*DISCLOSURE INFORMATION - RANKINGS AND AWARDS
Barron’s Magazine –Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors, Top 1,200 Financial Advisors, Hall of Fame
The selection methodology described below is for Barron’s which is a registered trademark of Dow Jones & Company, L.P. Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) is not affiliated with Barron’s or Dow Jones & Company, L.P. “Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors” and “Top 1,200 Financial Advisors” bases the rankings upon data provided by individual advisors and their firms, including submissions by Mainstay. Barron’s confirms that data via regulatory databases, crosschecks with securities firms and conversations with individual advisors. Mainstay applied for consideration, and the result was independently granted. Advisors’ who wish to be ranked fill out a survey about their practice. Barron’s then verifies that data with the advisors’ firms and with regulatory databases and then applies its rankings formula to the data to generate a ranking. The formula Barron’s uses to rank advisors is proprietary. It has three major components: assets managed, revenue produced and quality of practice. Investment returns are not a component of the rankings because an advisor’s returns are dictated largely by the risk tolerance of clients. In addition, Barron’s also considers a wide range of qualitative factors, including the advisors’ experience, their advanced degrees and industry designations, the size and shape of their teams, their charitable and philanthropic work and regulatory compliance records.
Mainstay is unaware of the number of nominees considered for the award rankings. Barron’s does not require membership or payment in order for award participants and/or applicants to be considered for an award designation. Moreover, neither Mainstay nor any other participating advisors paid a fee to be eligible for the “Top 100 Independent Finanical Advisors”, "Barron’s Hall of Fame", and/or “Top 1,200 Financial Advisors.” However, Mainstay may pay a fee in exchange for plaques, logo licensing, a web link, or article reprints commemorating the designation. Mainstay would pay this fee only after receiving the designation and not as a condition precedent to receiving it. The fact that Mainstay pays any fee with respect to its receipt of the designation should be considered if such designation is a factor in a client’s or prospective client’s evaluation of whether to initially engage or continue to engage Mainstay for investment advisory services. Barron’s ranked advisors may pay Barron’s a separate fee for special advertising to publish their contact information including applicable phone numbers, email addresses, and website addresses. This publication option is offered on an annual basis and is limited to Barron’s ranked advisors for that respective year. After receiving the respective award designations, Mainstay may pay a separate fee to Barron’s in exchange for publication of this information. It should be noted that this type of payment creates an inherent conflict of interest because it provides the awarding entity with a monetary incentive to grant such ranking, recognition, or designation to participating advisors that submit such forms of consideration. Barron’s does not publish, nor is Mainstay aware of the percentage of other advisors that received the applicable rankings. Mainstay is unaware of any undisclosed facts that could potentially invalidate the appropriateness of the ranking. By virtue of disclosing this ranking, Mainstay is disclosing favorable ratings (to the extent that David Kudla or Mainstay is ranked above other advisors) and unfavorable ratings (to the extent that David Kudla or Mainstay is ranked below other advisors). By considering the compliance record, eligibility to appear on the rankings seeks to ensure that a participating advisor has an established and significant history and record free from regulatory sanctions. The rankings are not representative of any one client’s experience because of the way in which it is calculated. Inclusion on the above list is absolutely not indicative of Mainstay’s future performance, or any future performance pertaining to its clients’ investments; should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that they will experience a certain level of results if Mainstay is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services; and should not be construed as a current or past endorsement of Mainstay by any of its clients.
“Top 1,200 Financial Advisors” ranks all advisors regardless of whether they are considered independent or not. The financial results used in the calculations are as of September 30, 2023, and appeared in Barron’s on March 11, 2024.
“Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors” only ranks advisors they consider “independent”. The data is as of the end of the second quarter ending, June 30 2024, and appeared in Barron’s on September 16, 2024.
"Barron’s Hall of Fame" is an award honoring advisors who have appeared in 10 or more of Barron’s annual Top 100 Advisor rankings. Barron’s awarded David Kudla this honor in 2019, which first appeared September 16, 2019.
Forbes –America’s Top Wealth Advisors, America’s Top RIA Firms, and Best-In-State Wealth Advisors
“Forbes” is a registered mark of Forbes, LLC. Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) is not affiliated with Forbes or SHOOK Research. Data for the Forbes “America’s Top Wealth Advisors”, “America’s Top RIA Firms”, and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” are developed by SHOOK Research. Each advisor considered for the award was nominated by their respective firm, then vetted and ranked by SHOOK Research. David Kudla or Mainstay applied for consideration, and the result was independently granted. The Forbes “America’s Top Wealth Advisors,” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” rankings are based on an algorithm of qualitative criteria, mostly gained through telephone and in-person due diligence interviews, and quantitative data. An advisor would meet basic requirements for consideration based on having a minimum of seven years’ experience, a minimum of one year at the current firm (with exceptions based on acquisitions, etc.), being nominated and recommended by a firm, completion of an online survey, over 50% of revenue / production must be with individuals, and an acceptable compliance record. The algorithm weights factors like revenue trends, assets under management, compliance record, industry experience, and those that encompass best practices in their practices and approach to working with clients. Portfolio performance is not a criterion due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. In developing its applicant pools for “America’s Top Wealth Advisors” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors,” SHOOK sets thresholds to limit nominations for consideration. For “America’s Top Wealth Advisors” and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” Forbes and SHOOK may receive thousands of nominations (based on SHOOK thresholds), invite thousands of candidates to complete the online survey, conduct a lesser number of telephone interviews, and conduct a smaller sample of in-person interviews virtually or at the Advisor’s location. Forbes recognizes a couple hundred wealth advisors. Forbes generally recognizes around one hundred wealth advisors from Michigan. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK receive a fee or require membership in exchange for rankings. Accordingly, neither David Kudla nor Mainstay, or any other participating advisors paid a fee to be eligible for the “America’s Top Wealth Advisors”, “America’s Top RIA Firms”, or “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” rankings. Based on its stated methodology, SHOOK does not name advisors if the ratings are not statistically valid; and there are no facts that would call into question the validity of the inclusion on the “America’s Top Wealth Advisors”, “America’s Top RIA Firms”, and “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors” rankings or the appropriateness of Mainstay advertising the same. By considering the compliance record, eligibility to appear on the rankings seeks to ensure that a participating advisor has an established and significant history and record free from regulatory sanctions.
Mainstay is unaware of any undisclosed facts that could potentially invalidate the appropriateness of the above rankings. By virtue of disclosing the rankings, Mainstay is disclosing favorable ratings (to the extent that David Kudla or Mainstay is ranked above other advisors) and unfavorable ratings (to the extent that David Kudla or Mainstay is ranked below other advisors). The ranking may not be representative of any one client’s experience because of the way in which it is calculated. The ranking is absolutely not indicative of Mainstay’s and its advisors’ future performance, or any future performance pertaining to its clients’ investments, nor should it be construed as a current or past endorsement by any of its clients.
The “America’s Top Wealth Advisors” data as of June 30, 2023 and appeared on Forbes online on April 3, 2024.
The “America’s Top RIA Firms” data is as March 31, 2024 and appeared on Forbes on October 8, 2024.
The “Best-In-State” data as of June 30, 2023 and appeared on Forbes online on April 3, 2024.
Financial Advisor Magazine – FA’s RIA Ranking
“2024 Financial Advisor magazine RIA Survey & Ranking” comes from Financial Advisor magazine (“FA”), a publication and online website covering the investment advisory industry, which surveys and publishes an annual list of independent registered investment advisors, ranked by assets under management. Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) is not affiliated with FA. FA's RIA survey is based on assets under management at year end of independent RIA firms. FA's RIA ranking orders firms from largest to smallest, based on AUM reported to them by firms that voluntarily complete and submit FA's survey by a certain deadline. FA states that they “…do our best to verify AUM by reviewing ADV forms.” To be eligible to participate, firms must be independent registered investment advisors, filing their own ADV with the SEC, and provide financial planning and related services to individual investors. Firms must have at least $1 billion in assets under management to be included in the July/August 2024 issue of Financial Advisor magazine. Firms under $1 billion in assets will be published in an online national ranking on FA's website. FA magazine has not disclosed how many firms chose to participate. There was no direct compensation provided to be nominated for this award. The 2024 FA’s RIA Survey and Ranking appeared in the 2024 July/August issue of Financial Advisor magazine.
Financial Planning - Top 150 Fee-Only RIA Firms
Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) was named among the “Top 150 Fee-Only RIA Firms” by Financial Planning (“FP”) in 2023. FP’s 2023 ranking of registered investment advisers was compiled by compliance firm Comply. Mainstay is not affiliated with Financial Planning or Comply. SEC Form ADV filings as of July 2023 were used to list the largest companies using a six-part criteria that included the following: (1) firms must have zero registered representatives of a broker-dealer, (2) at least 50% of the firm's clients must be individuals or high net worth individuals, (3) firms must not list commissions as a compensation arrangement, (4) firms must have more than zero financial planning clients, (5) firms must not list commission-taking businesses in "other business activities", and (6) firms cannot be affiliated under common ownership with commission-taking businesses. Neither FP nor Comply have disclosed how many firms were evaluated to formulate the list. There was no direct compensation provided to be nominated for this award. The “RIA Leaders 2023: Top 150 Fee-Only RIA Firms” appeared on Financial Planning online on November 22, 2023.
Schwab IMPACT Awards®
The Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s IMPACT Awards® program recognizes excellence in the business of independent financial advice. Nominees are evaluated and selected by a panel of prominent leaders from both the business world and the financial services industry. Mainstay Capital Management does use Charles Schwab to custody certain client assets, however there was no direct compensation provided to be nominated for this award. Mainstay Capital Management received this annual award on November 15, 2017.
Investment News – Top-Fee only RIA and Leading RIA Firms That Provide Financial Planning Services to Individual Investors
Investment News qualified a couple thousand firms headquartered in the United States based on data reported on Form ADV to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) is not affiliated with Investment News. To qualify, firms must have met the following criteria: (1) latest ADV filing date is either on or after Jan. 1 of the previous year, (2) total AUM is at least $100M, (3) does not have employees who are registered representatives of a broker-dealer, (4) provided investment advisory services to clients during its most recently completed fiscal year, (5) no more than 50% of amount of regulatory assets under management is attributable to pooled investment vehicles (other than investment companies), (6) no more than 25% of amount of regulatory assets under management is attributable to pension and profit-sharing plans (but not the plan participants), (7) no more than 25% of amount of regulatory assets under management is attributable to corporations or other businesses, (8) does not receive commissions, (9) provides financial planning services, (10) is not actively engaged in business as a broker-dealer (registered or unregistered), (11) is not actively engaged in business as a registered representative of a broker-dealer, (12) has neither a related person who is a broker-dealer/municipal securities dealer/government securities broker or dealer (registered or unregistered) nor one who is an insurance company or agency. Investment News does not require membership or payment in order for award participants and/or applicants to be considered for an award designation. Moreover, neither Mainstay nor any other participating advisors paid a fee to be eligible for the “RIA rundown: Top fee-only RIAs by state.” However, Mainstay may pay a fee in exchange for plaques, logo licensing, a web link, or article reprints commemorating the designation. Mainstay would pay this fee only after receiving the designation and not as a condition precedent to receiving it. The fact that Mainstay pays any fee with respect to its receipt of the designation should be considered if such designation is a factor in a client’s or prospective client’s evaluation of whether to initially engage, or continue to engage, Mainstay for investment advisory services. Investment News ranked advisors may pay Investment News a separate fee for advertising to publish their contact information including applicable phone numbers, email addresses, and website addresses. It should be noted that this type of payment creates an inherent conflict of interest because it provides the awarding entity with a monetary incentive to grant such ranking, recognition, or designation to participating advisors that submit such forms of consideration. After receiving the respective award designations, Mainstay did not pay a separate fee to Investment News in exchange for publication of this information. Mainstay is unaware of any undisclosed facts that could potentially invalidate the appropriateness of the ranking. By virtue of disclosing this ranking, Mainstay is disclosing favorable ratings (to the extent that David Kudla or Mainstay is ranked above other advisors) and unfavorable ratings (to the extent that David Kudla or Mainstay is ranked below other advisors). The rankings are not representative of any one client’s experience because of the way in which it is determined. Inclusion on the above list is absolutely not indicative of Mainstay’s future performance, or any future performance pertaining to its clients’ investments; should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that they will experience a certain level of results if Mainstay is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services; and should not be construed as a current or past endorsement of Mainstay by any of its clients. Ratings from an earlier date, or that are based on information from an earlier period, may not reflect the current state of an investment adviser’s business. The 2010 Leading RIA Firms That Provide Financial Planning Services to Individual Investors appeared on Investment News online on May 18, 2010. The 2019 Top fee-only RIAs by state appeared on Investment News online on June 1, 2019.
RIA Channel - Top 100 Wealth Managers
RIA Channel “Top 100 Wealth Managers” ranks wealth managers “based on a proprietary set of criteria and data. Mainstay is not affiliated with RIA Channel. The ranking is based on both size and growth in assets as of November 15, 2019, as reported to the SEC. RIA Database was used for regulatory data, organic research, and advisor surveys.” Mainstay Capital Management (“Mainstay”) did not verify any data, nor were we asked to, prior to ranking or publication. Regulatory Assets Under Management (“RAUM”) displayed on RIA Channel’s website is calculated by RIA Channel, not Mainstay Capital Management. RIA Channel has not published information on how many firms were considered for ranking or the criteria used for inclusion on this ranking. Mainstay Capital Management did not submit any information to RIA Channel regarding this ranking, request to be considered for the ranking or pay any fee in connection with this recognition. The 2019 Top 100 Wealth Managers appeared on RIA Channel online on December 17, 2019.
Financial Times – FT 300
Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) was named among the “FT 300” by Financial Times for 2015 and 2017. Mainstay is not affiliated with Financial Times (“FT”) or Ignites Distribution Research, a Financial Times sister publication that conducted the ranking research on behalf of FT. The formula the FT uses to grade advisers is based on six broad factors and calculates a numeric score for each adviser. Areas of consideration include adviser AUM, asset growth, the company's age, industry certifications of key employees, SEC compliance record, and online accessibility. The reasons these were chosen are as follows: AUM signals experience managing money and client trust; AUM growth rate (FT assessed one-year and two-year rates) can be a proxy for performance, as well as for asset retention and the ability to generate new business; A companies' age indicates reliability and experience managing assets through different market environments; the compliance record provides evidence of past client disputes where a string of complaints could signal potential problems; industry certifications show a company's staff has technical and industry knowledge, and signals a professional commitment to investment skills; and online accessibility demonstrates a desire to provide easy access and transparent contact information. Assets under management and asset growth, combined, comprised roughly 80 to 85 percent of each adviser's score. Additionally, the FT caps the number of included companies from any one state. There was no direct compensation provided to be nominated for this award. The FT 300 appeared on Financial Times online on June 18, 2015 and June 22, 2017 for 2015 and 2017, respectively.
CityWire - RIA Future 50 Firm and Best of Green Policy
Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) has been named a “RIA Future 50” and “Best of Green Policy” firm by Citywire. Mainstay is not affiliated with Citywire. The 50 selected RIA firms represent a group of finance professionals who are collectively creating a new investment landscape and represent the publication’s vision of the future of the RIA community. These are RIA firms that have their own unique stories to tell, are driven to succeed on their own terms, and, most importantly, are in charge of their own investment decisions.
Firms were evaluated using Citywire’s proprietary scoring system based on their degree of independent ownership; AUM growth; percentage of fee-based business; approaches to sustainability; processes for attracting and maintaining talent; succession planning; staff credentials; investment offerings and capabilities; client education and charitable work; and firm service offerings. There was no direct compensation provided to be nominated for this award. Firms must be registered by the SEC as an RIA with between $250 million and $2 billion in AUM at the end of 2018. The 2019 Citywire RIA Future 50 and Best of Green Policy appeared in Citywire on October 23, 2019.
Brightscope – Top 100 Most Social Financial Advisors
BrightScope obtains its data directly from publicly available sources, including required regulatory filings from the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mainstay Capital Management, LLC (“Mainstay”) is not affiliated with Brightscope. Financial advisors can augment these primary sources by claiming their BrightScope Advisor Page™. By analyzing and interpreting this data, BrightScope now provides unparalleled insight into the financial management industry.
BrightScope looked at data from more than 1,000 advisors and included only advisors who had a Twitter profile or who actively contributed to a blog. It looked at the distribution for each data point included in the score to figure out which advisors has been the most successful growing their digital brand. Re-tweets are score boosters. There was no direct compensation provided to be nominated for this award. Data as of June, 2014 and appeared on Brightscope on March 11, 2015.
Better Business Bureau
Better Business Bureau (“BBB”) ratings represent the BBB's opinion of how the business is likely to interact with its customers. The BBB rating is based on information the BBB is able to obtain about the business, including complaints received from the public. The BBB seeks and uses information directly from businesses and from public data sources. There may have been compensation on the onsite of receiving this recognition.
The BBB assigns ratings from A+ (highest) to F (lowest). In some cases, the BBB will not rate the business (indicated by an NR, or "No Rating") for reasons that include insufficient information about a business or ongoing review/update of the business's file.
BBB Business Profiles generally explain the most significant factors that raise or lower a business's rating.
BBB ratings are not a guarantee of a business's reliability or performance. The BBB recommends that consumers consider a business's BBB rating in addition to all other available information about the business.
Customer Reviews are not used in the calculation of the BBB Letter Grade Rating. Mainstay has been accredited by the BBB since November 2, 2001.
