HFR is a discretionary money management firm, founded in 1995 by Herbert F. Reilly III (Bret). Bret continues to own and run the firm, and has been managing investment portfolios for families, businesses, and charities for more than 30 years.
As of 12/31/2023, HFR managed investment portfolios with assets (all discretionary) totaling $513,320,817. We provide a continuous discretionary money management service for individuals, trusts, corporations, charitable organizations, pensions, and retirement accounts. Bret Reilly actively manages the accounts, makes the security selections and trading decisions. Our management service is provided on a fee-only basis, according to a fee schedule detailed in an Agreement between a client and our firm.
Educational Background and Business Experience Herbert F. Reilly III (Bret) Born 7/17/61 President, Principal Owner & Portfolio Manager, HFR Wealth Management, LLC ..................1995-present VP and Senior Portfolio Manager, PaineWebber Inc. .................................................................1995 VP and Senior Portfolio Manager, Kidder, Peabody ..................................................................1992-1995 Trust Investment Officer, NBT Bancorp .....................................................................................1989-1992 Education: Hobart College, BA Economics, Minor Mathematics .............................................1984 Client Focus While we believe that our general portfolio management approach is appropriate for all clients, it must be customized to meet the needs and risk tolerance of each client. We work closely with clients to:
• Understand a potential client’s prior investment experience
• To learn of the client’s investment goals and objectives
• To quantify the client’s investment risk tolerances (based on the risk of portfolio loss that the client is reasonably willing to potentially accept) through an Investment Policy Statement.
General Investment Management Philosophy We manage stock and bond portfolios according to the Prudent Investor Rule, the time-tested diversified investment philosophy required of fiduciaries.
Our stock portfolios typically include 35 – 40 stocks of financially strong, well-established companies that are

very “liquid”, or sellable, and trade frequently on major market exchanges. Stock holdings are diversified across market “sectors”, or broad industry categories. Generally, our clients will hold the same stocks as held in our Model Portfolio, though the exact weightings will differ depending on account size, tax considerations, and any specific client needs or concerns. While many money management approaches attempt to beat the market over the short-term through a myriad of formulas and trend strategies, we believe that a short-term focus will often increase portfolio volatility and exposure to speculative trends. Rather than pursuing or adding to stock holdings in strongly performing market sectors, (quantifiable by increased monthly trading activity), we typically look to pare back on stock exposure in momentum-driven areas.
We do not have multiple stock portfolio strategies, nor do we over-concentrate portfolios with higher risk “beta” holdings to suit aggressive investors. For clients desiring less risk than a fully invested equity portfolio, we will typically include investment grade bonds and money market instruments. We use mutual funds for smaller client accounts when we believe that sufficient diversification can’t be practically and economically reached using individual securities.
Investment Policy Statements We use Investment Policy Statements to establish maximum stock market exposures for our clients. The stock holdings reflect the portion of accounts with a capital appreciation objective, where a higher level of risk is accepted to attempt to achieve long-term growth. For the portion of client accounts with an income and/or capital preservation objective, we generally invest in money market funds and investment-grade, short to intermediate term bonds. Clients may adjust their Investment Policy Statements at any time to reflect changes in risk tolerance, cash flow needs, or investment goals.
Occasionally clients will ask us to continue to hold assets that they have purchased, and/or they will have us work to reduce such holdings to minimize taxable consequences. We do help them achieve such goals, and will assist clients in opening separate non-managed custodial accounts to hold such securities that a client wants to self- manage.