A. Firm Information
Laurel Wealth Advisors, LLC (“LWA” or the “Advisor”) is a registered investment advisor with the U.S. Securities
and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), which is organized as a Limited Liability Company (LLC) under the laws of
the State of North Carolina. LWA was founded in March 2007 and is owned and operated by William E. Sugg IV
(Managing Partner and Chief Compliance Officer), Mark S. Thompson (Managing Partner), David W. McNeish
(Managing Partner), and Timothy M. Breedlove (Managing Partner). This Disclosure Brochure provides
information regarding the qualifications, business practices, and the advisory services provided by LWA.
B. Advisory Services Offered
LWA offers investment advisory services to individuals, high net worth individuals, charitable organizations and
businesses (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. Our fiduciary commitment is further described in our Code of Ethics. For more information
regarding our Code of Ethics, please see Item 11 – Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client
Transactions and Personal Trading.
Investment Management Services
LWA provides customized investment management solutions for its Clients. This is achieved through continuous
personal Client contact and interaction while providing discretionary and non-discretionary investment
management and related advisory services. LWA 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. LWA 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, bonds or
options contracts to meet the needs of its Clients. The Advisor may retain certain legacy investments based on
portfolio fit and/or tax considerations.
LWA’s investment strategies are primarily long-term focused, but the Advisor may buy, sell or re-allocate
positions that have been held less than one year to meet the objectives of the Client or due to market conditions.
LWA 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.
LWA evaluates and selects investments for inclusion in Client portfolios only after applying its internal due
diligence process. LWA may recommend, on occasion, redistributing investment allocations to diversify the
portfolio. LWA 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. LWA 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.
At no time will LWA 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 agreement. Please see Item 12 – Brokerage Practices.
Financial Planning Services
LWA will typically provide a variety of financial planning services to Clients, pursuant to a written financial
planning agreement. Services are offered in several areas of a Client’s financial situation, depending on their
goals, objectives and financial situation. Generally, such financial planning services involve preparing a formal
financial plan based on the Client’s financial goals and objectives. This planning may encompass one or more
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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.
LWA 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 contract
date, assuming all information and documents requested are provided promptly.
Financial planning and consulting recommendations may pose a conflict between the interests of the Advisor and
the interests of the Client. For example, a recommendation to engage the Advisor for investment management
services or to increase the level of investment assets with the Advisor would pose a conflict, as it would increase
the 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.
Written Acknowledgement of Fiduciary Status
When we provide investment advice to you regarding your retirement plan account or individual retirement
account, we are fiduciaries within the meaning of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and/or
the Internal Revenue Code, as applicable, which are laws governing retirement accounts. The way we make
money creates some conflicts with your interests, so we operate under a special rule that requires us to act in
your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours. Under this special rule’s provisions, we must:
• Meet a professional standard of care when making investment recommendations (give prudent
advice);
• Never put our financial interests ahead of yours when making recommendations (give loyal advice);
• Avoid misleading statements about conflicts of interest, fees, and investments;
• Follow policies and procedures designed to ensure that we give advice that is in your best interest;
• Charge no more than is reasonable for our services; and
• Give you basic information about conflicts of interest.
C. Client Account Management
Prior to engaging LWA 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 – LWA, in connection with the Client, will develop an investment
policy statement (“IPS”) that seeks to achieve the Client’s goals and destinations. The IPS is designed to
address the Client’s personal goals, investment goals, and both long-term and short-term objectives.
• Asset Allocation – LWA will develop a strategic asset allocation that is targeted to meet the investment
objectives, time horizon, financial situation and tolerance of risk for each Client.
• Portfolio Construction – LWA will develop a portfolio for the Client that is intended to meet the stated
goals and objectives of the Client.
• Investment Management and Supervision – LWA will provide investment management and ongoing
oversight of the Client’s investment portfolio.
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D. Wrap Fee Programs
LWA does not manage or place Client assets into a wrap fee program. Investment management services are
provided directly by LWA.
E. Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2022, LWA manages the following assets:
Discretionary Assets $720,893,773
Non-Discretionary Assets $8,339,468
Total Assets Under Management $ 729,233,241
Clients may request more current information at any time by contacting the Advisor.
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