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Adviser Profile

As of Date 03/28/2024
Adviser Type - Large advisory firm
Number of Employees 17 21.43%
of those in investment advisory functions 13 116.67%
Registration SEC, Approved, 07/07/2017
AUM* 188,577,201 -44.28%
of that, discretionary 188,577,201 -44.28%
Private Fund GAV* 188,577,201 -54.51%
Avg Account Size 47,144,300 11.44%
SMA’s No
Private Funds 4 4
Contact Info (20 xxxxxxx

Client Types

- Pooled investment vehicles

Advisory Activities

- Portfolio management for pooled investment vehicles

Compensation Arrangments

- Performance-based fees

Recent News

Reported AUM

Discretionary
Non-discretionary
338M 290M 242M 193M 145M 97M 48M
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023

Private Funds



Employees

Private Funds Structure

Fund Type Count GAV
Fund TypePrivate Equity Fund Count3 GAV$47,451,097
Fund TypeReal Estate Fund Count1 GAV$141,126,104

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Brochure Summary

Overview

A. Description of Advisory Firm Merit Fund Advisors, LLC, an Alabama limited liability company (hereinafter, “MFA”), is an investment advisory firm located in Birmingham, Alabama that was formed on April 3, 2017. Sterling Capital Management, Inc., an Alabama corporation (“Sterling Capital”), owns one hundred percent (100%) of MFA. Sterling Capital is owned and controlled by Benny M. LaRussa, Jr., an individual resident of the State of Alabama. MFA serves as the investment adviser for, and provides investment advisory services to, private pooled investment vehicles (each, a “Fund”) that are sponsored and/or controlled by one or more affiliates of MFA (collectively, the “MFA Affiliates”). Each Fund’s securities are offered to investors on a private placement basis. The Funds fall into one of two categories: (i) private pooled investment vehicles that invest in privately owned, emerging businesses in the consumer goods industry (collectively, the “Fenwick Funds”); or (ii) private pooled investment vehicles that invest, directly or indirectly, in real estate properties and projects (collectively, the “StoneRiver Funds”). Fenwick Brands, Inc. (“Fenwick”) or an affiliate thereof (collectively, the “Fenwick Companies”) sponsors and serves as manager of each Fenwick Fund. StoneRiver Company, LLC (“StoneRiver”) or an affiliate thereof (collectively, the “StoneRiver Companies”) sponsors and serves as managing member of the StoneRiver Fund. Fenwick, the other Fenwick Companies, StoneRiver and the other StoneRiver Companies are all MFA Affiliates. As used herein, the term “client” generally refers to each Fund that receives investment advisory services from MFA. A Fenwick Company serving as a manager or managing member of a Fenwick Fund under such Fenwick Fund’s organizational documents shall be referred to as a “Fenwick Fund Manager” herein, and a StoneRiver Company serving as a manager, managing member or general partner of a StoneRiver Fund under such StoneRiver Fund’s organizational documents shall be referred to as a “StoneRiver Fund Manager” herein. Fenwick was formed in 2005 to invest in consumer-packaged goods companies that have strong, high- potential brands that require capital, strategy or operational expertise to grow. Fenwick looks at potential portfolio companies holistically and takes a diligent approach to its capital, both human and financial. Traditionally, Fenwick and the other Fenwick Companies have contributed capital to facilitate business expansion, growth plans, management buyouts and business recapitalizations. StoneRiver was formed in 2006 to, among other things, acquire, operate, develop, manage and invest in real estate. StoneRiver has acquired, developed, leased, managed and/or sold real estate with an aggregate gross asset value of over $1 billion since its inception. B. Types of Advisory Services Provided MFA, directly or indirectly, provides investment advisory services to the Funds in respect of their respective investment holdings and portfolios, as well as certain ancillary management and administrative services. These investment, management and administrative services include, among others, identifying and screening potential investments, establishing investment objectives, recommending strategies for and overseeing the acquisition, management and disposition of investments, identifying investment opportunities for the Funds, monitoring the performance of investments, preparing required reports to the Funds and their investors and ensuring compliance by the Funds with applicable governing and operating documents.
Each Fund’s portfolio is managed by MFA pursuant to an investment management agreement with MFA, the investment guidelines contained or incorporated therein and the Fund’s specific investment policy set forth in Fund’s governing and offering documents. MFA’s clients are the respective Funds. Interests in the Funds are privately offered to qualified investors, including eligible high net worth individuals, family offices and institutional investors. MFA provides investment advisory services to the Fenwick Funds on potential investments in privately owned, emerging businesses that require some combination of capital, strategy or operational expertise. Fenwick Funds provide capital to facilitate business expansion, growth plans, management buyouts and business recapitalizations for its investments. MFA provides investment advisory services to the StoneRiver Funds on real estate investments, principally through acquisitions of existing multifamily real estate assets generally located in the Southeast United States. StoneRiver Funds also seek opportunities to invest in certain developments of new multifamily real estate assets generally located in the Southeast United States, subject to applicable investment guidelines and restrictions in such Funds’ offering documents. Future StoneRiver Funds could also invest in additional property types, subject to any applicable investment guidelines and restrictions set forth in the offering documents for such Funds. MFA only provides investment advice with respect to the limited types of investments described in the immediately preceding two paragraphs (as further described in Item 8). MFA (together with the Fenwick Fund Manager or StoneRiver Fund Manager, as applicable) identifies, investigates, underwrites and executes each investment, provides asset and investment management services for each investment while owned by a Fund, determines when a sale or other disposition of an investment would be beneficial to a Fund and oversees such ultimate sale or other disposition. For more information about these investment types and the investment strategies supporting such types, please refer to the information provided in Item 8. C. Services Tailored to Individual Needs of the Client MFA’s investment advisory services are specialized to the management of each Fund and such Fund’s investment objectives, parameters and restrictions disclosed to prospective investors in such Fund’s offering materials and governing documents, including its subscription documents and the Fund’s organizational documents. MFA and/or an MFA Affiliate may from time to time also enter into side letters or other agreements with specific investors in a Fund to establish certain rights under, or otherwise alter or supplement, the terms of such Fund’s governing documents, including providing differing fee and return structures or providing alternative access rights to Fund information or reporting. Any rights established, or terms altered or supplemented, will govern and affect only such Fund investor and not the Fund as a whole. Neither MFA nor an MFA Affiliate will enter into a particular side letter if MFA determines that the provisions contained in such side letter would be disruptive or otherwise disadvantageous to the applicable Fund or its investment strategy and program. D. Wrap Fee Program MFA does not participate in wrap fee programs for any of its Funds. E. Client Assets As of January 1, 2024, MFA managed approximately $188.58 million of Fund assets. MFA manages all of these assets on a discretionary basis.