors have to reinvest their interest income and any return of
principal, whether scheduled or unscheduled, at lower prevailing rates.; (b) Inflation
causes tomorrow’s dollar to be worth less than today’s; in other words, it reduces the
purchasing power of a bond investor’s future interest payments and principal,
collectively known as “cash flows.” Inflation also leads to higher interest rates, which in
turn leads to lower bond prices.; (c) Debt securities may be sensitive to economic
changes, political and corporate developments, and interest rate changes. Investors can
also expect periods of economic change and uncertainty, which can result in increased
volatility of market prices and yields of certain debt securities. For example, prices of
these securities can be affected by financial contracts held by the issuer or third parties
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(such as derivatives) relating to the security or other assets or indices. (d) Debt
securities may contain redemption or call provisions entitling their issuers to redeem
them at a specified price on a date prior to maturity. If an issuer exercises these
provisions in a lower interest rate market, the account would have to replace the security
with a lower yielding security, resulting in decreased income to investors. Usually, a
bond is called at or close to par value. This subjects investors that paid a premium for
their bond risk of lost principal. In reality, prices of callable bonds are unlikely to move
much above the call price if lower interest rates make the bond likely to be called.;
(e) If the issuer of a debt security defaults on its obligations to pay interest or principal
or is the subject of bankruptcy proceedings, the account may incur losses or expenses in
seeking recovery of amounts owed to it.; (f) There may be little trading in the secondary
market for particular debt securities, which may affect adversely the account's ability to
value accurately or dispose of such debt securities. Adverse publicity and investor
perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the value
and/or liquidity of debt securities.
Our firm attempts to reduce the risks described above through diversification of the
client’s portfolio and by credit analysis of each issuer, as well as by monitoring broad
economic trends and corporate and legislative developments, but there can be no
assurance that our firm will be successful in doing so. Credit ratings for debt securities
provided by rating agencies reflect an evaluation of the safety of principal and interest
payments, not market value risk. The rating of an issuer is a rating agency's view of past
and future potential developments related to the issuer and may not necessarily reflect
actual outcomes. There can be a lag between the time of developments relating to an
issuer and the time a rating is assigned and updated.
Treasury Bill (“T-Bill”): T-Bills, are short-term debt instruments issued by the U.S
Treasury. T-Bills are issued for a term of one year or less and are backed by the full faith
and credit of the United States government. The T-Bill rate is a key barometer of short-
term interest rates. Treasury bills are sold with maturities of four, thirteen, twenty-six
and fifty-two weeks. They do not pay interest, but rather are sold at a discount to their
face value. The full-face value is paid at maturity, and the difference between the
discounted purchase price and the full-face value equates to the interest rate. T-Bills are
sold in increments of $100, with a minimum purchase of $100. With the exception of 52-
week bills and cash management bills, all T-Bills are auctioned every week. The 52-week
bill is auctioned every four weeks and cash management bills are issued in variable
terms, usually only a matter of days. You can hold a bill until it matures or sell it before it
matures. The bonds are initially sold through auction in which the maximum purchase
amount is $5 million if the bid is noncompetitive or 35% of the offering if the bid is
competitive. A competitive bid states the rate the bidder is willing to accept; it is
accepted depending on how it compares to the set rate of the bond. A noncompetitive
bid ensures the bidder gets the bond but he has to accept the set rate. After the auction,
the bonds can be sold in the secondary market.
Treasury Bond (“T-Bond”): A T-Bond is a marketable, fixed-interest U.S. government
debt security with a maturity of more than 10 years. T-Bonds make interest payments
semi- annually, and the income received is only taxed at the federal level. Treasury bonds
are issued by the U.S. government with very little risk of default. T-Bonds is a type of debt
issued by the
U.S. Department of the Treasury to finance the government’s spending activities. The
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securities vary by maturity and coupon payments. T-Bonds are issued with maturities
that can range from 10 to 30 years. They are issued with a minimum denomination of
$1,000, and coupon payments on the bonds are paid semi-annually. The bonds are
initially sold through auction in which the maximum purchase amount is $5 million if the
bid is noncompetitive or 35% of the offering if the bid is competitive. A competitive bid
states the rate the bidder is willing to accept; it is accepted depending on how it
compares to the set rate of the bond. A noncompetitive bid ensures the bidder gets the
bond but he has to accept the set rate. After the auction, the T-Bonds can be sold in the
secondary market. There is an active secondary market, making the investments highly
liquid. The secondary market also makes the price of T-Bonds fluctuate considerably on
the trading market. As such, current auction and yield rates dictate their pricing levels
on the secondary market. T-Bonds on the secondary market see prices go down when
auction rates increase, as the value of the bond’s future cash flows is discounted at the
higher rate. Inversely, when prices increase, auction rate yields decrease.
Treasury Note: A treasury note is a marketable U.S. government debt security with a
fixed interest rate and a maturity between one and 10 years. Treasury notes are available
from the government with either a competitive or noncompetitive bid. With a
competitive bid, investors specify the yield they want, at the risk that their bid may not
be approved; with a noncompetitive bid, investors accept whatever yield is determined
at auction. Treasury notes are extremely popular investments, as there is a large
secondary market that adds to their liquidity. Interest payments on the notes are made
every six months until maturity. The income for interest payments is not taxable on a
municipal or state level but is federally taxed, similar to the T-Bonds. The only difference
between a Treasury note and T-Bond is the length of maturity. A T-Bond’s maturity can
last from 10 to 30 years, making Treasury bonds the longest-dated, sovereign fixed-
income security. The longer the maturity, the higher the note’s or bond’s exposure to
interest rate risks. In addition to credit strength, a note’s value is determined by its
sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Most commonly, a change in rates occurs at the
absolute level underneath the control of a central bank or within the shape of the yield
curve. An increase in benchmark interest rates has had the effect of decreasing the price
of all outstanding U.S. Treasury notes and bonds. Moreover, these fixed-income
instruments possess differing levels of sensitivity to changes in rates, which means that
the fall in prices occurred at various magnitudes. This sensitivity to shifts in rates is
measured by duration and expressed in terms of years. Factors that are used to calculate
duration include coupon, yield, present value, final maturity and call features. In addition
to the benchmark interest rate, elements such as changing investors’ expectations
creates shifts in the yield curve, known as yield curve risk.
Exchange Traded Funds (“ETFs”): An ETF is a type of Investment Company (usually,
an open-end fund or unit investment trust) whose primary objective is to achieve the
same return as a particular market index. The vast majority of ETFs are designed to track
an index, so their performance is close to that of an index mutual fund, but they are not
exact duplicates. A tracking error, or the difference between the returns of a fund and the
returns of the index, can arise due to differences in composition, management fees,
expenses, and handling of dividends. ETFs benefit from continuous pricing; they can be
bought and sold on a stock exchange throughout the trading day. Because ETFs trade like
stocks, you can place orders just like with individual stocks - such as limit orders, good-
until-canceled orders, stop loss orders etc. They can also be sold short. Traditional
mutual funds are bought and redeemed based on their net asset values (“NAV”) at the
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end of the day. ETFs are bought and sold at the market prices on the exchanges, which
resemble the underlying NAV but are independent of it. However, arbitrageurs will
ensure that ETF prices are kept very close to the NAV of the underlying securities.
Although an investor can buy as few as one share of an ETF, most buy in board lots.
Anything bought in less than a board lot will increase the cost to the investor. Anyone
can buy any ETF no matter where in the world it trades. This provides a benefit over
mutual funds, which generally can only be bought in the country in which they are
registered. One of the main features of ETFs are their low annual fees, especially when
compared to traditional mutual funds. The passive nature of index investing, reduced
marketing, and distribution and accounting expenses all contribute to the lower fees.
However, individual investors must pay a brokerage commission to purchase and sell
ETF shares; for those investors who trade frequently, this can significantly increase the
cost of investing in ETFs. That said, with the advent of low-cost brokerage fees, small or
frequent purchases of ETFs are becoming more cost efficient.
Exchange Traded Notes (“ETN”): An ETN is a senior, unsecured, unsubordinated debt
security by an underwriting bank whose primary objective is to achieve the same return
as a particular market index. Similar to other debt securities, the credit of the issuer is
the only backing for ETNs, which have a maturity date. Although performance is
contractually tied to whatever index the ETN is intended to track, ETNs do not have any
assets, other than a claim against their issuer for payment according to the terms of the
contract. Unlike traditional mutual funds, which can only be redeemed at the end of a
trading day, ETNs trade throughout the day on an exchange. ETNs, as debt instruments,
are subject to risk of default by the issuing bank as counter party. This is the major design
difference between ETFs and ETNs: ETFs are only subject to market risk whereas ETNs
are subject to both market risk and the risk of default by the issuing bank.
different maturities. For example, in the case of a steepening curve, the spread between
short- and long-term interest rates widens. Thus, the price of long-term notes decreases
relative to short-term notes. The opposite occurs in the case of a flattening yield curve.
The spread narrows and the price of short-term notes decreases relative to long-term
notes.
Municipal Bonds: Municipal bonds are debt obligations generally issued to obtain funds
for various public purposes, including the construction of public facilities. Municipal
bonds pay a lower rate of return than most other types of bonds. Because of a municipal
bond’s tax- favored status, investors should compare the relative after-tax return to the
after-tax return of other bonds, depending on the investor’s tax bracket. Investing in
municipal bonds carries the same general risks as investing in bonds in general. Those
risks include interest rate risk, reinvestment risk, inflation risk, market risk, call or
redemption risk, credit risk, and liquidity and valuation risk. Investing in municipal
bonds carries risk unique to these types of bonds, which may include: (a) Legislative risk
includes the risk that a change in the tax code could affect the value of taxable or tax-
exempt interest income.; (b) Municipal bonds generate tax- free income, and therefore
pay lower interest rates than taxable bonds. Investors who anticipate a significant drop
in their marginal income-tax rate may benefit from the higher yield available from
taxable bonds.; (c) The risk that investors may have difficulty finding a buyer when they
want to sell and may be forced to sell at a significant discount to market value. Liquidity
risk is greater for thinly traded securities such as lower-rated bonds, bonds that were
part of a small issue, bonds that have recently had their credit rating downgraded or
bonds sold by an infrequent issuer. Municipal bonds may be less liquid than other bonds.;
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(d) Credit risk includes the risk that a borrower will be unable to make interest or
principal payments when they are due and therefore default. To reduce investor
concern, insurance policies that guarantee repayment in the event of default back many
municipal bonds.
Inflation-Indexed Bonds: Inflation-indexed bonds are issued by governments, their
agencies or instrumentalities and corporations. The principal amount of an inflation-
indexed bond adjusts to changes in the level of the consumer price index. In the case of
U.S. Treasury inflation-indexed bonds, the U.S. Government guarantees the repayment of
the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation). Therefore, the
principal amount of such bonds cannot fall below par even during a period of deflation.
However, the current market value of these bonds is not guaranteed and will fluctuate,
reflecting the rise and fall of yields. In certain jurisdictions outside the United States the
repayment of the original bond principal upon the maturity of an inflation-indexed bond
is not guaranteed. This causes the amount of the bond repaid at maturity to be less than
par. The interest rate for inflation-indexed bonds is fixed at issuance as a percentage of
this adjustable principal. Accordingly, the actual interest income may both rise and fall
as the principal amount of the bonds adjusts in response to movements of the consumer
price index. For example, typically interest income would rise during a period of inflation
and fall during a period of deflation.
Money Market Fund: Money market funds have relatively low risks, compared to other
mutual funds (and most other investments). By law, they can invest in only certain high
quality, short-term investments issued by the U.S. Government, U.S. corporations, and
state and local governments. Money market funds try to keep their net asset value (NAV),
which represents the value of one share in a fund, at a stable $1.00 per share. However,
the NAV may fall below $1.00 if the fund’s investments perform poorly. Investor losses
have been rare, but they are possible. Money market funds pay dividends that generally
reflect short-term interest rates, and historically, the returns for money market funds
have been lower than for either bond or stock funds. That is why “inflation risk,” the risk
that inflation, will outpace and erode investment returns over time, and can be a
potential concern for investors in money market funds.
Mutual Funds: A mutual fund is a company that pools money from many investors and
invests that money in a variety of differing security types based on the objectives of the
fund. The portfolio of the fund consists of the combined holdings it owns. Each share
represents an investor’s proportionate ownership of the fund’s holdings and the income
those holdings generate. The price that investors pay for mutual fund shares are the
fund’s per share net asset value (“NAV”) plus any shareholder fees that the fund imposes
at the time of purchase (such as sales loads). Investors typically cannot ascertain the
exact make-up of a fund’s portfolio at any given time, nor can they directly influence
which securities the fund manager buys and sells or the timing of those trades. With an
individual stock, investors can obtain real-time (or close to real-time) pricing
information with relative ease by checking financial websites or by calling a broker or
your investment adviser. Investors can also monitor how a stock’s price changes from
hour to hour—or even second to second. By contrast, with a mutual fund, the price at
which an investor purchases or redeems shares will typically depend on the fund’s NAV,
which is calculated daily after market close.
The benefits of investing through mutual funds include: (a) Mutual funds are
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professionally managed by an investment adviser who researches, selects, and monitors
the performance of the securities purchased by the fund; (b) Mutual funds typically have
the benefit of diversification, which is an investing strategy that generally sums up as
“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Spreading investments across a wide range of
companies and industry sectors can help lower the risk if a company or sector fails. Some
investors find it easier to achieve diversification through ownership of mutual funds
rather than through ownership of individual stocks or bonds.; (c) Some mutual funds
accommodate investors who do not have a lot of money to invest by setting relatively
low dollar amounts for initial purchases, subsequent monthly purchases, or both.; and
(d) At any time, mutual fund investors can readily redeem their shares at the current
NAV, less any fees and charges assessed on redemption.
Mutual funds also have features that some investors might view as disadvantages: (a)
Investors must pay sales charges, annual fees, and other expenses regardless of how the
fund performs. Depending on the timing of their investment, investors may also have to
pay taxes on any capital gains distributions they receive. This includes instances where
the fund performed poorly after purchasing shares.; (b) Investors typically cannot
ascertain the exact make-up of a fund’s portfolio at any given time, nor can they directly
influence which securities the fund manager buys and sells or the timing of those trades.;
and (c) With an individual stock, investors can obtain real-time (or close to real-time)
pricing information with relative ease by checking financial websites or by calling a
broker or your investment adviser. Investors can also monitor how a stock’s price
changes from hour to hour—or even second to second. By contrast, with a mutual fund,
the price at which an investor purchases or redeems shares will typically depend on the
fund’s NAV, which the fund might not calculate until many hours after the investor placed
the order. In general, mutual funds must calculate their NAV at least once every business
day, typically after the major U.S. exchanges close.
When investors buy and hold an individual stock or bond, the investor must pay income
tax each year on the dividends or interest the investor receives. However, the investor
will not have to pay any capital gains tax until the investor actually sells and makes a
profit. Mutual funds, however, are different. When an investor buys and holds mutual
fund shares, the investor will owe income tax on any ordinary dividends in the year the
investor receives or reinvests them. Moreover, in addition to owing taxes on any
personal capital gains when the investor sells shares, the investor may have to pay taxes
each year on the fund’s capital gains. That is because the law requires mutual funds to
distribute capital gains to shareholders if they sell securities for a profit, and cannot use
losses to offset these gains.
Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”): REITs primarily invest in real estate or real
estate-related loans. Equity REITs own real estate properties, while mortgage REITs hold
construction, development and/or long-term mortgage loans. Changes in the value of the
underlying property of the trusts, the creditworthiness of the issuer, property taxes,
interest rates, tax laws, and regulatory requirements, such as those relating to the
environment all can affect the values of REITs. REITs are dependent upon management
skill, the cash flows generated by their holdings, the real estate market in general, and
the possibility of failing to qualify for any applicable pass-through tax treatment or failing
to maintain any applicable exempted status afforded under relevant laws.
REITs involve a high degree of risk and can be illiquid due to restrictions on transfer and
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lack of a secondary trading market. They can be highly leveraged, speculative and
volatile, and an investor could lose all or a substantial amount of an investment.
Additionally, they may lack transparency as to share price, valuation and portfolio
holdings as they are subject to less regulation and often charge higher fees.
Private Equity: Private equity is an equity investment into non-public companies.
Private equity funds hold illiquid positions (for which there is no active secondary
market) and typically only invest in the equity and debt of target companies, which are
generally taken private and brought under the private equity manager's control. Risks
associated with private equity include:
• Funding Risk: The unpredictable timing of cash flows poses funding risks to
investors. Commitments are contractually binding and defaulting on payments
results in the loss of private equity partnership interests. This risk is also
commonly referred to as default risk.
• Liquidity Risk: The illiquidity of private equity partnership interests exposes
investors to asset liquidity risk associated with selling in the secondary market
at a discount on the reported NAV.
• Market Risk: The fluctuation of the market has an impact on the value of the
investments held in the portfolio.
• Capital Risk: The realization value of private equity investments can be affected
by numerous factors, including (but not limited to) the quality of the fund
manager, equity market exposure, interest rates and foreign exchange.
Options: An option is a financial derivative that represents a contract sold by one party
(the option writer) to another party (the option holder, or option buyer). The contract
offers the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a security or other
financial asset at an agreed-upon price (the strike price) during a certain period of time
or on a specific date (exercise date). Options are extremely versatile securities. Traders
use options to speculate, which is a relatively risky practice, while hedgers use options to
reduce the risk of holding an asset. In terms of speculation, option buyers and writers
have conflicting views regarding the outlook on the performance of a:
• Call Option: Call options give the option to buy at certain price, so the buyer
would want the stock to go up. Conversely, the option writer needs to provide the
underlying shares in the event that the stock's market price exceeds the strike
due to the contractual obligation. An option writer who sells a call option
believes that the underlying stock's price will drop relative to the option's strike
price during the life of the option, as that is how he will reap maximum profit.
This is exactly the opposite outlook of the option buyer. The buyer believes that
the underlying stock will rise; if this happens, the buyer will be able to acquire
the stock for a lower price and then sell it for a profit. However, if the underlying
stock does not close above the strike price on the expiration date, the option
buyer would lose the premium paid for the call option.
• Put Option: Put options give the option to sell at a certain price, so the buyer
would want the stock to go down. The opposite is true for put option writers. For
example, a put option buyer is bearish on the underlying stock and believes its
market price will fall below the specified strike price on or before a specified
date. On the other hand, an option writer who sells a put option believes the
underlying stock's price will increase about a specified price on or before the
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expiration date. If the underlying stock's price closes above the specified strike
price on the expiration date, the put option writer's maximum profit is achieved.
Conversely, a put option holder would only benefit from a fall in the underlying
stock's price below the strike price. If the underlying stock's price falls below the
strike price, the put option writer is obligated to purchase shares of the
underlying stock at the strike price.
The potential risks associated with these transactions are that (1) all options expire. The
closer the option gets to expiration, the quicker the premium in the option deteriorates;
and
(2) Prices can move very quickly. Depending on factors such as time until expiration and
the relationship of the stock price to the option’s strike price, small movements in a stock
can translate into big movements in the underlying options.
Covered Calls: The risks associated with this type of strategy involve having the
underlying stock called away. Each contract has a strike price at which the writer of the
contract agrees to allow the purchaser call the stock away from the writer. This can
create a taxable event whereby the writer of the option is required to recognize a capital
gain on the underlying security. Furthermore, the market price could appreciate beyond
the strike price, forcing the writer to sell their holdings below current market value.
Uncovered Options: Uncovered option writing is suitable only for the knowledgeable
investor who understands the risks, has the financial capacity and willingness to incur
potentially substantial losses, and has sufficient liquid assets to meet applicable margin
requirements. If the value of the underlying instrument moves against an uncovered
writer’s options position, our firm may request significant additional margin payments.
If an investor does not make such margin payments, we may be forced to close stock or
options positions in the investor’s account.
The potential loss of uncovered call writing is unlimited. The writer of an uncovered call
is in an extremely risky position and may incur large losses if the value of the underlying
instrument increases above the exercise price.
As with writing uncovered calls, the risk of writing uncovered put options is substantial.
The writer of an uncovered put option bears a risk of loss if the value of the underlying
instrument declines below the exercise price. Such loss could be substantial if there is a
significant decline in the value of the underlying instrument.
Inverse Exchange Traded Funds: An ETF traded on a public stock market, which is
designed to perform as the inverse of whatever index or benchmark it is designed to track.
These funds work by using short selling, trading derivatives such as futures contracts, and
other leveraged investment techniques. Investing in inversion ETFs is similar to holding
various short positions, or using a combination of advanced investment strategies to
profit from falling prices. Also known as a "Short ETF," or "Bear ETF." Inverse ETFs along
with other ETFs that use derivatives, typically are not used as long-term investments.
Many inverse ETFs utilize daily futures contracts to produce their returns, and this
frequent trading often increases fund expenses. Inverse and leveraged inverse ETFs
tend to have higher expense ratios than standard index ETFs, since the funds are by their
nature actively managed; these costs can eat away at performance. An inverse ETF needs
to buy when the market rises and sell when it falls in order to maintain a fixed leverage
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ratio. This results in a volatility loss proportional to the market variance. Compared to a
short position with identical initial exposure, the inverse ETF will therefore usually
deliver inferior returns. The exception is if the market declines significantly on low
volatility so that the capital gain outweighs the volatility loss. Such large declines benefit
the inverse ETF because the relative exposure of the short position drops as the market
falls. Since the risk of the inverse ETF and a fixed short position will differ significantly as
the index drifts away from its initial value, differences in realized payoff have no clear
interpretation. It may therefore be better to evaluate the performance assuming the
index returns to the initial level. In that case an inverse ETF will always incur a volatility
loss relative to the short position. As with synthetic options, leveraged ETFs need to be
frequently rebalanced. These strategies are generally designed for intra-day trading,
however may be held for longer durations in cases we deem it prudent to do so.
Compounding Risk: Compounding risk is one of the main types of risks affecting inverse
ETFs. Inverse ETFs held for periods longer than one day are affected by compounding
returns. Since an inverse ETF has a single-day investment objective of providing
investment results that are one times the inverse of its underlying index, the fund's
performance likely differs from its investment objective for periods greater than one
day. Investors who wish to hold inverse ETFs for periods exceeding one day must
actively manage and rebalance their positions to mitigate compounding risk. The effect
of compounding returns becomes more conspicuous during periods of high market
turbulence. During periods of high volatility, the effects of compounding returns cause
an inverse ETF's investment results for periods longer than one single day to
substantially vary from one times the inverse of the underlying index's return.
Derivative Securities Risk: Many inverse ETFs provide exposure by employing
derivatives. Derivative securities are considered aggressive investments and expose
inverse ETFs to more risks, such as correlation risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. Swaps
are contracts in which one party exchanges cash flows of a predetermined financial
instrument for cash flows of a counterparty's financial instrument for a specified period.
Swaps on indexes and ETFs are designed to track the performances of their underlying
indexes or securities. The performance of an ETF may not perfectly track the inverse
performance of the index due to expense ratios and other factors, such as negative effects
of rolling futures contracts. Therefore, inverse ETFs that use swaps on ETFs usually carry
greater correlation risk and may not achieve high degrees of correlation with their
underlying indexes compared to funds that only employ index swaps. Additionally,
inverse ETFs using swap agreements are subject to credit risk. A counterparty may be
unwilling or unable to meet its obligations and, therefore, the value of swap agreements
with the counterparty may decline by a substantial amount. Derivative securities tend to
carry liquidity risk, and inverse funds holding derivative securities may not be able to
buy or sell their holdings in a timely manner, or they may not be able to sell their holdings
at a reasonable price.
Correlation Risk: Inverse ETFs are also subject to correlation risk, which may be caused
by many factors, such as high fees, transaction costs, expenses, illiquidity and investing
methodologies. Although inverse ETFs seek to provide a high degree of negative
correlation to their underlying indexes, these ETFs usually rebalance their portfolios
daily, which leads to higher expenses and transaction costs incurred when adjusting the
portfolio. Moreover, reconstitution and index rebalancing events may cause inverse
funds to be underexposed or
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overexposed to their benchmarks. These factors may decrease the inverse correlation
between an inverse ETF and its underlying index on or around the day of these events.
Futures contracts are exchange-traded derivatives that have a predetermined delivery
date of a specified quantity of a certain underlying security, or they may settle for cash
on a predetermined date. With respect to inverse ETFs using futures contracts, during
times of backwardation, funds roll their positions into less-expensive, further-dated
futures contracts. Conversely, in contango markets, funds roll their positions into more-
expensive, further- dated futures. Due to the effects of negative and positive roll yields,
it is unlikely for inverse ETFs invested in futures contracts to maintain perfectly negative
correlations to their underlying indexes on a daily basis.
Short Sale Exposure Risk: Inverse ETFs may seek short exposure through the use of
derivative securities, such as swaps and futures contracts, which may cause these funds
to be exposed to risks associated with short selling securities. An increase in the overall
level of volatility and a decrease in the level of liquidity of the underlying securities of
short positions are the two major risks of short selling derivative securities. These risks
may lower short-selling funds' returns, resulting in a loss.
Alternative Investments: Hedge funds, commodity pools, Real Estate Investment
Trusts (“REITs”), Business Development Companies (“BDCs”), and other alternative
investments involve a high degree of risk and can be illiquid due to restrictions on
transfer and lack of a secondary trading market. They can be highly leveraged,
speculative and volatile, and an investor could lose all or a substantial amount of an
investment. Alternative investments may lack transparency as to share price, valuation
and portfolio holdings. Complex tax structures often result in delayed tax reporting.
Compared to mutual funds, hedge funds and commodity pools are subject to less
regulation and often charge higher fees and may require “capital calls” which would
require additional investment. Alternative investment managers typically exercise broad
investment discretion and may apply similar strategies across multiple investment
vehicles, resulting in less diversification.
Money Market Fund: Money market funds have relatively low risks, compared to other
mutual funds (and most other investments). By law, they can invest in only certain high
quality, short-term investments issued by the U.S. Government, U.S. corporations, and
state and local governments. Money market funds try to keep their net asset value (NAV),
which represents the value of one share in a fund, at a stable $1.00 per share. However,
the NAV may fall below $1.00 if the fund’s investments perform poorly. Investor losses
have been rare, but they are possible. Money market funds pay dividends that generally
reflect short-term interest rates, and historically, the returns for money market funds
have been lower than for either bond or stock funds. That is why “inflation risk,” the risk
that inflation, will outpace and erode investment returns over time, and can be a
potential concern for investors in money market funds.
Cash & Cash Equivalents: Cash and cash equivalents generally refer to either United
States dollars or highly liquid short-term debt instruments such as, but not limited to,
treasury bills, bank CD’s and commercial papers. Generally, these assets are considered
nonproductive and will be exposed to inflation risk and considerable opportunity cost
risk. Investments in cash and cash equivalents will generally return less than the advisory
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fee charged by our firm. Our firm may recommend cash and cash equivalents as part of
our clients’ asset allocation when deemed appropriate and in their best interest. Our firm
considers cash and cash equivalents to be an asset class. Therefore, our firm assess an
advisory fee on cash and cash equivalents unless indicated otherwise in writing.
Risk of Loss
Investing in securities involves risk of loss that clients should be prepared to bear. While the
stock market may increase and the account(s) could enjoy a gain, it is also possible that the stock
market may decrease, and the account(s) could suffer a loss. It is important that clients
understand the risks associated with investing in the stock market, and that their assets are
appropriately diversified in investments. Clients are encouraged to ask our firm any questions
regarding their risk tolerance.
Market Risk: Either the stock market as a whole, or the value of an individual company, goes
down resulting in a decrease in the value of client investments. This is also referred to as
systemic risk.
Equity (stock) market risk: Common stocks are susceptible to general stock market
fluctuations and to volatile increases and decreases in value as market confidence in and
perceptions of their issuers change. If you held common stock, or common stock equivalents, of
any given issuer, you would generally be exposed to greater risk than if you held preferred stocks
and debt obligations of the issuer.
Company Risk: When investing in stock positions, there is always a certain level of company or
industry specific risk that is inherent in each investment. This is also referred to as unsystematic
risk and can be reduced through appropriate diversification. There is the risk that the company
will perform poorly or have its value reduced based on factors specific to the company or its
industry. For example, if a company’s employees go on strike or the company receives
unfavorable media attention for its actions, the value of the company may be reduced.
Inflation & Interest Rate Risk: security prices and portfolio returns will likely vary in response
to inflation and interest rates changes. Inflation causes future dollars to be worth less and may
reduce the purchasing power of a client's future interest payments and principal. Inflation also
generally leads to higher interest rates which may cause the value of many types of fixed-income
investments to decline.
Risks Associated with Fixed Income: When investing in fixed income instruments such as
bonds or notes, the issuer may default on the bond and be unable to make payments. Further,
interest rates may increase, and the principal value of your investment may decrease.
Individuals who depend on set amounts of periodically paid income face the risk that inflation
will erode their spending power.
ETF and Mutual Fund Risk: When investing in an ETF or mutual fund, a client will bear
additional expenses based on the client’s pro rata share of the ETF’s or mutual fund’s operating
expenses, including the potential duplication of management fees. The risk of owning an ETF or
mutual fund generally reflects the risks of owning the underlying securities the ETF or mutual
fund holds. Clients will also incur brokerage costs when purchasing ETFs.
Liquidity Risk: Certain assets may not be readily converted into cash or may have a very limited
market in which they trade. Thus, you may experience the risk that your investment or assets
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
within your investment may not be able to be liquidated quickly, thus, extending the period of
time by which you may receive the proceeds from your investment. Liquidity risk can also result
in unfavorable pricing when exiting (i.e. not being able to quickly get out of an investment before
the price drops significantly) a particular investment and therefore, can have a negative impact
on investment returns.
Management Risk: Your investments will vary with the success and failure of our investment
strategies, research, analysis, and determination of portfolio securities. If you implement our
financial planning recommendations and our investment strategies do not produce the expected
results, you may not achieve your objectives.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: Certain service providers utilized by the Firm to
service client accounts have artificial intelligence components. The use of artificial intelligence and
machine learning includes increased risk of data inaccuracies and security vulnerabilities. Due to
the rapid advancement of machine learning technologies, future risks related to artificial
intelligence are unpredictable. As a measure to mitigate these risks to our clients, our Firm
performs periodic due diligence of our service providers for assurance that the service providers
have appropriate controls in place to protect our clients’ information and to limit data inaccuracies
when artificial intelligence is used by the service provide.
Description of Material, Significant or Unusual Risks
Our firm generally invests client cash balances in money market funds, FDIC Insured Certificates
of Deposit, high-grade commercial paper and/or government backed debt instruments.
Ultimately, our firm tries to achieve the highest return on client cash balances through relatively
low-risk conservative investments. In most cases, at least a partial cash balance will be
maintained in a money market account so that our firm may debit advisory fees for our services
related to our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management services, as applicable.
Item 9: Disciplinary Information
There are no legal or disciplinary events that are material to the evaluation of our advisory
business or the integrity of our management.
Item 10: Other Financial Industry Activities & Affiliations
Representatives of our firm are licensed insurance agents. They may offer products and receive
normal and customary commissions as a result of these transactions. A conflict of interest may
arise as these commissionable securities sales may create an incentive to recommend products
based on the compensation they may earn. To mitigate this conflict of interest, representatives of
our firm will recommend products based solely on the client’s best interests.
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Item 11: Code of Ethics, Participation, or Interest in
Client Transactions & Personal Trading
As a fiduciary, it is an investment adviser’s responsibility to provide fair and full disclosure of all
material facts and to act solely in the best interest of each of our clients at all times. Our fiduciary
duty is the underlying principle for our firm’s Code of Ethics, which includes procedures for
personal securities transaction and insider trading. Our firm requires all representatives to
conduct business with the highest level of ethical standards and to comply with all federal and
state securities laws at all times. Upon employment with our firm, and at least annually
thereafter, all representatives of our firm will acknowledge receipt, understanding and
compliance with our firm’s Code of Ethics. Our firm and representatives must conduct business in
an honest, ethical, and fair manner and avoid all circumstances that might negatively affect or appear
to affect our duty of complete loyalty to all clients. This disclosure is provided to give all clients a
summary of our Code of Ethics. If a client or a potential client wishes to review our Code of Ethics
in its entirety, a copy will be provided promptly upon request.
Our firm recognizes that the personal investment transactions of our representatives demands
the application of a Code of Ethics with high standards and requires that all such transactions be
carried out in a way that does not endanger the interest of any client. At the same time, our firm also
believes that if investment goals are similar for clients and for our representatives, it is logical, and
even desirable, that there be common ownership of some securities.
In order to prevent conflicts of interest, our firm has established procedures for transactions effected
by our representatives for their personal accounts1. In order to monitor compliance with our
personal trading policy, our firm has pre-clearance requirements and a quarterly securities
transaction reporting system for all of our representatives.
Neither our firm nor a related person recommends, buys or sells for client accounts, securities
in which our firm or a related person has a material financial interest without prior disclosure
to the client.
Related persons of our firm may buy or sell securities and other investments that are also
recommended to clients. In order to minimize this conflict of interest, our related persons will
place client interests ahead of their own interests and adhere to our firm’s Code of Ethics, a copy
of which is available upon request.
Likewise, related persons of our firm buy or sell securities for themselves at or about the same time
they buy or sell the same securities for client accounts. In order to minimize this conflict of
interest, our related persons will place client interests ahead of their own interests and adhere to
our firm’s Code of Ethics, a copy of which is available upon request. Further, our related persons
will refrain from buying or selling securities that will be bought or sold in client accounts unless done
so after the client execution or concurrently as a part of a block trade.
1 For purposes of the policy, our associate’s personal account generally includes any account (a) in the name of our associate, his/her
spouse, his/her minor children or other dependents residing in the same household, (b) for which our associate is a trustee or executor, or
(c) which our associate controls, including our client accounts which our associate controls and/or a member of his/her household
has a direct or indirect beneficial interest in.
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Item 12: Brokerage Practices
Custodian & Brokers Used
Our firm does not maintain custody of client assets (although our firm may be deemed to have
custody of client assets if give the authority to withdraw assets from client accounts. See Item 15
Custody, below). Client assets must be maintained in an account at a “qualified custodian,” generally
a broker-dealer or bank. Our firm recommends that clients use the Schwab Advisor Services division
of Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. (“Schwab”), a FINRA-registered broker-dealer, member SIPC, as the
qualified custodian. Our firm is independently owned and operated, and not affiliated with Schwab.
Schwab will hold client assets in a brokerage account and buy and sell securities when instructed.
While our firm recommends that clients use Schwab as custodian/broker, clients will decide whether
to do so and open an account with Schwab by entering into an account agreement directly with them.
Our firm does not open the account. Even though the account is maintained at Schwab, our firm can
still use other brokers to execute trades, as described in the next paragraph.
How Brokers/Custodians Are Selected
Our firm seeks to recommend a custodian/broker who will hold client assets and execute
transactions on terms that are overall most advantageous when compared to other available
providers and their services. A wide range of factors are considered, including, but not limited to:
•
•
•
combination of transaction execution services along with asset custody services (generally
without a separate fee for custody)
capability to execute, clear and settle trades (buy and sell securities for client accounts)
capabilities to facilitate transfers and payments to and from accounts (wire transfers, check
requests, bill payment, etc.)
• breadth of investment products made available (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange
traded funds (ETFs), etc.)
• availability of investment research and tools that assist in making investment decisions
•
quality of services
competitiveness of the price of those services (commission rates, margin interest rates, other
fees, etc.) and willingness to negotiate them
reputation, financial strength and stability of the provider
•
• prior service to our firm and our other clients
• availability of other products and services that benefit our firm, as discussed below (see
“Products & Services Available from Schwab”)
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Custody & Brokerage Costs
Schwab generally does not charge a separate for custody services, but is compensated by charging
commissions or other fees to clients on trades that are executed or that settle into the Schwab
account. In addition to commissions Schwab charges a flat dollar amount as a “prime broker” or
“trade away” fee for each trade that our firm has executed by a different broker-dealer but where the
securities bought or the funds from the securities sold are deposited (settled) into a Schwab account.
These fees are in addition to the commissions or other compensation paid to the executing broker-
dealer. Because of this, in order to minimize client trading costs, our firm has Schwab execute most
trades for the accounts.
Products & Services Available from Schwab
Schwab Advisor Services is Schwab’s business serving independent investment advisory firms like
our firm. They provide our firm and clients with access to its institutional brokerage – trading,
custody, reporting and related services – many of which are not typically available to Schwab retail
customers. Schwab also makes available various support services. Some of those services help
manage or administer our client accounts while others help manage and grow our business. Schwab’s
support services are generally available on an unsolicited basis (our firm does not have to request
them) and at no charge to our firm. The availability of Schwab’s products and services is not based
on the provision of particular investment advice, such as purchasing particular securities for clients.
Here is a more detailed description of Schwab’s support services:
Services that Benefit Clients
Schwab’s institutional brokerage services include access to a broad range of investment products,
execution of securities transactions, and custody of client assets. The investment products available
through Schwab include some to which our firm might not otherwise have access or that would
require a significantly higher minimum initial investment by firm clients. Schwab’s services
described in this paragraph generally benefit clients and their accounts.
Services that May Not Directly Benefit Clients
Schwab also makes available other products and services that benefit our firm but may not directly
benefit clients or their accounts. These products and services assist in managing and administering
our client accounts. They include investment research, both Schwab’s and that of third parties. This
research may be used to service all or some substantial number of client accounts, including accounts
not maintained at Schwab. In addition to investment research, Schwab also makes available software
and other technology that:
• provides access to client account data (such as duplicate trade confirmations and account
statements);
facilitates trade execution and allocate aggregated trade orders for multiple client accounts;
facilitates payment of our fees from our clients’ accounts; and
•
• provides pricing and other market data;
•
• assists with back-office functions, recordkeeping and client reporting.
Services that Generally Benefit Only Our Firm
Schwab also offers other services intended to help manage and further develop our business
enterprise. These services include:
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
technology, compliance, legal, and business consulting;
• educational conferences and events
•
• publications and conferences on practice management and business succession; and
• access to employee benefits providers, human capital consultants and insurance providers.
Schwab may provide some of these services itself. In other cases, Schwab will arrange for third-party
vendors to provide the services to our firm. Schwab may also discount or waive fees for some of these
services or pay all or a part of a third party’s fees. Schwab may also provide our firm with other
benefits, such as occasional business entertainment for our personnel.
Irrespective of direct or indirect benefits to our client through Schwab, our firm strives to enhance
the client experience, help clients reach their goals and put client interests before that of our firm or
associated persons.
Our Interest in Schwab’s Services.
The availability of these services from Schwab benefits our firm because our firm does not have to
produce or purchase them. Our firm does not have to pay for these services, and they are not
contingent upon committing any specific amount of business to Schwab in trading commissions or
assets in custody.
In light of our arrangements with Schwab, a conflict of interest exists as our firm may have incentive
to require that clients maintain their accounts with Schwab based on our interest in receiving
Schwab’s services that benefit our firm rather than based on client interest in receiving the best value
in custody services and the most favorable execution of transactions. As part of our fiduciary duty to
our clients, our firm will endeavor at all times to put the interests of our clients first. Clients should
be aware, however, that the receipt of economic benefits by our firm or our related persons creates
a potential conflict of interest and may indirectly influence our firm’s choice of Schwab as a custodial
recommendation. Our firm examined this potential conflict of interest when our firm chose to
recommend Schwab and have determined that the recommendation is in the best interest of our firm’s
clients and satisfies our fiduciary obligations, including our duty to seek best execution.
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. Although our firm will seek competitive rates, to the benefit of all clients,
our firm may not necessarily obtain the lowest possible commission rates for specific client account
transactions. Our firm believes that the selection of Schwab as a custodian and broker is the best
interest of our clients. It is primarily supported by the scope, quality and price of Schwab’s services,
and not Schwab’s services that only benefit our firm.
Soft Dollars
Our firm does not receive soft dollars in excess of what is allowed by Section 28(e) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934. The safe harbor research products and services obtained by our firm will
generally be used to service all of our clients but not necessarily all at any one particular time.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Client Brokerage Commissions
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. does not make client brokerage commissions generated by client
transactions available for our firm’s use.
Client Transactions in Return for Soft Dollars
Our firm does not direct client transactions to a particular broker-dealer in return for soft dollar
benefits.
Brokerage for Client Referrals
Our firm does not receive brokerage compensation for client referrals.
Special Considerations for ERISA Clients
A retirement or ERISA plan client may direct all or part of portfolio transactions for its account
through a specific broker or dealer in order to obtain goods or services on behalf of the plan. Such
direction is permitted provided that the goods and services provided are reasonable expenses of the
plan incurred in the ordinary course of its business for which it otherwise would be obligated and
empowered to pay. ERISA prohibits directed brokerage arrangements when the goods or services
purchased are not for the exclusive benefit of the plan. Consequently, our firm will request that plan
sponsors who direct plan brokerage provide us with a letter documenting that this arrangement will
be for the exclusive benefit of the plan.
Client-Directed Brokerage
Our firm does not allow client-directed brokerage outside our recommendations.
Aggregation of Purchase or Sale
Our firm provides investment management services for various clients. There are occasions on which
portfolio transactions may be executed as part of concurrent authorizations to purchase or sell the same
security for numerous accounts served by our firm, which involve accounts with similar investment
objectives. Although such concurrent authorizations potentially could be either advantageous or
disadvantageous to any one or more particular accounts, they are affected only when our firm believes
that to do so will be in the best interest of the effected accounts. When such concurrent authorizations
occur, the objective is to allocate the executions in a manner which is deemed equitable to the accounts
involved. In any given situation, our firm attempts to allocate trade executions in the most equitable
manner possible, taking into consideration client objectives, current asset allocation and availability of
funds using price averaging, proration, and consistently non-arbitrary methods of allocation.
Item 13: Review of Accounts or Financial Plans
Our management personnel or financial advisors review accounts on at least an annual basis for our
Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management clients. The nature of these reviews is to learn whether
client accounts are in line with their investment objectives, appropriately positioned based on
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
market conditions, and investment policies, if applicable. Our firm does not provide written reports
to clients, unless asked to do so. Verbal reports to clients take place on at least an annual basis when
our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management clients are contacted.
Our firm may review client accounts more frequently than described above. Among the factors which
may trigger an off-cycle review are major market or economic events, the client’s life events, requests
by the client, etc.
Pension Consulting clients receive reviews of their retirement plans for the duration of the service.
Our firm also provides ongoing services where clients are met with upon their request to discuss
updates to their plans, changes in their circumstances, etc. Pension Consulting clients do not receive
written or verbal updated reports regarding their plans unless they choose to engage our firm for
ongoing services.
Item 14: Client Referrals & Other Compensation
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
Our firm receives economic benefit from Schwab in the form of the support products and services
made available to our firm and other independent investment advisors that have their clients
maintain accounts at Schwab. These products and services, how they benefit our firm, and the related
conflicts of interest are described above (see Item 12 – Brokerage Practices). The availability of
Schwab’s products and services is not based on our firm giving particular investment advice, such as
buying particular securities for our clients.
Client Referrals
In accordance with Rule 206 (4)-1 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, our firm does not provide
cash or non-cash compensation directly or indirectly to unaffiliated persons for testimonials or
endorsements (which include client referrals).
Item 15: Custody
Deduction of Advisory Fees:
While our firm does not maintain physical custody of client assets (which are maintained by a
qualified custodian, as discussed above), we are deemed to have custody of certain client assets if
given the authority to withdraw assets from client accounts, as further described below under “Third
Party Money Movement.” All of our clients receive account statements directly from their qualified
custodian(s) at least quarterly upon opening of an account. We urge our clients to carefully review
these statements. Additionally, if our firm decides to send its own account statements to clients, such
statements will include a legend that recommends the client compare the account statements
received from the qualified custodian with those received from our firm. Clients are encouraged to
raise any questions with us about the custody, safety or security of their assets and our custodial
recommendations.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Third Party Money Movement:
On February 21, 2017, the SEC issued a no-action letter (“Letter”) with respect to Rule 206(4)-2
(“Custody Rule”) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (“Advisers Act”). The letter provided
guidance on the Custody Rule as well as clarified that an adviser who has the power to disburse client
funds to a third party under a standing letter of authorization (“SLOA”) is deemed to have custody.
As such, our firm has adopted the following safeguards in conjunction with our custodian:
• The client provides an instruction to the qualified custodian, in writing, that includes the
client’s signature, the third party’s name, and either the third party’s address or the third
party’s account number at a custodian to which the transfer should be directed.
• The client authorizes the investment adviser, in writing, either on the qualified custodian’s
form or separately, to direct transfers to the third party either on a specified schedule or from
time to time.
• The client’s qualified custodian performs appropriate verification of the instruction, such as
a signature review or other method to verify the client’s authorization, and provides a
transfer of funds notice to the client promptly after each transfer.
• The client has the ability to terminate or change the instruction to the client’s qualified
custodian.
• The investment adviser has no authority or ability to designate or change the identity of the
third party, the address, or any other information about the third party contained in the
client’s instruction.
• The investment adviser maintains records showing that the third party is not a related party
of the investment adviser or located at the same address as the investment adviser.
• The client’s qualified custodian sends the client, in writing, an initial notice confirming the
instruction and an annual notice reconfirming the instruction.
Item 16: Investment Discretion
Clients must provide our firm with investment discretion on their behalf, pursuant to an executed
investment advisory client agreement. By granting investment discretion, we are authorized to
execute securities transactions, which securities are bought and sold, and the total amount to be
bought and sold. Limitations may be imposed by the client in the form of specific constraints on any
of these areas of discretion with our firm’s written acknowledgement.
Item 17: Voting Client Securities
Our firm votes client proxies when authorized to do so in writing by a client. We understand our duty
to vote client proxies and to do so in the best interest of our clients. Furthermore, we understand that
any material conflicts between our interests and those of our clients with regard to proxy voting must
be resolved before proxies are voted. We subscribe to a proxy monitor and voting agent service
offered by Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. (“Broadridge”), which includes access
to proxy analyses with research and vote recommendations from Glass, Lewis & Co. (“Glass Lewis”).
Our firm will generally vote in accordance with the recommendations of Glass Lewis but may vote in
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
a different fashion on particular votes if we determine that such actions are in the best interest of our
clients. Where applicable, we will consider any specific voting guidelines designated in writing by a
client. Clients may request a copy of our written policies and procedures regarding proxy voting
and/or information on how particular proxies were voted by contacting our Chief Compliance Officer,
Jeff Hodges at (415) 494-2790. We do not pay for proxy voting services with soft dollars.
Item 18: Financial Information
Our firm is not required to provide financial information in this Brochure because:
• Our firm does not require the prepayment of more than $1,200 in fees when services cannot
be rendered within 6 months.
• Our firm does not take custody of client funds or securities.
• Our firm does not have a financial condition or commitment that impairs our ability to meet
contractual and fiduciary obligations to clients.
Our firm has never been the subject of a bankruptcy proceeding.
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Primary Brochure: FORM ADV PART 2A, APP 1 - WRAP FEE BROCHURE (2026-03-31)
View Document Text
Item 1: Cover Page
Part 2A Appendix 1 of Form ADV: Wrap Fee Program Brochure
March 31, 2026
January Capital Wrap Program
Sponsored by:
January Capital Advisors, LLC
CRD# 177514
333 Bush Street, 4th Floor
San Francisco, California 94104
www.JanuaryCapital.co
Firm Contact:
Jeffrey Hodges
Chief Compliance Officer
This brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of January
Capital Advisors, LLC. If clients have any questions about the contents of this brochure, please contact
us at (415) 494-2790. 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 our firm is also available on the SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov by
searching CRD #117514.
Please note that the use of the term “registered investment adviser” and description of our firm
and/or our associates as “registered” does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Clients are
encouraged to review this Brochure and Brochure Supplements for our firm’s associates who advise
clients for more information on the qualifications of our firm and our employees.
Item 2: Material Changes
January Capital Advisors, LLC is required to notify clients of any information that has changed since
the last annual update of the Wrap Brochure (“Wrap Brochure”) that may be important to them.
Clients can request a fully copy of our Wrap Brochure or contact us with any questions that they may
have about the changes.
Since the last annual amendment filed on 03/11/2025, there have been no material changes to
disclose.
ADV Part 2A, Appendix 1 – Wrap Fee Brochure
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Item 3: Table of Contents
Item 1: Cover Page .................................................................................................................................................................. 1
Item 2: Material Changes ...................................................................................................................................................... 2
Item 3: Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................................................... 3
Item 4: Services, Fees & Compensation .......................................................................................................................... 4
Item 5: Account Requirements & Types of Clients .................................................................................................... 5
Item 6: Portfolio Manager Selection & Evaluation ..................................................................................................... 6
Item 7: Client Information Provided to Portfolio Manager(s) ............................................................................ 21
Item 8: Client Contact with Portfolio Manager(s) .................................................................................................... 21
Item 9: Additional Information ........................................................................................................................................ 21
ADV Part 2A, Appendix 1 – Wrap Fee Brochure
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
Item 4: Services, Fees & Compensation
Our firm manages assets for many different types of clients to help meet their financial goals while
remaining sensitive to risk tolerance and time horizons. As a fiduciary, it is our duty to always act in
the client’s best interest. This is accomplished in part by knowing the client. Our firm has established
a service-oriented advisory practice with open lines of communication. Working with clients to
understand their investment objectives while educating them about our process, facilitates the kind
of working relationship we value.
Our firm sponsors and offers a wrap fee program, which allows clients to pay a single fee for
investment advisory services and associated custodial transaction costs. Transaction fees will be paid
by our firm via individual transaction charges. Because our firm absorbs client transaction fees, an
incentive exists to limit trading activities in client accounts.
Our recommended custodian, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”) does not charge transaction fees
for U.S. listed equities and exchange traded funds. Since we pay the transaction fees charged by the
custodian to clients participating in our wrap fee program, this presents a conflict of interest because
we are incentivized to recommend equities and exchange traded funds over other types of securities
in order to reduce our costs.
Our Wrap Advisory Services
Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management:
As part of our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management service clients will be provided asset
management and financial planning or consulting services. This service is designed to assist clients
in meeting their financial goals through the use of a financial plan or consultation. Our firm conducts
client meetings to understand their current financial situation, existing resources, financial goals, and
tolerance for risk. Based on what is learned, an investment approach is presented to the client,
consisting of individual stocks, bonds, ETFs, options, mutual funds and other public and private
securities or investments. Once the appropriate portfolio has been determined, portfolios are
continuously and regularly monitored, and if necessary, rebalanced based upon the client’s individual
needs, stated goals and objectives. Upon client request, our firm provides a summary of observations
and recommendations for the planning or consulting aspects of this service.
Fee Schedule
Assets Under Management
First $1,000,000
Next $2,000,000
Next $2,000,000
Next $2,500,000
Next $2,500,000
$10,000,000 and Above
Maximum Annual Advisory Fee Charged
0.95%
0.85%
0.75%
0.65%
0.50%
0.25%
* Please note that the above fee schedule is a tiered fee schedule. For example, if a client has
$15,000,000 in assets under management, the annualized advisory fee will be $82,750. The
calculation will be as follows:
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
($1,000,000 x 0.95%) + ($2,000,000 x 0.85%) + ($2,000,000 x 0.75%) + ($2,500,000 x 0.65%) +
($2,500,000 x 0.50%) + ($5,000,000 x 0.25%) = $9,500 + $17,000 + $15,000 + $16,250 + $12,500
+ $12,500 = $82,750 annualized fee.
Fees to be assessed will be outlined in the advisory agreement to be signed by the Client. Our firm
bills on cash unless indicated otherwise in writing. Annualized fees are billed on a pro-rata basis
monthly in advance based on the value of the account(s) on the time-weighted daily average of the
previous month. Fees are negotiable and will be deducted from client account(s). Adjustments will
be made for deposits and withdrawals during the month. Our firm does not offer direct invoicing. As
part of this process, Clients understand the following:
a) The client’s independent custodian sends statements at least quarterly showing the
market values for each security included in the Assets and all account disbursements,
including the amount of the advisory fees paid to our firm;
b) Clients will provide authorization permitting our firm to be directly paid by these terms.
Our firm will send an invoice directly to the custodian; and
c) If our firm sends a copy of our invoice to the client, legend urging the comparison of
information provided in our statement with those from the qualified custodian will be
included.
Other Types of Fees & Expenses:
In addition to our advisory fees above, clients may also pay holdings charges imposed by the chosen
custodian for certain investments, charges imposed directly by a mutual fund, index fund, or
exchange traded fund, which shall be disclosed in the fund’s prospectus (e.g.., fund management fees
and other fund expenses), distribution fees, surrender charges, variable annuity fees, IRA and
qualified retirement plan fees, mark-ups and mark-downs, spreads paid to market makers, fees for
trades executed away from custodian, wire transfer fees and other fees and taxes on brokerage
accounts and securities transactions. Our firm does not receive a portion of these fees.
Termination and Refunds:
Either party may terminate the advisory agreement signed with our firm for Wrap Comprehensive
Portfolio Management service in writing at any time. Upon notice of termination our firm will process
a pro-rata refund of the unearned portion of the advisory fees charged in advance.
Wrap Fee Program Recommendations:
Our firm does not recommend or offer the wrap program services of other providers.
Item 5: Account Requirements & Types of Clients
Our firm has the following types of clients:
•
Individuals and High Net Worth Individuals;
• Trusts, Estates or Charitable Organizations;
• Pension and Profit Sharing Plans;
• Corporations, Limited Liability Companies and/or Other Business Types
Our requirements for opening and maintaining accounts or otherwise engaging us:
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
• Our firm requires a minimum account balance of $500,000 for our Wrap Comprehensive
Portfolio Management service. This minimum account balance requirement may be waived at
our firm’s sole discretion.
Item 6: Portfolio Manager Selection & Evaluation
Selection of Portfolio Managers:
Our firm’s investment adviser representatives (“IARs”) act as portfolio manager(s) for this wrap fee
program. A conflict arises in that other investment advisory firms may charge the same or lower fees
than our firm for similar services. Our IARs are subject to individual licensing requirements as
imposed by state securities boards. Our firm is required to confirm or update each IAR’s Form U4 on
an annual basis. IAR supervision is conducted by our Chief Compliance Officer or management
personnel.
Our firm does not utilize outside portfolio managers. All accounts are managed by our in-house
licensed investment adviser representatives (“IARs”) of our firm. Prior to becoming licensed with our
firm, each IARs industry experience, licensure, outside business activities, client complaints (if any),
disciplinary or regulatory history (if any) and financial well-being will be reviewed. Each IAR will
then have a Form U4 and ADV Part 2B on file with our firm.
Advisory Business:
Information about our wrap fee services can be found in Item 4 of this brochure. Our firm offers
individualized investment advice to our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management clients.
Each Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management client has the opportunity to place reasonable
restrictions on the types of investments to be held in the portfolio. Restrictions on investments in
certain securities or types of securities may not be possible due to the level of difficulty this would
entail in managing the account.
Participation in Wrap Fee Programs:
Our firm only offers wrap fee accounts to our clients, which are managed on an individualized basis
according to the client’s investment objectives, financial goals, risk tolerance, etc.
Performance-Based Fees & Side-By-Side Management:
Our firm does not charge performance-based fees.
Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies & Risk of Loss:
The following methods of analysis are utilized by our firm when formulating investment advice
and/or managing client assets:
Methods of Analysis
We use the following methods of analysis in formulating our investment advice and/or managing
client assets:
Fundamental Analysis: The analysis of a business's financial statements (usually to analyze the
business's assets, liabilities, and earnings), health, and its competitors and markets. When analyzing
a stock, futures contract, or currency using fundamental analysis there are two basic approaches one
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can use: bottom up analysis and top down analysis. The terms are used to distinguish such analysis
from other types of investment analysis, such as quantitative and technical. Fundamental analysis is
performed on historical and present data, but with the goal of making financial forecasts. There are
several possible objectives: (a) to conduct a company stock valuation and predict its probable price
evolution; (b) to make a projection on its business performance; (c) to evaluate its management and
make internal business decisions; (d) and/or to calculate its credit risk.; and (e) to find out the
intrinsic value of the share.
Technical Analysis: A security analysis methodology for forecasting the direction of prices through
the study of past market data, primarily price and volume. A fundamental principle of technical
analysis is that a market's price reflects all relevant information, so their analysis looks at the history
of a security's trading pattern rather than external drivers such as economic, fundamental and news
events. Therefore, price action tends to repeat itself due to investors collectively tending toward
patterned behavior – hence technical analysis focuses on identifiable trends and conditions.
Technical analysts also widely use market indicators of many sorts, some of which are mathematical
transformations of price, often including up and down volume, advance/decline data and other
inputs. These indicators are used to help assess whether an asset is trending, and if it is, the
probability of its direction and of continuation. Technicians also look for relationships between
price/volume indices and market indicators. Technical analysis employs models and trading rules
based on price and volume transformations, such as the relative strength index, moving averages,
regressions, inter-market and intra-market price correlations, business cycles, stock market cycles
or, classically, through recognition of chart patterns. Technical analysis is widely used among traders
and financial professionals and is very often used by active day traders, market makers and pit
traders. The risk associated with this type of analysis is that analysts use subjective judgment to
decide which pattern(s) a particular instrument reflects at a given time and what the interpretation
of that pattern should be.
Trend Analysis: We often apply trend-following aspects to the portfolio management of some of our
strategies. Trend analysis is a technique used in technical analysis that attempts to anticipate stock
or market price movements based on recently observed trend data, such as moving averages, relative
strength, momentum indicators, and support/resistance trend lines.
Security Analysis: Analysis of tradeable financial instruments called securities. These can be
classified into debt securities, equities, or some hybrid of the two. More broadly, futures contracts
and tradeable credit derivatives are sometimes included. Security analysis is typically divided into
fundamental analysis, which relies upon the examination of fundamental business factors such as
financial statements, and technical analysis, which focuses upon price trends and momentum.
Quantitative analysis may use indicators from both areas.
Sector Analysis: Sector analysis involves identification and analysis of various industries or
economic sectors that are likely to exhibit superior performance. Academic studies indicate that the
health of a stock's sector is as important as the performance of the individual stock itself. In other
words, even the best stock located in a weak sector will often perform poorly because that sector is
out of favor. Each industry has differences in terms of its customer base, market share among firms,
industry growth, competition, regulation and business cycles. Learning how the industry operates
provides a deeper understanding of a company's financial health. One method of analyzing a
company's growth potential is examining whether the amount of customers in the overall market is
expected to grow. In some markets, there is zero or negative growth, a factor demanding careful
consideration. Additionally, market analysts recommend that investors should monitor sectors that
are nearing the bottom of performance rankings for possible signs of an impending turnaround.
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Investors considering such strategies should be aware that taking such factors into account may
result in underperformance for a given level of risk.
Investment Strategies & Securities We Use
We use the following strategies in managing client accounts, provided that such strategies are
appropriate to the needs of the client and consistent with the client's investment objectives, risk
tolerance, and time horizons, among other considerations:
Proprietary Models: January designs proprietary asset allocation models and investment strategies
as part of our investment process. The purpose of these models and strategies is to create a diverse
foundation for clients’ investment portfolios based on their individual risk tolerance, investment
timeframe, and specific investment goals. Our models pull from the various methods of analysis
discussed above and result in a recommended range of allocation to targeted asset classes based on
risk tolerance. Our risk tolerance models range from aggressive to conservative, with several levels
in between. Our firm tailors each investment plan to fit clients’ individual investment needs and goals
with a particular emphasis on growth needs required for specific goals offset by a client’s tolerance
threshold for drawdowns and volatility. The risks associated with our proprietary models reflect
risks similar to that of asset allocation strategies. This includes that a client may not participate in
sharp increases in a particular security, industry or market sector. Another risk is that a client’s actual
holdings may deviate from the model over time and if not corrected, may no longer be appropriate
for the client’s goals.
Asset Allocation: The implementation of an investment strategy that attempts to balance risk versus
reward by adjusting the percentage of each asset in an investment portfolio according to the
investor's risk tolerance, goals and investment time frame. Asset allocation is based on the principle
that different assets perform differently in different market and economic conditions. A fundamental
justification for asset allocation is the notion that different asset classes offer returns that are not
perfectly correlated, hence diversification reduces the overall risk in terms of the variability of
returns for a given level of expected return. Although risk is reduced as long as correlations are not
perfect, it is typically forecast (wholly or in part) based on statistical relationships (like correlation
and variance) that existed over some past period. Expectations for return are often derived in the
same way.
An asset class is a group of economic resources sharing similar characteristics, such as riskiness and
return. There are many types of assets that may or may not be included in an asset allocation strategy.
The "traditional" asset classes are stocks (value, dividend, growth, or sector-specific [or a "blend" of
any two or more of the preceding]; large-cap versus mid-cap, small-cap or micro-cap; domestic,
foreign [developed], emerging or frontier markets), bonds (fixed income securities more generally:
investment-grade or junk [high-yield]; government or corporate; short-term, intermediate, long-
term; domestic, foreign, emerging markets), and cash or cash equivalents. Allocation among these
three provides a starting point. Usually included are hybrid instruments such as convertible bonds
and preferred stocks, counting as a mixture of bonds and stocks. Other alternative assets that may be
considered include: commodities: precious metals, nonferrous metals, agriculture, energy, others.;
Commercial or residential real estate (also REITs); Collectibles such as art, coins, or stamps;
insurance products (annuity, life settlements, catastrophe bonds, personal life insurance products,
etc.); derivatives such as long-short or market neutral strategies, options, collateralized debt, and
futures; foreign currency; venture capital; private equity; and/or distressed securities.
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There are several types of asset allocation strategies based on investment goals, risk tolerance, time
frames and diversification. The most common forms of asset allocation are: strategic, dynamic,
tactical, and core-satellite.
• Strategic Asset Allocation: The primary goal of a strategic asset allocation is to create an asset
mix that seeks to provide the optimal balance between expected risk and return for a long-
term investment horizon. Generally speaking, strategic asset allocation strategies are
agnostic to economic environments, i.e., they do not change their allocation postures relative
to changing market or economic conditions.
• Dynamic Asset Allocation: Dynamic asset allocation is similar to strategic asset allocation in
that portfolios are built by allocating to an asset mix that seeks to provide the optimal balance
between expected risk and return for a long-term investment horizon. Like strategic
allocation strategies, dynamic strategies largely retain exposure to their original asset
classes; however, unlike strategic strategies, dynamic asset allocation portfolios will adjust
their postures over time relative to changes in the economic environment.
• Tactical Asset Allocation: Tactical asset allocation is a strategy in which an investor takes a
more active approach that tries to position a portfolio into those assets, sectors, or individual
stocks that show the most potential for perceived gains. While an original asset mix is
formulated much like strategic and dynamic portfolio, tactical strategies are often traded
more actively and are free to move entirely in and out of their core asset classes
Long-Term Purchases: When utilizing this strategy, we may purchase securities with the idea of
holding them for a relatively long time (typically held for at least a year). A risk in a long-term
purchase strategy is that by holding the security for this length of time, we may not take advantage
of short-term gains that could be profitable to a client. Moreover, if our predictions are incorrect, a
security may decline sharply in value before we make the decision to sell. Typically, we employ this
sub-strategy when we believe the securities to be well valued; and/or we want exposure to a
particular asset class over time, regardless of the current projection for this class. The potential risks
associated with this investment strategy involve a lower-than-expected return for multiple years.
Lower-than-expected returns that last for a long time and/or that are severe in nature would have
the impact of dramatically lowering the ending value of your portfolio and thus could significantly
threaten your ability to meet financial goals.
Short-Term Purchases: When utilizing this strategy, we may also purchase securities with the idea
of selling them within a relatively short time (typically a year or less). We do this in an attempt to
take advantage of conditions that we believe will soon result in a price swing in the securities we
purchase. The potential risk associated with this investment strategy is associated with the currency
or exchange rate. Currency or exchange rate risk is a form of risk that arises from the change in price
of one currency against another. The constant fluctuations in the foreign currency in which an
investment is denominated vis-à-vis one's home currency may add risk to the value of a security.
Currency risk is greater for shorter-term investments, which do not have time to level off like longer
term foreign investments.
Types of Securities JCA utilizes a wide variety of investment securities we deem most appropriate
in implementing the strategies discussed above. These include the following:
Individual Stocks: A common stock is a security that represents ownership in a corporation.
Holders of common stock exercise control by electing a board of directors and voting on
corporate policy. Investing in individual common stocks provides us with more control of
what you are invested in and when that investment is made. Having the ability to decide when
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to buy or sell helps us time the taking of gains or losses. Common stocks, however, bear a
greater amount of risk when compared to certificate of deposits, preferred stock and bonds.
It is typically more difficult to achieve diversification when investing in individual common
stocks. Additionally, common stockholders are on the bottom of the priority ladder for
ownership structure; if a company goes bankrupt, the common stockholders do not receive
their money until the creditors and preferred shareholders have received their respective
share of the leftover assets.
Debt Securities (Bonds): Issuers use debt securities to borrow money. Generally, issuers
pay investors periodic interest and repay the amount borrowed either periodically during
the life of the security and/or at maturity. Alternatively, investors can purchase other debt
securities, such as zero coupon bonds, which do not pay current interest, but rather are priced
at a discount from their face values and their values accrete over time to face value at
maturity. The market prices of debt securities fluctuate depending on such factors as interest
rates, credit quality, and maturity. In general, market prices of debt securities decline when
interest rates rise and increase when interest rates fall. Bonds with longer rates of maturity
tend to have greater interest rate risks.
Certain additional risk factors relating to debt securities include: (a) When interest rates are
declining, investors have to reinvest their interest income and any return of principal,
whether scheduled or unscheduled, at lower prevailing rates.; (b) Inflation causes
tomorrow’s dollar to be worth less than today’s; in other words, it reduces the purchasing
power of a bond investor’s future interest payments and principal, collectively known as
“cash flows.” Inflation also leads to higher interest rates, which in turn leads to lower bond
prices.; (c) Debt securities may be sensitive to economic changes, political and corporate
developments, and interest rate changes. Investors can also expect periods of economic
change and uncertainty, which can result in increased volatility of market prices and yields
of certain debt securities. For example, prices of these securities can be affected by financial
contracts held by the issuer or third parties (such as derivatives) relating to the security or
other assets or indices. (d) Debt securities may contain redemption or call provisions
entitling their issuers to redeem them at a specified price on a date prior to maturity. If an
issuer exercises these provisions in a lower interest rate market, the account would have to
replace the security with a lower yielding security, resulting in decreased income to
investors. Usually, a bond is called at or close to par value. This subjects investors that paid a
premium for their bond risk of lost principal. In reality, prices of callable bonds are unlikely
to move much above the call price if lower interest rates make the bond likely to be called.;
(e) If the issuer of a debt security defaults on its obligations to pay interest or principal or is
the subject of bankruptcy proceedings, the account may incur losses or expenses in seeking
recovery of amounts owed to it.; (f) There may be little trading in the secondary market for
particular debt securities, which may affect adversely the account's ability to value accurately
or dispose of such debt securities. Adverse publicity and investor perceptions, whether or not
based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the value and/or liquidity of debt securities.
Our firm attempts to reduce the risks described above through diversification of the client’s
portfolio and by credit analysis of each issuer, as well as by monitoring broad economic
trends and corporate and legislative developments, but there can be no assurance that our
firm will be successful in doing so. Credit ratings for debt securities provided by rating
agencies reflect an evaluation of the safety of principal and interest payments, not market
value risk. The rating of an issuer is a rating agency's view of past and future potential
developments related to the issuer and may not necessarily reflect actual outcomes. There
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can be a lag between the time of developments relating to an issuer and the time a rating is
assigned and updated.
Treasury Bill (“T-Bill”): T-Bills, are short-term debt instruments issued by the U.S Treasury.
T-Bills are issued for a term of one year or less and are backed by the full faith and credit of
the United States government. The T-Bill rate is a key barometer of short-term interest rates.
Treasury bills are sold with maturities of four, thirteen, twenty-six and fifty-two weeks. They
do not pay interest, but rather are sold at a discount to their face value. The full-face value is
paid at maturity, and the difference between the discounted purchase price and the full-face
value equates to the interest rate. T-Bills are sold in increments of $100, with a minimum
purchase of $100. With the exception of 52-week bills and cash management bills, all T-Bills
are auctioned every week. The 52-week bill is auctioned every four weeks and cash
management bills are issued in variable terms, usually only a matter of days. You can hold a
bill until it matures or sell it before it matures. The bonds are initially sold through auction in
which the maximum purchase amount is $5 million if the bid is noncompetitive or 35% of the
offering if the bid is competitive. A competitive bid states the rate the bidder is willing to
accept; it is accepted depending on how it compares to the set rate of the bond. A
noncompetitive bid ensures the bidder gets the bond but he has to accept the set rate. After
the auction, the bonds can be sold in the secondary market.
Treasury Bond (“T-Bond”): A T-Bond is a marketable, fixed-interest U.S. government debt
security with a maturity of more than 10 years. T-Bonds make interest payments semi-
annually, and the income received is only taxed at the federal level. Treasury bonds are issued
by the U.S. government with very little risk of default. T-Bonds is a type of debt issued by the
U.S. Department of the Treasury to finance the government’s spending activities. The
securities vary by maturity and coupon payments. T-Bonds are issued with maturities that
can range from 10 to 30 years. They are issued with a minimum denomination of $1,000, and
coupon payments on the bonds are paid semi-annually. The bonds are initially sold through
auction in which the maximum purchase amount is $5 million if the bid is noncompetitive or
35% of the offering if the bid is competitive. A competitive bid states the rate the bidder is
willing to accept; it is accepted depending on how it compares to the set rate of the bond. A
noncompetitive bid ensures the bidder gets the bond but he has to accept the set rate. After
the auction, the T-Bonds can be sold in the secondary market. There is an active secondary
market, making the investments highly liquid. The secondary market also makes the price of
T-Bonds fluctuate considerably on the trading market. As such, current auction and yield
rates dictate their pricing levels on the secondary market. T-Bonds on the secondary market
see prices go down when auction rates increase, as the value of the bond’s future cash flows
is discounted at the higher rate. Inversely, when prices increase, auction rate yields decrease.
Treasury Note: A treasury note is a marketable U.S. government debt security with a fixed
interest rate and a maturity between one and 10 years. Treasury notes are available from the
government with either a competitive or noncompetitive bid. With a competitive bid,
investors specify the yield they want, at the risk that their bid may not be approved; with a
noncompetitive bid, investors accept whatever yield is determined at auction. Treasury notes
are extremely popular investments, as there is a large secondary market that adds to their
liquidity. Interest payments on the notes are made every six months until maturity. The
income for interest payments is not taxable on a municipal or state level but is federally taxed,
similar to the T-Bonds. The only difference between a Treasury note and T-Bond is the length
of maturity. A T-Bond’s maturity can last from 10 to 30 years, making Treasury bonds the
longest-dated, sovereign fixed-income security. The longer the maturity, the higher the note’s
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or bond’s exposure to interest rate risks. In addition to credit strength, a note’s value is
determined by its sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Most commonly, a change in rates
occurs at the absolute level underneath the control of a central bank or within the shape of
the yield curve. An increase in benchmark interest rates has had the effect of decreasing the
price of all outstanding U.S. Treasury notes and bonds. Moreover, these fixed-income
instruments possess differing levels of sensitivity to changes in rates, which means that the
fall in prices occurred at various magnitudes. This sensitivity to shifts in rates is measured by
duration and expressed in terms of years. Factors that are used to calculate duration include
coupon, yield, present value, final maturity and call features. In addition to the benchmark
interest rate, elements such as changing investors’ expectations creates shifts in the yield
curve, known as yield curve risk. This risk is associated with either a steepening or flattening
of the yield curve, a result of altering yields among similar bonds of
Exchange Traded Funds (“ETFs”): An ETF is a type of Investment Company (usually, an
open-end fund or unit investment trust) whose primary objective is to achieve the same
return as a particular market index. The vast majority of ETFs are designed to track an index,
so their performance is close to that of an index mutual fund, but they are not exact duplicates.
A tracking error, or the difference between the returns of a fund and the returns of the index,
can arise due to differences in composition, management fees, expenses, and handling of
dividends. ETFs benefit from continuous pricing; they can be bought and sold on a stock
exchange throughout the trading day. Because ETFs trade like stocks, you can place orders
just like with individual stocks - such as limit orders, good-until-canceled orders, stop loss
orders etc. They can also be sold short. Traditional mutual funds are bought and redeemed
based on their net asset values (“NAV”) at the end of the day. ETFs are bought and sold at the
market prices on the exchanges, which resemble the underlying NAV but are independent of
it. However, arbitrageurs will ensure that ETF prices are kept very close to the NAV of the
underlying securities. Although an investor can buy as few as one share of an ETF, most buy
in board lots. Anything bought in less than a board lot will increase the cost to the investor.
Anyone can buy any ETF no matter where in the world it trades. This provides a benefit over
mutual funds, which generally can only be bought in the country in which they are registered.
One of the main features of ETFs are their low annual fees, especially when compared to
traditional mutual funds. The passive nature of index investing, reduced marketing, and
distribution and accounting expenses all contribute to the lower fees. However, individual
investors must pay a brokerage commission to purchase and sell ETF shares; for those
investors who trade frequently, this can significantly increase the cost of investing in ETFs.
That said, with the advent of low-cost brokerage fees, small or frequent purchases of ETFs
are becoming more cost efficient.
Exchange Traded Notes (“ETN”): An ETN is a senior, unsecured, unsubordinated debt
security by an underwriting bank whose primary objective is to achieve the same return as a
particular market index. Similar to other debt securities, the credit of the issuer is the only
backing for ETNs, which have a maturity date. Although performance is contractually tied to
whatever index the ETN is intended to track, ETNs do not have any assets, other than a claim
against their issuer for payment according to the terms of the contract. Unlike traditional
mutual funds, which can only be redeemed at the end of a trading day, ETNs trade throughout
the day on an exchange. ETNs, as debt instruments, are subject to risk of default by the issuing
bank as counter party. This is the major design difference between ETFs and ETNs: ETFs are
only subject to market risk whereas ETNs are subject to both market risk and the risk of
default by the issuing bank.
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different maturities. For example, in the case of a steepening curve, the spread between short-
and long-term interest rates widens. Thus, the price of long-term notes decreases relative to
short-term notes. The opposite occurs in the case of a flattening yield curve. The spread
narrows and the price of short-term notes decreases relative to long-term notes.
Municipal Bonds: Municipal bonds are debt obligations generally issued to obtain funds for
various public purposes, including the construction of public facilities. Municipal bonds pay
a lower rate of return than most other types of bonds. Because of a municipal bond’s tax-
favored status, investors should compare the relative after-tax return to the after-tax return
of other bonds, depending on the investor’s tax bracket. Investing in municipal bonds carries
the same general risks as investing in bonds in general. Those risks include interest rate risk,
reinvestment risk, inflation risk, market risk, call or redemption risk, credit risk, and liquidity
and valuation risk. Investing in municipal bonds carries risk unique to these types of bonds,
which may include: (a) Legislative risk includes the risk that a change in the tax code could
affect the value of taxable or tax-exempt interest income.; (b) Municipal bonds generate tax-
free income, and therefore pay lower interest rates than taxable bonds. Investors who
anticipate a significant drop in their marginal income-tax rate may benefit from the higher
yield available from taxable bonds.; (c) The risk that investors may have difficulty finding a
buyer when they want to sell and may be forced to sell at a significant discount to market
value. Liquidity risk is greater for thinly traded securities such as lower-rated bonds, bonds
that were part of a small issue, bonds that have recently had their credit rating downgraded
or bonds sold by an infrequent issuer. Municipal bonds may be less liquid than other bonds.;
(d) Credit risk includes the risk that a borrower will be unable to make interest or principal
payments when they are due and therefore default. To reduce investor concern, insurance
policies that guarantee repayment in the event of default back many municipal bonds.
Inflation-Indexed Bonds: Inflation-indexed bonds are issued by governments, their
agencies or instrumentalities and corporations. The principal amount of an inflation-indexed
bond adjusts to changes in the level of the consumer price index. In the case of U.S. Treasury
inflation-indexed bonds, the U.S. Government guarantees the repayment of the original bond
principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation). Therefore, the principal amount of such
bonds cannot fall below par even during a period of deflation. However, the current market
value of these bonds is not guaranteed and will fluctuate, reflecting the rise and fall of yields.
In certain jurisdictions outside the United States the repayment of the original bond principal
upon the maturity of an inflation-indexed bond is not guaranteed. This causes the amount of
the bond repaid at maturity to be less than par. The interest rate for inflation-indexed bonds
is fixed at issuance as a percentage of this adjustable principal. Accordingly, the actual
interest income may both rise and fall as the principal amount of the bonds adjusts in
response to movements of the consumer price index. For example, typically interest income
would rise during a period of inflation and fall during a period of deflation.
Money Market Fund: Money market funds have relatively low risks, compared to other
mutual funds (and most other investments). By law, they can invest in only certain high
quality, short-term investments issued by the U.S. Government, U.S. corporations, and state
and local governments. Money market funds try to keep their net asset value (NAV), which
represents the value of one share in a fund, at a stable $1.00 per share. However, the NAV
may fall below $1.00 if the fund’s investments perform poorly. Investor losses have been rare,
but they are possible. Money market funds pay dividends that generally reflect short-term
interest rates, and historically, the returns for money market funds have been lower than for
either bond or stock funds. That is why “inflation risk,” the risk that inflation, will outpace
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and erode investment returns over time, and can be a potential concern for investors in
money market funds.
Mutual Funds: A mutual fund is a company that pools money from many investors and
invests that money in a variety of differing security types based on the objectives of the fund.
The portfolio of the fund consists of the combined holdings it owns. Each share represents an
investor’s proportionate ownership of the fund’s holdings and the income those holdings
generate. The price that investors pay for mutual fund shares are the fund’s per share net
asset value (“NAV”) plus any shareholder fees that the fund imposes at the time of purchase
(such as sales loads). Investors typically cannot ascertain the exact make-up of a fund’s
portfolio at any given time, nor can they directly influence which securities the fund manager
buys and sells or the timing of those trades. With an individual stock, investors can obtain
real-time (or close to real-time) pricing information with relative ease by checking financial
websites or by calling a broker or your investment adviser. Investors can also monitor how a
stock’s price changes from hour to hour—or even second to second. By contrast, with a
mutual fund, the price at which an investor purchases or redeems shares will typically
depend on the fund’s NAV, which is calculated daily after market close.
The benefits of investing through mutual funds include: (a) Mutual funds are professionally
managed by an investment adviser who researches, selects, and monitors the performance of
the securities purchased by the fund; (b) Mutual funds typically have the benefit of
diversification, which is an investing strategy that generally sums up as “Don’t put all your
eggs in one basket.” Spreading investments across a wide range of companies and industry
sectors can help lower the risk if a company or sector fails. Some investors find it easier to
achieve diversification through ownership of mutual funds rather than through ownership of
individual stocks or bonds.; (c) Some mutual funds accommodate investors who do not have
a lot of money to invest by setting relatively low dollar amounts for initial purchases,
subsequent monthly purchases, or both.; and (d) At any time, mutual fund investors can
readily redeem their shares at the current NAV, less any fees and charges assessed on
redemption.
Mutual funds also have features that some investors might view as disadvantages: (a)
Investors must pay sales charges, annual fees, and other expenses regardless of how the fund
performs. Depending on the timing of their investment, investors may also have to pay taxes
on any capital gains distributions they receive. This includes instances where the fund
performed poorly after purchasing shares.; (b) Investors typically cannot ascertain the exact
make-up of a fund’s portfolio at any given time, nor can they directly influence which
securities the fund manager buys and sells or the timing of those trades.; and (c) With an
individual stock, investors can obtain real-time (or close to real-time) pricing information
with relative ease by checking financial websites or by calling a broker or your investment
adviser. Investors can also monitor how a stock’s price changes from hour to hour—or even
second to second. By contrast, with a mutual fund, the price at which an investor purchases
or redeems shares will typically depend on the fund’s NAV, which the fund might not calculate
until many hours after the investor placed the order. In general, mutual funds must calculate
their NAV at least once every business day, typically after the major U.S. exchanges close.
When investors buy and hold an individual stock or bond, the investor must pay income tax
each year on the dividends or interest the investor receives. However, the investor will not
have to pay any capital gains tax until the investor actually sells and makes a profit. Mutual
funds, however, are different. When an investor buys and holds mutual fund shares, the
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investor will owe income tax on any ordinary dividends in the year the investor receives or
reinvests them. Moreover, in addition to owing taxes on any personal capital gains when the
investor sells shares, the investor may have to pay taxes each year on the fund’s capital gains.
That is because the law requires mutual funds to distribute capital gains to shareholders if
they sell securities for a profit, and cannot use losses to offset these gains.
Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”): REITs primarily invest in real estate or real
estate-related loans. Equity REITs own real estate properties, while mortgage REITs hold
construction, development and/or long-term mortgage loans. Changes in the value of the
underlying property of the trusts, the creditworthiness of the issuer, property taxes, interest
rates, tax laws, and regulatory requirements, such as those relating to the environment all
can affect the values of REITs. REITs are dependent upon management skill, the cash flows
generated by their holdings, the real estate market in general, and the possibility of failing to
qualify for any applicable pass-through tax treatment or failing to maintain any applicable
exempted status afforded under relevant laws.
REITs involve a high degree of risk and can be illiquid due to restrictions on transfer and lack
of a secondary trading market. They can be highly leveraged, speculative and volatile, and an
investor could lose all or a substantial amount of an investment. Additionally, they may lack
transparency as to share price, valuation and portfolio holdings as they are subject to less
regulation and often charge higher fees.
Private Equity: Private equity is an equity investment into non-public companies. Private
equity funds hold illiquid positions (for which there is no active secondary market) and
typically only invest in the equity and debt of target companies, which are generally taken
private and brought under the private equity manager's control. Risks associated with private
equity include:
• Funding Risk: The unpredictable timing of cash flows poses funding risks to investors.
Commitments are contractually binding and defaulting on payments results in the
loss of private equity partnership interests. This risk is also commonly referred to as
default risk.
• Liquidity Risk: The illiquidity of private equity partnership interests exposes
investors to asset liquidity risk associated with selling in the secondary market at a
discount on the reported NAV.
• Market Risk: The fluctuation of the market has an impact on the value of the
investments held in the portfolio.
• Capital Risk: The realization value of private equity investments can be affected by
numerous factors, including (but not limited to) the quality of the fund manager,
equity market exposure, interest rates and foreign exchange.
Options: An option is a financial derivative that represents a contract sold by one party (the
option writer) to another party (the option holder, or option buyer). The contract offers the
buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a security or other financial asset at an
agreed-upon price (the strike price) during a certain period of time or on a specific date
(exercise date). Options are extremely versatile securities. Traders use options to speculate,
which is a relatively risky practice, while hedgers use options to reduce the risk of holding an
asset. In terms of speculation, option buyers and writers have conflicting views regarding the
outlook on the performance of a:
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• Call Option: Call options give the option to buy at certain price, so the buyer would
want the stock to go up. Conversely, the option writer needs to provide the underlying
shares in the event that the stock's market price exceeds the strike due to the
contractual obligation. An option writer who sells a call option believes that the
underlying stock's price will drop relative to the option's strike price during the life
of the option, as that is how he will reap maximum profit. This is exactly the opposite
outlook of the option buyer. The buyer believes that the underlying stock will rise; if
this happens, the buyer will be able to acquire the stock for a lower price and then
sell it for a profit. However, if the underlying stock does not close above the strike
price on the expiration date, the option buyer would lose the premium paid for the
call option.
• Put Option: Put options give the option to sell at a certain price, so the buyer would
want the stock to go down. The opposite is true for put option writers. For example,
a put option buyer is bearish on the underlying stock and believes its market price
will fall below the specified strike price on or before a specified date. On the other
hand, an option writer who sells a put option believes the underlying stock's price
will increase about a specified price on or before the expiration date. If the underlying
stock's price closes above the specified strike price on the expiration date, the put
option writer's maximum profit is achieved. Conversely, a put option holder would
only benefit from a fall in the underlying stock's price below the strike price. If the
underlying stock's price falls below the strike price, the put option writer is obligated
to purchase shares of the underlying stock at the strike price.
The potential risks associated with these transactions are that (1) all options expire. The
closer the option gets to expiration, the quicker the premium in the option deteriorates; and
(2) Prices can move very quickly. Depending on factors such as time until expiration and the
relationship of the stock price to the option’s strike price, small movements in a stock can
translate into big movements in the underlying options.
Covered Calls: The risks associated with this type of strategy involve having the underlying
stock called away. Each contract has a strike price at which the writer of the contract agrees
to allow the purchaser call the stock away from the writer. This can create a taxable event
whereby the writer of the option is required to recognize a capital gain on the underlying
security. Furthermore, the market price could appreciate beyond the strike price, forcing the
writer to sell their holdings below current market value.
Uncovered Options: Uncovered option writing is suitable only for the knowledgeable
investor who understands the risks, has the financial capacity and willingness to incur
potentially substantial losses, and has sufficient liquid assets to meet applicable margin
requirements. If the value of the underlying instrument moves against an uncovered writer’s
options position, our firm may request significant additional margin payments. If an investor
does not make such margin payments, we may be forced to close stock or options positions
in the investor’s account.
The potential loss of uncovered call writing is unlimited. The writer of an uncovered call is in
an extremely risky position and may incur large losses if the value of the underlying
instrument increases above the exercise price.
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As with writing uncovered calls, the risk of writing uncovered put options is substantial. The
writer of an uncovered put option bears a risk of loss if the value of the underlying instrument
declines below the exercise price. Such loss could be substantial if there is a significant decline
in the value of the underlying instrument.
Inverse Exchange Traded Funds: An ETF traded on a public stock market, which is designed
to perform as the inverse of whatever index or benchmark it is designed to track. These funds
work by using short selling, trading derivatives such as futures contracts, and other leveraged
investment techniques. Investing in inversion ETFs is similar to holding various short
positions, or using a combination of advanced investment strategies to profit from falling
prices. Also known as a "Short ETF," or "Bear ETF." Inverse ETFs along with other ETFs that
use derivatives, typically are not used as long-term investments. Many inverse ETFs utilize
daily futures contracts to produce their returns, and this frequent trading often increases
fund expenses. Inverse and leveraged inverse ETFs tend to have higher expense ratios than
standard index ETFs, since the funds are by their nature actively managed; these costs can
eat away at performance. An inverse ETF needs to buy when the market rises and sell when
it falls in order to maintain a fixed leverage ratio. This results in a volatility loss proportional
to the market variance. Compared to a short position with identical initial exposure, the
inverse ETF will therefore usually deliver inferior returns. The exception is if the market
declines significantly on low volatility so that the capital gain outweighs the volatility loss.
Such large declines benefit the inverse ETF because the relative exposure of the short position
drops as the market falls. Since the risk of the inverse ETF and a fixed short position will differ
significantly as the index drifts away from its initial value, differences in realized payoff have
no clear interpretation. It may therefore be better to evaluate the performance assuming the
index returns to the initial level. In that case an inverse ETF will always incur a volatility loss
relative to the short position. As with synthetic options, leveraged ETFs need to be frequently
rebalanced. These strategies are generally designed for intra-day trading, however may be
held for longer durations in cases we deem it prudent to do so.
Compounding Risk: Compounding risk is one of the main types of risks affecting inverse ETFs.
Inverse ETFs held for periods longer than one day are affected by compounding returns. Since
an inverse ETF has a single-day investment objective of providing investment results that are
one times the inverse of its underlying index, the fund's performance likely differs from its
investment objective for periods greater than one day. Investors who wish to hold inverse
ETFs for periods exceeding one day must actively manage and rebalance their positions to
mitigate compounding risk. The effect of compounding returns becomes more conspicuous
during periods of high market turbulence. During periods of high volatility, the effects of
compounding returns cause an inverse ETF's investment results for periods longer than one
single day to substantially vary from one times the inverse of the underlying index's return.
Derivative Securities Risk: Many inverse ETFs provide exposure by employing derivatives.
Derivative securities are considered aggressive investments and expose inverse ETFs to more
risks, such as correlation risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. Swaps are contracts in which one
party exchanges cash flows of a predetermined financial instrument for cash flows of a
counterparty's financial instrument for a specified period. Swaps on indexes and ETFs are
designed to track the performances of their underlying indexes or securities. The
performance of an ETF may not perfectly track the inverse performance of the index due to
expense ratios and other factors, such as negative effects of rolling futures contracts.
Therefore, inverse ETFs that use swaps on ETFs usually carry greater correlation risk and
may not achieve high degrees of correlation with their underlying indexes compared to funds
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that only employ index swaps. Additionally, inverse ETFs using swap agreements are subject
to credit risk. A counterparty may be unwilling or unable to meet its obligations and,
therefore, the value of swap agreements with the counterparty may decline by a substantial
amount. Derivative securities tend to carry liquidity risk, and inverse funds holding
derivative securities may not be able to buy or sell their holdings in a timely manner, or they
may not be able to sell their holdings at a reasonable price.
Correlation Risk: Inverse ETFs are also subject to correlation risk, which may be caused by
many factors, such as high fees, transaction costs, expenses, illiquidity and investing
methodologies. Although inverse ETFs seek to provide a high degree of negative correlation
to their underlying indexes, these ETFs usually rebalance their portfolios daily, which leads
to higher expenses and transaction costs incurred when adjusting the portfolio. Moreover,
reconstitution and index rebalancing events may cause inverse funds to be underexposed or
overexposed to their benchmarks. These factors may decrease the inverse correlation
between an inverse ETF and its underlying index on or around the day of these events.
Futures contracts are exchange-traded derivatives that have a predetermined delivery date
of a specified quantity of a certain underlying security, or they may settle for cash on a
predetermined date. With respect to inverse ETFs using futures contracts, during times of
backwardation, funds roll their positions into less-expensive, further-dated futures contracts.
Conversely, in contango markets, funds roll their positions into more-expensive, further-
dated futures. Due to the effects of negative and positive roll yields, it is unlikely for inverse
ETFs invested in futures contracts to maintain perfectly negative correlations to their
underlying indexes on a daily basis.
Short Sale Exposure Risk: Inverse ETFs may seek short exposure through the use of derivative
securities, such as swaps and futures contracts, which may cause these funds to be exposed
to risks associated with short selling securities. An increase in the overall level of volatility
and a decrease in the level of liquidity of the underlying securities of short positions are the
two major risks of short selling derivative securities. These risks may lower short-selling
funds' returns, resulting in a loss.
Alternative Investments: Hedge funds, commodity pools, Real Estate Investment Trusts
(“REITs”), Business Development Companies (“BDCs”), and other alternative investments
involve a high degree of risk and can be illiquid due to restrictions on transfer and lack of a
secondary trading market. They can be highly leveraged, speculative and volatile, and an
investor could lose all or a substantial amount of an investment. Alternative investments may
lack transparency as to share price, valuation and portfolio holdings. Complex tax structures
often result in delayed tax reporting. Compared to mutual funds, hedge funds and commodity
pools are subject to less regulation and often charge higher fees and may require “capital
calls” which would require additional investment. Alternative investment managers typically
exercise broad investment discretion and may apply similar strategies across multiple
investment vehicles, resulting in less diversification.
Money Market Fund: Money market funds have relatively low risks, compared to other
mutual funds (and most other investments). By law, they can invest in only certain high
quality, short-term investments issued by the U.S. Government, U.S. corporations, and state
and local governments. Money market funds try to keep their net asset value (NAV), which
represents the value of one share in a fund, at a stable $1.00 per share. However, the NAV
may fall below $1.00 if the fund’s investments perform poorly. Investor losses have been rare,
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but they are possible. Money market funds pay dividends that generally reflect short-term
interest rates, and historically, the returns for money market funds have been lower than for
either bond or stock funds. That is why “inflation risk,” the risk that inflation, will outpace
and erode investment returns over time, and can be a potential concern for investors in
money market funds.
Cash & Cash Equivalents: Cash and cash equivalents generally refer to either United States
dollars or highly liquid short-term debt instruments such as, but not limited to, treasury bills,
bank CD’s and commercial papers. Generally, these assets are considered nonproductive and
will be exposed to inflation risk and considerable opportunity cost risk. Investments in cash
and cash equivalents will generally return less than the advisory fee charged by our firm. Our
firm may recommend cash and cash equivalents as part of our clients’ asset allocation when
deemed appropriate and in their best interest. Our firm considers cash and cash equivalents
to be an asset class. Therefore, our firm assess an advisory fee on cash and cash equivalents
unless indicated otherwise in writing.
Risk of Loss
Investing in securities involves risk of loss that clients should be prepared to bear. While the stock
market may increase and the account(s) could enjoy a gain, it is also possible that the stock market
may decrease, and the account(s) could suffer a loss. It is important that clients understand the risks
associated with investing in the stock market, and that their assets are appropriately diversified in
investments. Clients are encouraged to ask our firm any questions regarding their risk tolerance.
Market Risk: Either the stock market as a whole, or the value of an individual company, goes down
resulting in a decrease in the value of client investments. This is also referred to as systemic risk.
Equity (stock) market risk: Common stocks are susceptible to general stock market fluctuations
and to volatile increases and decreases in value as market confidence in and perceptions of their
issuers change. If you held common stock, or common stock equivalents, of any given issuer, you
would generally be exposed to greater risk than if you held preferred stocks and debt obligations of
the issuer.
Company Risk: When investing in stock positions, there is always a certain level of company or
industry specific risk that is inherent in each investment. This is also referred to as unsystematic risk
and can be reduced through appropriate diversification. There is the risk that the company will
perform poorly or have its value reduced based on factors specific to the company or its industry. For
example, if a company’s employees go on strike or the company receives unfavorable media attention
for its actions, the value of the company may be reduced.
Inflation & Interest Rate Risk: security prices and portfolio returns will likely vary in response to
inflation and interest rates changes. Inflation causes future dollars to be worth less and may reduce
the purchasing power of a client's future interest payments and principal. Inflation also generally
leads to higher interest rates which may cause the value of many types of fixed-income investments
to decline.
Risks Associated with Fixed Income: When investing in fixed income instruments such as bonds
or notes, the issuer may default on the bond and be unable to make payments. Further, interest rates
may increase, and the principal value of your investment may decrease. Individuals who depend on
set amounts of periodically paid income face the risk that inflation will erode their spending power.
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ETF and Mutual Fund Risk: When investing in an ETF or mutual fund, a client will bear additional
expenses based on the client’s pro rata share of the ETF’s or mutual fund’s operating expenses,
including the potential duplication of management fees. The risk of owning an ETF or mutual fund
generally reflects the risks of owning the underlying securities the ETF or mutual fund holds. Clients
will also incur brokerage costs when purchasing ETFs.
Liquidity Risk: Certain assets may not be readily converted into cash or may have a very limited
market in which they trade. Thus, you may experience the risk that your investment or assets within
your investment may not be able to be liquidated quickly, thus, extending the period of time by which
you may receive the proceeds from your investment. Liquidity risk can also result in unfavorable
pricing when exiting (i.e. not being able to quickly get out of an investment before the price drops
significantly) a particular investment and therefore, can have a negative impact on investment
returns.
Management Risk: Your investments will vary with the success and failure of our investment
strategies, research, analysis, and determination of portfolio securities. If you implement our
financial planning recommendations and our investment strategies do not produce the expected
results, you may not achieve your objectives.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: Certain service providers utilized by the Firm to
service client accounts have artificial intelligence components. The use of artificial intelligence and
machine learning includes increased risk of data inaccuracies and security vulnerabilities. Due to the
rapid advancement of machine learning technologies, future risks related to artificial intelligence are
unpredictable. As a measure to mitigate these risks to our clients, our Firm performs periodic due
diligence of our service providers for assurance that the service providers have appropriate controls
in place to protect our clients’ information and to limit data inaccuracies when artificial intelligence
is used by the service provide.
Description of Material, Significant or Unusual Risks
Our firm generally invests client cash balances in money market funds, FDIC Insured Certificates of
Deposit, high-grade commercial paper and/or government backed debt instruments. Ultimately, our
firm tries to achieve the highest return on client cash balances through relatively low-risk
conservative investments. In most cases, at least a partial cash balance will be maintained in a money
market account so that our firm may debit advisory fees for our services related to our Wrap
Comprehensive Portfolio Management services, as applicable.
Please Note: Investing in securities involves risk of loss that clients should be prepared to bear.
While the stock market may increase and your account(s) could enjoy a gain, it is also possible that
the stock market may decrease and your account(s) could suffer a loss. It is important that you
understand the risks associated with investing in the stock market, are appropriately diversified in
your investments, and ask any questions you may have.
Voting Client Securities:
Our firm votes client proxies when authorized to do so in writing by a client. We understand our duty
to vote client proxies and to do so in the best interest of our clients. Furthermore, we understand that
any material conflicts between our interests and those of our clients with regard to proxy voting must
be resolved before proxies are voted. We subscribe to a proxy monitor and voting agent service
offered by Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. (“Broadridge”), which includes access
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January Capital Advisors, LLC
to proxy analyses with research and vote recommendations from Glass, Lewis & Co. (“Glass Lewis”).
Our firm will generally vote in accordance with the recommendations of Glass Lewis but may vote in
a different fashion on particular votes if we determine that such actions are in the best interest of our
clients. Where applicable, we will consider any specific voting guidelines designated in writing by a
client. Clients may request a copy of our written policies and procedures regarding proxy voting
and/or information on how particular proxies were voted by contacting our Chief Compliance Officer,
Jeff Hodges at (415) 494-2790. We do not pay for proxy voting services with soft dollars.
Item 7: Client Information Provided to Portfolio Manager(s)
All accounts are managed by our in-house licensed IARs. The IAR selected to manage the client’s
account(s) or portfolio(s) will be privy to the client’s investment goals and objectives, risk tolerance,
restrictions placed on the management of the account(s) or portfolio(s) and relevant client notes
taken by our firm. Please see our firm’s Privacy Policy for more information on how our firm utilizes
client information.
Item 8: Client Contact with Portfolio Manager(s)
Clients are always free to directly contact their portfolio manager(s) with any questions or concerns
about their portfolios or other matters.
Item 9: Additional Information
Disciplinary Information
There are no legal or disciplinary events that are material to the evaluation of our advisory business
or the integrity of our management.
Financial Industry Activities & Affiliations
Representatives of our firm are licensed insurance agents. They may offer products and receive
normal and customary commissions as a result of these transactions. A conflict of interest may arise
as these commissionable securities sales may create an incentive to recommend products based on
the compensation they may earn. To mitigate this conflict of interest, representatives of our firm will
recommend products based solely on the client’s best interests.
Code of Ethics, Participation, or Interest in Client Transactions & Personal Trading
As a fiduciary, it is an investment adviser’s responsibility to provide fair and full disclosure of all material
facts and to act solely in the best interest of each of our clients at all times. Our fiduciary duty is the
underlying principle for our firm’s Code of Ethics, which includes procedures for personal securities
transaction and insider trading. Our firm requires all representatives to conduct business with the
highest level of ethical standards and to comply with all federal and state securities laws at all times.
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Upon employment with our firm, and at least annually thereafter, all representatives of our firm will
acknowledge receipt, understanding and compliance with our firm’s Code of Ethics. Our firm and
representatives must conduct business in an honest, ethical, and fair manner and avoid all circumstances
that might negatively affect or appear to affect our duty of complete loyalty to all clients. This disclosure
is provided to give all clients a summary of our Code of Ethics. If a client or a potential client wishes to
review our Code of Ethics in its entirety, a copy will be provided promptly upon request.
Our firm recognizes that the personal investment transactions of our representatives demands the
application of a Code of Ethics with high standards and requires that all such transactions be carried out
in a way that does not endanger the interest of any client. At the same time, our firm also believes that if
investment goals are similar for clients and for our representatives, it is logical, and even desirable, that
there be common ownership of some securities.
In order to prevent conflicts of interest, our firm has established procedures for transactions effected by
our representatives for their personal accounts1. In order to monitor compliance with our personal
trading policy, our firm has pre-clearance requirements and a quarterly securities transaction reporting
system for all of our representatives.
Neither our firm nor a related person recommends, buys or sells for client accounts, securities in
which our firm or a related person has a material financial interest without prior disclosure to the
client.
Related persons of our firm may buy or sell securities and other investments that are also
recommended to clients. In order to minimize this conflict of interest, our related persons will place
client interests ahead of their own interests and adhere to our firm’s Code of Ethics, a copy of which
is available upon request.
Likewise, related persons of our firm buy or sell securities for themselves at or about the same time they
buy or sell the same securities for client accounts. In order to minimize this conflict of interest, our
related persons will place client interests ahead of their own interests and adhere to our firm’s Code of
Ethics, a copy of which is available upon request. Further, our related persons will refrain from buying
or selling the same securities prior to buying or selling for our clients in the same day. If related persons’
accounts are included in a block trade, our related persons will always trade personal accounts last.
Review of Accounts
Our management personnel or financial advisors review accounts on at least an annual basis for our
Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management clients. The nature of these reviews is to learn whether
clients’ accounts are in line with their investment objectives, appropriately positioned based on
market conditions, and investment policies, if applicable. Our firm may review client accounts more
frequently than described above. Among the factors which may trigger an off-cycle review are major
market or economic events, the client’s life events, requests by the client, etc. Our firm does not
provide written reports to clients, unless asked to do so. Verbal reports to clients take place on at
least an annual basis when our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management clients are contacted.
Other Compensation
1 For purposes of the policy, our associate’s personal account generally includes any account (a) in the name of our associate, his/her spouse,
his/her minor children or other dependents residing in the same household, (b) for which our associate is a trustee or executor, or (c) which our
associate controls, including our client accounts which our associate controls and/or a member of his/her household has a direct or indirect
beneficial interest in.
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Custodian & Brokers Used
Our firm does not maintain custody of client assets (although our firm may be deemed to have
custody of client assets if give the authority to withdraw assets from client accounts. See Item 15
Custody, below). Client assets must be maintained in an account at a “qualified custodian,” generally
a broker-dealer or bank. Our firm recommends that clients use the Schwab Advisor Services division
of Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. (“Schwab”), a FINRA-registered broker-dealer, member SIPC, as the
qualified custodian. Our firm is independently owned and operated, and not affiliated with Schwab.
Schwab will hold client assets in a brokerage account and buy and sell securities when instructed.
While our firm recommends that clients use Schwab as custodian/broker, clients will decide whether
to do so and open an account with Schwab by entering into an account agreement directly with them.
Our firm does not open the account. Even though the account is maintained at Schwab, our firm can
still use other brokers to execute trades, as described in the next paragraph.
How Brokers/Custodians Are Selected
Our firm seeks to recommend a custodian/broker who will hold client assets and execute
transactions on terms that are overall most advantageous when compared to other available
providers and their services. A wide range of factors are considered, including, but not limited to:
•
•
•
combination of transaction execution services along with asset custody services (generally
without a separate fee for custody)
capability to execute, clear and settle trades (buy and sell securities for client accounts)
capabilities to facilitate transfers and payments to and from accounts (wire transfers, check
requests, bill payment, etc.)
• breadth of investment products made available (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange
traded funds (ETFs), etc.)
• availability of investment research and tools that assist in making investment decisions
•
quality of services
competitiveness of the price of those services (commission rates, margin interest rates, other
fees, etc.) and willingness to negotiate them
reputation, financial strength and stability of the provider
•
• prior service to our firm and our other clients
• availability of other products and services that benefit our firm, as discussed below (see
“Products & Services Available from Schwab”)
Custody & Brokerage Costs
Schwab generally does not charge a separate for custody services, but is compensated by charging
commissions or other fees to clients on trades that are executed or that settle into the Schwab
account. In addition to commissions Schwab charges a flat dollar amount as a “prime broker” or
“trade away” fee for each trade that our firm has executed by a different broker-dealer but where the
securities bought or the funds from the securities sold are deposited (settled) into a Schwab account.
These fees are in addition to the commissions or other compensation paid to the executing broker-
dealer. Because of this, in order to minimize client trading costs, our firm has Schwab execute most
trades for the accounts.
Products & Services Available from Schwab
Schwab Advisor Services is Schwab’s business serving independent investment advisory firms like
our firm. They provide our firm and clients with access to its institutional brokerage – trading,
custody, reporting and related services – many of which are not typically available to Schwab retail
customers. Schwab also makes available various support services. Some of those services help
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manage or administer our client accounts while others help manage and grow our business. Schwab’s
support services are generally available on an unsolicited basis (our firm does not have to request
them) and at no charge to our firm. The availability of Schwab’s products and services is not based
on the provision of particular investment advice, such as purchasing particular securities for clients.
Here is a more detailed description of Schwab’s support services:
Services that Benefit Clients
Schwab’s institutional brokerage services include access to a broad range of investment products,
execution of securities transactions, and custody of client assets. The investment products available
through Schwab include some to which our firm might not otherwise have access or that would
require a significantly higher minimum initial investment by firm clients. Schwab’s services
described in this paragraph generally benefit clients and their accounts.
Services that May Not Directly Benefit Clients
Schwab also makes available other products and services that benefit our firm but may not directly
benefit clients or their accounts. These products and services assist in managing and administering
our client accounts. They include investment research, both Schwab’s and that of third parties. This
research may be used to service all or some substantial number of client accounts, including accounts
not maintained at Schwab. In addition to investment research, Schwab also makes available software
and other technology that:
• provides access to client account data (such as duplicate trade confirmations and account
statements);
facilitates trade execution and allocate aggregated trade orders for multiple client accounts;
facilitates payment of our fees from our clients’ accounts; and
•
• provides pricing and other market data;
•
• assists with back-office functions, recordkeeping and client reporting.
Services that Generally Benefit Only Our Firm
Schwab also offers other services intended to help manage and further develop our business
enterprise. These services include:
technology, compliance, legal, and business consulting;
• educational conferences and events
•
• publications and conferences on practice management and business succession; and
• access to employee benefits providers, human capital consultants and insurance providers.
Schwab may provide some of these services itself. In other cases, Schwab will arrange for third-party
vendors to provide the services to our firm. Schwab may also discount or waive fees for some of these
services or pay all or a part of a third party’s fees. Schwab may also provide our firm with other
benefits, such as occasional business entertainment for our personnel.
Irrespective of direct or indirect benefits to our client through Schwab, our firm strives to enhance
the client experience, help clients reach their goals and put client interests before that of our firm or
associated persons.
Our Interest in Schwab’s Services.
The availability of these services from Schwab benefits our firm because our firm does not have to
produce or purchase them. Our firm does not have to pay for these services, and they are not
contingent upon committing any specific amount of business to Schwab in trading commissions or
assets in custody.
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In light of our arrangements with Schwab, a conflict of interest exists as our firm may have incentive
to require that clients maintain their accounts with Schwab based on our interest in receiving
Schwab’s services that benefit our firm rather than based on client interest in receiving the best value
in custody services and the most favorable execution of transactions. As part of our fiduciary duty to
our clients, our firm will endeavor at all times to put the interests of our clients first. Clients should
be aware, however, that the receipt of economic benefits by our firm or our related persons creates
a potential conflict of interest and may indirectly influence our firm’s choice of Schwab as a custodial
recommendation. Our firm examined this potential conflict of interest when our firm chose to
recommend Schwab and have determined that the recommendation is in the best interest of our firm’s
clients and satisfies our fiduciary obligations, including our duty to seek best execution.
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. Although our firm will seek competitive rates, to the benefit of all clients,
our firm may not necessarily obtain the lowest possible commission rates for specific client account
transactions. Our firm believes that the selection of Schwab as a custodian and broker is the best
interest of our clients. It is primarily supported by the scope, quality and price of Schwab’s services,
and not Schwab’s services that only benefit our firm.
Client Referrals
In accordance with Rule 206 (4)-1 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, our firm does not provide
cash or non-cash compensation directly or indirectly to unaffiliated persons for testimonials or
endorsements (which include client referrals).
Financial Information
Our firm is not required to provide financial information in this Brochure because:
• Our firm does not require the prepayment of more than $1,200 in fees when services cannot
be rendered within 6 months.
• Our firm does not take custody of client funds or securities.
• Our firm does not have a financial condition or commitment that impairs our ability to meet
contractual and fiduciary obligations to clients.
Our firm has never been the subject of a bankruptcy proceeding.
ADV Part 2A, Appendix 1 – Wrap Fee Brochure
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January Capital Advisors, LLC