Winthrop Wealth is a fee-based financial advisor firm that has a sizable team of advisors who work with billions of dollars in client assets under management (AUM). WWM is centrally located in Boston, but it also runs an advisory office in Westborough, Massachusetts. The extensive range of services at Winthrop stretch across investment management, financial planning, retirement plan consulting and independent manager selection.
As a fee-based firm, certain advisors at Winthrop can earn extra compensation from insurance or securities sales, in addition to client-paid fees. A fee-only firm, on the other hand, earns all income from client fees.
Winthrop Wealth Background
Winthrop Wealth has been in business since 1985. Co-president and chief investment officer (CIO) Mark Winthrop and co-president Earl Winthrop founded the firm. The brothers are still the principal owners of the firm.
Winthrop has just nine advisory staff members, but this group holds a handful of advisory certifications. This list includes three chartered financial analysts (CFAs), three certified financial planners (CFPs), one certified public accountant (CPA), two professional plan consultants (PPC), one accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), one chartered life underwriter (CLU) and one chartered financial consultant (ChFC).
Winthrop Wealth Client Types and Minimum Account Sizes
Winthrop Wealth's typical client base is made up of a combination of non-high-net-worth individuals, high-net-worth individuals, estates, trusts, businesses, charitable organizations, pension plans and profit-sharing plans.
The advisory services of Winthrop Wealth do not come with any sort of minimum account size stipulations.
Services Offered by Winthrop Wealth
Winthrop Wealth’s client service offerings are anchored in investment management, financial planning, retirement plan consulting and, occasionally, independent manager selection. The list below breaks down each services available at WWM:
- Financial planning and consulting
- Retirement planning
- Estate planning
- Trust planning
- Cash flow planning and analysis
- Insurance planning and review
- Education cost analysis and planning
- Business succession planning
- Social Security strategy planning
- Major purchase planning
- Tax planning and minimization
- Investment management
- Available as either a discretionary or non-discretionary service
- Risk- and financial goal-adjusted portfolios
- Focuses on:
- Equities
- Fixed-income securities
- Exchange-traded funds (ETFs)
- Mutual funds
- Master limited partnerships (MLPs)
- Real estate investment trusts (REITs)
- Alternative investments
- Separate management or advice for certain investment products
- Client investment discretion
- Retirement plan consulting
- Investment policy statement (IPS) development
- Plan design and strategy creation
- Current plan evaluation
- Plan fee and cost analysis
- Investment advice and selection
- Meetings with plan committee
- Education for participants
- Independent manager selection
- Reviews of:
- Disclosure documentation
- Third-party analyses
- Investment strategies
- Past performance
- Risk exposure
- Financial strength
- Pricing
- Research capabilities
- Reviews of:
Winthrop Wealth Investment Philosophy
Like much of the advisory market, Winthrop Wealth maintains a long-term style within each investment portfolio it helps form. The firm states that it does this to avoid the volatility associated with short-term investing. As a result, many of the investment types WWM utilizes include fixed-income securities, mutual funds, ETFs, REITs and MLPs. Should your financial needs call for it, the firm may use equities as well, though it does typically stick to well-established stocks.
In order to serve each client holistically, Winthrop has created the following four-step process:
- Step 1: Analyze goals and current portfolio - This consists of a general overview of your current investment holdings and your future financial objectives.
- Step 2: Determine investment policy and asset allocation - At this point, your investor profile is morphed into a specific investment policy and, eventually, an asset allocation.
- Step 3: Construct portfolio - Once you and your advisor agree on the plans for your portfolio, your funds are actually invested in the market.
- Step 4: Manage and monitor the portfolio - As your investments mature, the firm will keep an eye on your portfolio to ensure the asset allocation stays in proportion. Performance reports will be regularly done.
Fees Under Winthrop Wealth
Each set of services at Winthrop Wealth comes with a separate fee schedule. Instead of adhering to a continuous annual fee, financial planning clients will pay a negotiable fixed fee that ranges anywhere from $5,000 to $15,000 depending on the complexity of your services. This charge is due at the execution of your financial plan.
Clients who subscribe to WWM’s investment management and retirement plan consulting services will instead have an asset-based, negotiable annual fee schedule. The scope of these services will determine where you fall within the 0.30% to 1.75% fee range. Rather than request payment on an annual basis, Winthrop divides all fees into four quarterly charges made in advance.
The model wealth portfolio fee can be up to 2.00%.
What to Watch Out For
There are no legal or regulatory disclosures listed on Winthrop Wealth's SEC-filed Form ADV.
Winthrop Wealth is a fee-based financial advisor firm, which means some of its advisors, in their individual capacities, sell insurance products and/or securities that could result in additional commissions and earnings. Though this represents a potential conflict of interest, Winthrop Wealth and its advisors abide by fiduciary duty, legally binding them to act in clients’ best interests, no matter what.
Opening an Account With Winthrop Wealth
The best way to get a consultation with a Winthrop Wealth financial advisor is to call the firm closest to you. You can reach the firm’s Boston branch at (617) 530-1010, while the Westborough location is available through (508) 836-5500. If you prefer web-based communications, send an email to info@winthropwealth.com with your inquiry and information.
All information is accurate as of the writing of this article.
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