Award Rankings Disclosures

Rankings and/or recognition by unaffiliated rating services and/or publications should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that he/she will experience a certain level of results if Company is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services, nor should it be construed as a current or past endorsement of Company by any of its clients. Rankings published by magazines, and others, generally base their selections exclusively on information prepared and/or submitted by the recognized adviser. Rankings are generally limited to participating advisers. The Company never pays a fee to be considered for any ranking or recognition, but may purchase plaques or reprints to publicize rankings. 

A more thorough disclosure of the criteria or methodology used for various rankings can be found below.

• Worth Magazine – Worth’s Top RIA Firms (Awarded 2025)

• • Website: https://worth.com/leading-advisors/top-registered-investment-advisor-firms/ 
  • Disclosure: The Leading Advisor program uses a rigorous selection process to identify the best registered investment advisors, including AUM of over $500 million, predominance of high-net-worth clients, and unbiased advice independent from broker-dealers. These firms craft tailored strategies to manage our readers’ wealth. 
  • Methodology: The core value of the Leading Advisor program to our readers lies in its rigorous selection process and the credibility it bestows upon each listed advisor. Featured Registered Investment Advisor firms has successfully cleared stringent benchmarks:
    • AUM of Over $500 Million: Demonstrates substantial experience and trust in handling significant wealth.
    • Predominantly High-Net-Worth Clients: Shows specialized expertise in managing the complex financial situations typical of wealthier clients.
    • Substantial Planning Clientele: Indicates a focus on comprehensive financial planning rather than simple asset management.
    • Independence from Broker-Dealers: Ensures advice is unbiased and purely client-centric.
    • The rankings were developed in collaboration with Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), a proxy advisory firm that helps investors comply with SEC rules for ADV Forms disclosure of proxy voting records. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires companies to compile and present financial and business information, reports, and disclosures to provide transparency to investors and the public.  Leading Advisor assessments are based on the data that firms submit to the SEC in these disclosures. The public can review SEC filings through the commission’s online database, EDGAR.

• Financial Advisor Magazine – America’s Top RIA’s (Awarded 2024)
  

  • Website: https://www.fa-mag.com/news/2024-ria-survey-and-ranking-rias-confront-their-own-success-78697.html?section=133 
  • Disclosure: FA’s RIA survey is a ranking based on assets under management of independent RIA firms as of 12/31/23, unless noted otherwise on the survey, that file their own ADV with the SEC. FA’s RIA ranking orders firms from largest to smallest, based on AUM reported by firms that voluntarily complete and submit FA’s survey
  • Methodology:  FA‘s RIA survey is a ranking based on assets under management at year end of independent RIA firms that file their own ADV with the SEC. FA‘s RIA ranking orders firms from largest to smallest, based on AUM reported to us by firms that voluntarily complete and submit FA‘s survey by our deadline. We do our best to verify AUM by reviewing ADV forms. To be eligible for the ranking, firms must be independent registered investment advisors and file their own ADV statement with the SEC and provide financial planning and related services to individual clients. Firms must have at least $1 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2023, to be included in the print edition of Financial Advisor magazine’s 2024 RIA survey. Firms with under $1 billion will be included in FA‘s expanded 2024 online RIA survey.

• Advisory HQ – Top Financial Advisors in Austin (Awarded 2023)

  • Website:  https://www.advisoryhq.com/articles/best-austin-texas-financial-advisors-rias-wealth-managers/ 
  • Disclosure: Advisor HQ’s review and ranking articles are always 100% independently researched and written. Firms do not even realize that they are being reviewed by AdvisoryHQ until after our reviews have been completed and published to the public
  • Methodology: 
    1. https://www.advisoryhq.com/articles/advisoryhqs-methodology-for-selecting-top-advisors/ 

• WealthManagement.com – RIA Edge 100: Client Focused RIA Firms with Outsized Growth (Awarded 2023)

1. • Website: https://www.wealthmanagement.com/the-ria-edge-100-growing-above-and-beyond
   • Disclosure: Wealth Management IQ and Discovery Data have compiled a list of RIAs that are experiencing outsized growth while keeping sight of their first priority: the client. WealthManagement.com’s RIA Edge 100 list is an attempt to identify those firms that are seeing the most success while continuing to provide high-quality, hands-on service to an expanding client base.
   • Methodology: The list was developed by the Wealth Management IQ team in partnership with Discovery Data. Analyzing the ADVs of all SEC-registered investment advisors, WMIQ and Discovery looked at AUM growth, ratio of employees to clients, ratio of advisors to clients, percentage of advisors with CFP certification and average client account size. Qualifying firms were limited to those that provide financial planning services, have high-net-worth individuals as more than half of their client base and manage at least $250 million in assets as of June 30, 2022.
   • The methodology and weighting were intended to give a clear picture of firm growth as it relates to client service. RIA Edge 100 firms are those with the most impressive growth rates combined with the best client ratios and most CFP certifications

• CNBC FA – Financial Advisor 100 List (Awarded 2024)

• • Website: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/02/fa-100-cnbc-ranks-the-top-rated-financial-advisory-firms-of-2024.html 
  • Disclosure: CNBC ranks the top-rated financial advisory firms of 2024. The CNBC FA 100 recognizes those advisory firms that best help clients navigate their financial lives. CNBC receives no compensation from placing financial advisory firms on our list. Additionally, an advisor’s appearance on our ranking does not constitute an individual endorsement by CNBC of any firm.
  • Methodology: CNBC enlisted data provider AccuPoint Solutions to assist with the ranking of registered investment advisors for this year’s FA 100 list. The methodology consisted of first analyzing a variety of core data points from AccuPoint Solutions’ proprietary database of registered investment advisors. This analysis used an initial list of 40,896 RIA firms from the Securities and Exchange Commission regulatory database. Through a process, the list was eventually cut to 903 RIAs meeting CNBC’s proprietary criteria. CNBC staff sent an extensive email survey to all those firms that met the initial criteria to gather more details. In turn, those advisory firms filled out a comprehensive application in regard to their practice. The CNBC team verified that data with those firms and with the SEC regulatory database. AccuPoint once again applied CNBC’s proprietary weighted categories to further refine and rank the firms, ultimately creating the list of the top 100 firms.

• Investment News – Best Places to Work for Financial Advisors in the USA (Awarded 2024)

1. • Website: https://www.investmentnews.com/best-in-wealth/best-places-to-work-for-financial-advisors-in-the-usa/249810 
   • Disclosure: This recognition program identifies and recognizes financial advisory firms that empower employees to provide clients with the best possible investment and financial planning advice. Eligibility requirements include being a registered investment adviser (RIA) or being affiliated with an independent broker-dealer (IBD), being in business for a minimum of one year, and having a minimum of 15 full-time employees.  
   • Methodology: Investment News partnered with Best Companies Group, an independent research organization, to execute the survey ranking process. Firms were selected based on employer and employee survey feedback, which polled topics such as workplace culture, benefits, and perks. Rankings were determined based on the voluntary information collected.

• Austin Business Journal – #1 Financial Planning Firm (Awarded 2022)

1. • Website: https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/subscriber-only/2022/04/01/the-list-austin-area-financial-planning.html
   • Disclosure: The 2022 Austin Business Journal list of financial planning firms includes firms with offices in the Austin area, including Travis, Williamson, Hays, Bastrop and Caldwell counties. Data is gathered via ABJ surveys sent to company representatives. Only firms that responded to requests for information are included.
   • Methodology: The list is ranked by the number of certified financial planners (CFP) in the Austin office and ties are broken by the total number of certified professionals handling financial planning. Professionals include Certified Financial Planners (CFP), Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Investment Advisor Reps (IAR), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), Chartered Life Underwriters (CLU), as well as Series 65 and 66 licenses.