A. Firm Information
Sard Wealth Management Group, LLC (“SWMG” or the “Advisor”) is a registered investment advisor with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The Advisor is organized as a Limited Liability Company
(LLC) under the laws of the State of Georgia. SWMG was founded in 2007 and is owned and operated by
Jonathan Sard (President and Chief Compliance Officer). This Disclosure Brochure provides information
regarding the qualifications, business practices, and the advisory services provided by SWMG.
B. Advisory Services Offered
SWMG offers investment advisory services to individuals, high net worth individuals, trusts, estates, businesses,
retirement plans, and other financial institutions (each referred to as a “Client”).
The Advisor serves as a fiduciary to Clients, as defined under the applicable laws and regulations. As a
fiduciary, the Advisor upholds a duty of loyalty, fairness, and good faith towards each Client and seeks to
mitigate potential conflicts of interest. SWMG’s fiduciary commitment is further described in the Advisor’s Code
of Ethics. For more information regarding the Code of Ethics, please see Item 11 – Code of Ethics, Participation
or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading.
Investment Management Services
SWMG provides customized investment advisory solutions for its Clients. This is achieved through continuous
personal Client contact and interaction while providing discretionary investment management and related
advisory services. SWMG works closely with each Client to identify their investment goals and objectives as well
as risk tolerance and financial situation in order to create a portfolio strategy. SWMG will then construct an
investment portfolio consisting of low-cost, diversified mutual funds and/or exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) to
achieve the Client’s investment goals. The Advisor may also utilize individual stocks and bonds to meet the
needs of its Clients. The Advisor will retain certain types of investments based on a Client’s legacy investments
based on portfolio fit and/or tax considerations.
SWMG will select, recommend and/or retain mutual funds on a fund by fund basis. Due to specific custodial
and/or mutual fund company constraints, material tax consideration, and/or systematic investment plans,
SWMG will select, recommend and/or retain mutual fund share classes that do not have trading costs but do
have higher internal expense ratios than institutional share classes. SWMG will seek to select the lowest cost
share class available that is in the best interest of each Client and will ensure the selection aligns with the
Client’s financial objectives and stated investment guidelines.
SWMG’s investment approach is primarily long-term focused, but the Advisor may buy, sell or re-allocate
positions that have been held for less than one year to meet the objectives of the Client or due to market
conditions. SWMG will construct, implement and monitor the portfolio to ensure it meets the goals, objectives,
circumstances, and risk tolerance agreed to by the Client. Each Client will have the opportunity to place
reasonable restrictions on the types of investments to be held in their respective portfolio, subject to acceptance
by the Advisor.
SWMG evaluates and selects investments for inclusion in Client portfolios only after applying its internal due
diligence process. SWMG may recommend, on occasion, redistributing investment allocations to diversify the
portfolio. SWMG may recommend specific positions to increase sector or asset class weightings. The Advisor
may recommend employing cash positions as a possible hedge against market movement. SWMG may
recommend selling positions for reasons that include but are not limited to harvesting capital gains or losses,
business or sector risk exposure to a specific security or class of securities, overvaluation or overweighting of
the position[s] in the portfolio, change in risk tolerance of the Client, generating cash to meet Client needs, or
any risk deemed unacceptable for the Client’s risk tolerance.
Annuity Management – As part of the SWMG’s investment management services, the Advisor may be engaged
to manage annuities on behalf of the Client. The Advisor will implement, manage, and monitor these assets in
accordance with the agreed upon investment objectives of the Client.
Held-Away Asset Management- As part of the Advisor’s Investment Management Services, when appropriate,
the Advisor will use a third party platform to facilitate management of held away assets with discretion. The
Advisor is not affiliated with the platform in any way and does not receive compensation from them for using
their platform. Once Client account(s) is connected to the platform, the Advisor will review the current account
allocations. When deemed necessary, the Advisor will rebalance the account considering client investment
goals and risk tolerance. Client account(s) will be reviewed periodically and allocation changes will be made as
deemed necessary.
Retirement Plan Accounts – When deemed to be in the Client’s best interest, the Advisor will recommend that a
Client rollover its retirement plan account into an account managed by the Advisor. In such instances, the
Advisor will serve as an investment fiduciary as that term is defined under The Employee Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”). Such a recommendation creates a conflict of interest if the Advisor earns a new
(or increases its current) advisory fee as a result of the rollover. No Client is under any obligation to roll over
retirement plan assets to an account managed by the Advisor.
At no time will SWMG accept or maintain custody of a Client’s funds or
securities, except for the limited authority
as outlined in Item 15 - Custody. All Client assets will be managed within the designated account[s] at the
Custodian, pursuant to the terms of the advisory agreement. Please see Item 12 – Brokerage Practices.
Financial Planning Services
SWMG will typically provide a variety of financial planning and consulting services to Clients, either as a
component of investment management services or pursuant to a written financial planning agreement. Services
are offered in several areas of a Client’s financial situation, depending on their goals and objectives.
Generally, such financial planning services involve preparing a formal financial plan or rendering a specific
financial consultation based on the Client’s financial goals and objectives. This planning or consulting may
encompass one or more areas of need, including but not limited to investment planning, retirement planning,
personal savings, education savings, insurance needs, and other areas of a Client’s financial situation.
A financial plan developed for or financial consultation rendered to the Client will usually include general
recommendations for a course of activity or specific actions to be taken by the Client. For example,
recommendations may be made that the Client start or revise their investment programs, commence or alter
retirement savings, establish education savings, and/or charitable giving programs.
SWMG may also refer Clients to an accountant, attorney, or other specialists, as appropriate for their unique
situation. For certain financial planning engagements, the Advisor will provide a written summary of the Client’s
financial situation, observations, and recommendations. For consulting or ad-hoc engagements, the Advisor
may not provide a written summary. Plans or consultations are typically completed within six (6) months of the
contract date, assuming all information and documents requested are provided promptly.
Financial planning and consulting recommendations pose a conflict between the interests of the Advisor and the
interests of the Client. For example, the Advisor has an incentive to recommend that Clients engage the Advisor
for investment management services or to increase the level of investment assets with the Advisor, as it would
increase the amount of advisory fees paid to the Advisor. Clients are not obligated to implement any
recommendations made by the Advisor or maintain an ongoing relationship with the Advisor. If the Client elects
to act on any of the recommendations made by the Advisor, the Client is under no obligation to implement the
transaction through the Advisor.
Retirement Plan Advisory Services
SWMG provides retirement plan advisory services on behalf of the retirement plans (each a “Plan”) and the
company (the “Plan Sponsor”). The Advisor’s retirement plan advisory services are designed to assist the Plan
Sponsor in meeting its fiduciary obligations to the Plan and its Plan Participants. Each engagement is
customized to the needs of the Plan and Plan Sponsor. Services generally include:
● Vendor Analysis
● Plan Participant Enrollment and Education Tracking
● Investment Policy Statement (“IPS”) Design and Monitoring
● Investment Oversight Services (ERISA 3(21))
● Investment Management Services (ERISA 3(38))
● Performance Reporting
● Ongoing Investment Recommendation and Assistance
These services are provided by SWMG serving in the capacity as a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement
Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”). In accordance with ERISA Section 408(b)(2), the Plan
Sponsor is provided with a written description of SWMG’s fiduciary status, the specific services to be rendered,
and all direct and indirect compensation the Advisor reasonably expects under the engagement.
Financial Institution Consulting Services
SWMG provides investment consulting services to brokerage customers (herein “Brokerage Customers”) of
Mutual Securities, Inc. (herein “MSI”) who provide written consent requesting to receive the Advisor’s consulting
services, pursuant to a written agreement with SWMG. Consulting services are strictly on products Clients have
purchased through Mutual Securities, Inc. Please see Item 10 – Other Financial Industry Activities and
Affiliations for additional details.
C. Client Account Management
Prior to engaging SWMG to provide investment advisory services, each Client is required to enter into one or
more agreements with the Advisor that define the terms, conditions, authority, and responsibilities of the Advisor
and the Client. These services may include:
• Establishing an Investment Strategy – SWMG, in connection with the Client, will develop a strategy that
seeks to achieve the Client’s goals and objectives.
• Asset Allocation – SWMG will develop a strategic asset allocation that is targeted to meet the
investment objectives, time horizon, financial situation, and tolerance for risk for each Client.
• Portfolio Construction – SWMG will develop a portfolio for the Client that is intended to meet the stated
goals and objectives of the Client.
• Investment Management and Supervision – SWMG will provide investment management and ongoing
oversight of the Client’s investment portfolio.
D. Wrap Fee Programs
SWMG does not manage or place Client assets into a wrap fee program. Investment management services are
provided directly by SWMG.
E. Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2023, SWMG manages $334,897,425 in Client assets, of which $312,462,865 are
managed on a discretionary basis, and $22,434,560 on a non-discretionary basis. Clients may request more
current information at any time by contacting the Advisor.