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The
Role of the Professional Financial Advisor
At Duncan
Financial Group, we believe professional financial advisors offer investors
valuable insight into the factors that affect the economy and ultimately the
stock market. An advisor has the knowledge and experience, in both up
and down markets, as well as the time and personal attention, to develop a
specific investment plan to meet your needs. With the insight gained
from your relationship with an advisor, you can make more informed investment
decisions which will help you reach your financial goals.
Counsel
 Historically, investors with a financial
advisor have significantly outperformed “do-it-yourself”
investors.
We believe that one
reason for the higher returns is ongoing counsel. An advisor can help
you avoid many pitfalls of investing alone: the temptation to believe
that you can time the market successfully…the urge to sell at a loss
when prices are falling…the desire to buy when the market is strong and
prices are high.
An advisor can help you
define your goals and identify an appropriate investment program. Then,
an advisor can give you the confidence to stick with it through up and down
markets.
The “buy and
hold” strategy that many financial advisors encourage outperformed
“do-it-yourself” investors by over 16% in equity funds and 27% in
fixed income funds.
Source: DALBAR,
Inc., Bostan,
MA citing FundRATE.
Returns do not include any sales charges. The effect of sales charges
would impact the returns of investors in sales force sold funds as compared
with investors in direct sold funds. Investment results represent past
performance, which does not guarantee future results. They illustrate
aggregate performance of more than 5,000 equity, fixed income and money
market funds with different investment objectives, and are not intended to
represent the performance of any particular investment.
Asset Allocation
 The phrase “asset
allocation” means how your overall portfolio is distributed among asset
classes such as stocks, bonds, and money market instruments.
Asset allocation sounds
simple – until you realize that this one decision can account for 91.5%
of your investment returns over time.
To select the proper
asset allocation, a financial advisor will look at your investment time
horizon and goals.
Then, as time goes by
your advisor will help you adjust asset allocation as your needs and the
markets change.
Source: Ibbotson
Associates, Inc. From a study in Financial Analysts Journal (May/June
1991) documenting the relative effects of the above factors on the variation
of performance between 82 large U.S. pension funds from
1977-1987.
Return & Risk
Analysis
The least understood part of
investing is often the relationship between risk and return – and how
to position a portfolio on that spectrum.
“Do-it-yourself”
investors often consider only one type of risk: loss of
principle. Investors who work with an advisor usually have a better
understanding of the six basic types of investment risk.
A
financial advisor can help you determine your risk tolerance and assist you
in selecting the mutual funds that suit your financial needs at every stage
of your life.
Understanding investment
risk is the first step in beginning to manage it wisely!
Source: Investment
Company Institute.
Experience &
Efficiency
An
advisor has the experience to answer your questions.
“Where is inflation
headed? What about interest rates? How can I prepare for
retirement? What should I do when my CD matures? How can I begin
estate planning?”
Your advisor has
experience in all types of markets to help you make informed investment
decisions.
What Should You Expect
From A Financial Advisor?
According
to the Forum for Investor Advice, an organization that supports the role of the
professional financial advisor, investors should expect an advisor to:
- Understand individual
financial needs and help an investor formulate long-term investment
goals and objectives.
- Help an investor develop
realistic expectations by discussing the risks and rewards of investing.
- Match an individual’s
goals and objectives with appropriate mutual funds.
- Continually monitor the
individual’s mutual fund portfolio.
- Conduct regular reviews of an
investor’s financial status to ensure proper positioning of the
mutual fund portfolio.
- Help an investor “stay
the course” of a long-term investment program.
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Investment Products Offered
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Are Not FDIC Insured
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May Lose Value
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Are Not Bank Guaranteed
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CD200601003 05/2007
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