Portformulas FAQs

Portformulas utilizes a number of different investments to help our investor clients meet their goals. Each Portformulas strategy has its own specific set of criteria that dictate the types of investment that will be used. While the majority of strategies utilize individual equities (stocks), we also provide strategies that utilize Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and Mutual Funds.

The strategy that you invest in will be carefully evaluated by your financial professional. Every strategy has its' own formulaic criteria that is evaluated in order to determine the holdings for the specified period of time.

It is important to understand that USA Financial Formulas is not the custodian of your assets. We work closely with a number of large, third party institutions that provide custody services for our investor clients. Our clients appreciate the arms-length distance we maintain with our custody partners.

We work closely with a network of financial professionals throughout the country. We believe that it is important for our investor clients to have a professional with whom they work that has a greater understanding of their "big picture." Investment management is just one piece of the comprehensive financial planning puzzle. It is important to note that our network of financial professionals are not employees of our firm. They are independent professionals that provide independent financial guidance to clients throughout the country.

Our minimum account size is $35,000. Each strategy has its own minimum investment amount, but the majority of the strategies have a minimum of $15,000.

The investment management fees vary by account type and size. Before investing, please review our firm's ADV brochure.

Portformulas clients enjoy the fact that the management of their account is done without the conflict of traditional brokerage commissions. While typical trading commissions aren’t present in a Portformulas account, ticket charges still apply. Trading outside of the beginning of the month could result in higher than usual ticket charges. For a list of fees and trade costs please defer to the Portformulas ADV.

The majority of Portformulas strategies are reviewed monthly. This means that the individual formula governing the strategy is re-run at the beginning of every month. As a result, the holdings in each strategy may change from month to month, and so your overall portfolio will reflect those changes. These changes are very transparent to the investor. In fact, every strategy's formula is published for investors to review.

Your financial professional can help you with this answer. The real answer is that it depends upon your overall financial goals and your financial plan.

Each strategy is designed to accomplish something different, and each strategy has its own level of risk. Furthermore, the risk management component of each strategy may vary slightly. Talk with your professional about how the various strategies may complement one another inside of your overall plan.

Risk management is at the core of everything we do. With that said, investing in the equity or bond market will always involve some element of risk. A small cap equity strategy will carry a different level of risk than a preferred stock strategy. This needs to be factored in as a part of your overall portfolio. While Portformulas strategies provide a high degree of liquidity, they are not designed to be short term investments.