Client Risk Assessment

At Maxim, we understand our role as investment manager requires that we build portfolios using a disciplined process designed to maximize long term returns while closely managing the risk of significant loss. When building investment portfolios, we start by learning about your unique financial goals and circumstances. We listen closely to fully understand your return requirements, investment time horizon, cash flow needs and overall comfort level before designing your custom portfolio. This assessment process yields an overall investment objective, which generally outlines the portfolio balance between growth (stocks), income (bonds) and cash.

Investment Portfolio Design

Maxim employs a dynamic investment process with a foundation in asset allocation and traditional valuation techniques. Our goal is to provide consistent investment returns while closely controlling the risk of significant losses. We build portfolios around a target asset allocation model and constantly evaluate our exposure to various asset classes, sectors, investment styles and currencies. We add value to client portfolios by anticipating trends in the global economy and investment markets, and by positioning portfolios to benefit from these trends. We segment our investments into two distinct areas—growth and income:

1) Growth Investments—Goal of Capital Appreciation

• Diversified Global Stock Portfolios
  We build diversified portfolios utilizing large and small stocks located in the U.S. and internationally. With our unique global focus, we gain a broader level of diversification and access to the most attractive investment opportunities. In order to reach the desired market exposure, your portfolios may include index funds, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), institutional class mutual funds and individual stocks.
  
  
• Alternative Investments
  Maxim is constantly evaluating new investment alternatives and employs various strategies for clients based upon their unique needs. Alternatives are defined as a group of investments which have positive expected returns that are uncorrelated with the returns of stocks and bonds. Examples of alternative investments include: real estate, commodities and natural resources, currencies, precious metals, emerging market stocks and bonds, and private investment partnerships.

2) Income Investments—Goal of Capital Preservation and Income

We believe that all but the most aggressive investors should incorporate bonds into their portfolios and we follow a strict discipline when evaluating them. The two critical elements of bond investing are credit quality (credit rating of issuer) and duration (term to maturity). We focus our attention on the optimal combination of these elements and then search for the best available alternatives given an individual's specific tax situation and cash flow needs.

An example of Maxim’s unique portfolio design: