ITS ASSET MANAGEMENT
BRIEF FIRM HISTORY
ITS has been in the investment advisory business as an asset manager since 1970. The firm originated as
Investment Timing Services, Inc., a Pennsylvania corporation. Presently a limited partnership, ITS has
been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission since February 1971. Originally focused in
Pittsburgh, PA and other select cities, ITS currently provides management services to clients nationwide.
Jon W. Erdner, who joined the firm’s sales and marketing force in 1976, became the sole owner of ITS in
1988 and maintained ownership until July 1, 2020, when Wadsworth Family, LLC became the owner of
ITS. The Wadsworth Family, LLC is owned by various members of the Wadsworth family. Wadsworth
Family, LLC also owns PTS Asset Management, which following its withdrawal as an SEC registered
advisory firm, now operates as a dba of ITS, the surviving SEC registrant. William F. Wadsworth Jr., the
Manager of ITS, is a member of the Wadsworth Family, LLC. Presently, Jon Erdner continues to serve as
the Chief Investment Officer of ITS, providing a wealth of research, insight, and industry experience.
ITS’S MANAGED STRATEGIES
ITS offers several management programs each with a preset
“style” or approach to the investment markets. This enables
ITS to accommodate clients who have differing risk
tolerances and investment objectives as determined by the
client and his/her personal financial professional. The
programs are shown at right:
The aptly-named Dynamic strategy features “equity-to-fixed
income allocation shifting” wherein the percentage of
portfolio assets assigned to either equity or fixed income investments can be adjusted upward or
downward at reallocation points in response to ITS’s analysis of market outlooks. The Global Premier
strategy features sector rotation, allowing sectors to be rotated up/down or completely out of the
portfolio in favor of a more promising sector(s), based on ITS’s outlook for the markets and the
underlying sectors at reallocation points. Finally, our Income Plus utilizes primarily fixed income
investments, and an optional satellite equity position, with a focus on income generation.
ITS utilizes mutual funds and exchange-traded funds or “ETF’s” as the investment vehicles of choice in
our managed strategies and portfolios. Mutual funds offer diversification and exposure to many
investment styles, asset classes, and market sectors. The management team of an individual mutual
fund typically concentrates in specific areas of investment. For example, managers of a natural
resources fund will research several, sometimes hundreds of companies in the mining, timber, oil, and
other related natural resources industries prior to investing in the companies that meet their due
MANAGED INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
• Dynamic Conservative
• Dynamic Moderate
• Dynamic Growth
• Global Premier
• Income Plus
diligence standards. Thus, by using mutual funds, ITS is able to leverage the expertise of the fund
managers in their area of specialization to fill desired areas of exposure in our managed portfolios.
While ETF’s also offer diversification and exposure across various investment styles, asset classes, and
market sectors, an ETF can be considered a more passively-managed investment when compared to a
mutual fund. In most cases, constant readjustments to an ETF’s underlying holdings do not occur.
Rather, an ETF, by design, typically holds a static selection of securities compiled for the purpose of
tracking or mirroring the performance of a market index. ITS can, from time to time, elect to utilize an
ETF that holds direct exposure to a specific commodity (i.e. a physical product or resource) rather than
indirect exposure through the stocks of companies involved in the production or processing of that
commodity. For example, an ETF can have direct exposure to gold, the metal itself, with assets backed
by the metal, rather than an ETF investing in the stocks of various gold mining companies.
PORTFOLIO DESIGN
ITS follows its “Disciplined Active Portfolio Management” or “DAPM” formula in each of its managed
strategies to combine the flexibility of an active management approach with the discipline of a
structured portfolio framework. Client assets are invested in accordance with the structured portfolios
ITS has designed for each program. Each program portfolio adheres to a disciplined “framework” that is
comprised of the four key elements shown below:
Investment types refers to the kind of funds utilized in the
portfolio (i.e. stock or equity funds, bond or fixed income
funds, inverse funds, or money market funds). Asset
allocation range controls what percentage of the portfolio is
held in equities vs. fixed income funds. Number of positions
delineates the portfolio’s diversification among a variety of different asset categories and market
sectors, the availability of which can vary between each ITS program. Some examples of fixed income
categories/sectors are: corporate, government, high yield, and world bond. Examples of equity
categories/sectors are: financials, industrials, large/mid/small caps, precious metals, and emerging
markets. Finally, transaction frequency refers to how often ITS conducts reallocation trading in the
program.
Working hand-in-hand with the disciplined framework of
each managed program is the active or “adaptive”
component of our DAPM approach. There are also four
key elements that comprise this component, shown at
right:
ITS reviews both technical and fundamental data as well as following a variety of economic and market
indicators in the U.S. and abroad in its research and analysis processes. We then apply our research to
the particular program’s portfolio framework in determining the investment types and weighting and
which asset categories and sectors to utilize. Next, we screen the available individual funds within the
categories and sectors, as determined by the investment platform being utilized, prior to making the
1. Investment types
2. Asset allocation range
3. Number of “positions”
4. Transaction frequency
1. Proprietary research and analysis
2. Asset/sector selection and weighting
3. Fund selection
4. Portfolio rebalancing and reallocation
fund selections. All ITS programs have a monthly reallocation trading capability. This means that a
change could be made to category/ sector positions and underlying funds on a monthly basis.
CUSTODIAL ARRANGEMENTS
ITS’s advisory services can be utilized with accounts held at
select custodial investment platforms. Currently available
platforms include, but might not be limited to those shown
at right. There is no affiliation between the independent
custodial platforms and ITS. Oversight of these custodial
entities is conducted by their respective state and/or federal
regulators.
These platforms were selected by ITS based on their ability to meet the criteria necessary for ITS to
administer its managed programs effectively and in a manner that takes into consideration the best
interests of our clients. One important factor common to all of the listed platforms is that each offers a
large universe of available mutual funds covering a wide variety of market sectors and styles.
Additionally, ETF’s (including several transaction fee-free ETF’s) could be available to ITS on select
platforms. This means that ITS can allocate its program portfolios towards the investment categories
and market sectors that we favor as we diversify a client’s account in accordance with the ITS program
selected by the client. Perhaps the most attractive feature of the approved investment platforms is the
ability to minimize investment and trading costs to the client. When using mutual funds, ITS has the
ability to focus on selecting only no-load or load-waived funds, so there are no sales charges to the client
upon investment. Additionally, the platforms offer a wide variety of no-transaction-fee or transaction-
fee-waived funds. When these funds are utilized, no transaction fees are charged to the client when ITS
conducts its program trading (buying and/or selling shares of individual funds) to allocate, reallocate, or
rebalance a client’s account in accordance with the ITS program selected by the client. While ITS
generally seeks to utilize mutual funds and ETF’s that are transaction
fee-free, there are instances when
a mutual fund that imposes a transaction fee could be selected, or instances where a transaction fee-
free ETF is not available. In such instances, a client’s account will be subject to any applicable transaction
charges. It is important to note that certain transaction fee-free mutual funds and ETF’s can impose
short-term redemption fees which cannot always be avoided in ITS’s managed strategies
ACCOUNT MINIMUMS
In order for a client to engage the services of ITS for management of his/her investment assets, each of
the client’s accounts on an individual basis must meet our minimum account size of $30,000. The
minimum is the same regardless of the custodian chosen. ITS may waive the minimum at its discretion.
The per-account minimum stated above is not applicable to the accounts of individual participants in
employer-sponsored SIMPLE IRA plans or 401(k) plans. The minimum for SIMPLE IRA accounts is $5,000.
The minimum for 401(k) plan participant accounts is $500 (an exception could apply for legacy
plans/platforms). Participants in these plans must wait until their account balance reaches the minimum
• Constellation Trust Company
(CTC)
• Fidelity Institutional (FCCS)
• Millennium Trust Company
(MTC)
applicable to their type of account before they can elect ITS management. ITS’s management could be
provided to 401(k) plans at select investment platforms only; an overall plan size minimum could apply.
MODEL-BASED ADVISORY SERVICES
As described earlier, ITS’s management programs each offer a preset approach to the investment
markets using managed portfolios comprised of mutual funds and ETF’s. ITS’s buy and sell decisions are
made with a focus on the primary objectives of the individual management program. ITS’s “DAPM”
formula described earlier guides the investment decisions made within each of our strategies and
portfolios. Thus, our portfolio management decisions are not customized or tailored to the particular or
individual needs or risk tolerances of any client.
Oftentimes, the client’s financial professional can obtain personal and financial information from the
client through an interview and/or the completion of a “profiling” or suitability questionnaire. The
financial professional can use the information gathered to help guide the investment planning and
selection process for the client. The information can also be used by the financial professional to assist
the client in selecting an ITS management program. ITS, however, does not require, request, or review
any questionnaires that could have been completed for these purposes. As stated above, ITS formulates
its investment advice around the management program’s discipline and objectives rather than around
individual client financial circumstances or obligations.
Other than placing reasonable restrictions on their accounts, often to accommodate periodic cash flows
or, very rarely, to restrict the use of a specific security, clients leave the investment decisions to ITS. In
other words, ITS has “discretionary” authority in connection with client accounts. This simply means that
ITS is not required to obtain a client’s consent prior to each buy or sell of a particular security, or prior to
determining the allocation amount to each security that will be purchased or sold for the managed
account. ITS can exercise its authority to replace a fund(s) or an asset category or sector used within any
of its managed programs, at our discretion. At times, it might be necessary for ITS to replace funds that
have become restricted or no longer available for use in managed strategies and portfolios.
ITS exercises only a limited discretionary authority which is used only for purposes of managing the
assets of the client in accordance with the ITS program preselected by the client, and on the custodial
investment platform agreed to by the client. Only the client can authorize a change in custodian or
management program. Other than the trading, advisory fee liquidation, and limited cash movement
authorizations (facilitation of redemptions/withdrawals per client instruction) granted by the client to
ITS via the custodial account forms, ITS conducts no other buying or selling nor makes any other
investment decisions on behalf of the client.
PTS ASSET MANAGEMENT
INVESTMENT ADVISORY SERVICES
Our mission statement is to participate during rising markets and to preserve during declining markets.
We attempt to achieve our mission by allocating client accounts into investments that buy domestic
equity, international equity, insurance products, or bond positions when the markets and the economy
appear favorable to our Investment Committee. During periods that appear unfavorable, our mission is
to allocate a portion or all of a client account to money market funds or to more defensive positions.
The Client Application signed by the client grants PTS a limited power of attorney to implement the
management strategy on a discretionary basis. This includes the right of PTS to affect all trades with the
designated custodian, at the discretion of the Advisor, without prior notice to client.
The Advisor offers four different risk tolerance/model portfolios to seek to achieve its mission:
Conservative, Moderate, Growth and Allocation Plus. Prior to completing the Client Agreement, the
Solicitor and client select the model that best matches the client’s risk tolerance. The chart below
illustrates the maximum target allocation to each of the asset classes:
Conservative Model
Domestic Stocks 40%
Global/International Stocks 40%
Bonds 70%
Money Markets 100%
Moderate Model
Domestic Stocks 60%
Global/International Stocks 60%
Bonds 80%
Money Market 100%
Growth Model
Domestic Stocks 100%
Global/International Stocks 100%
Bonds 100%
Money Market 100%
Allocation Plus is a more aggressive model and offered only on a platform. Unlike the traditional model,
Allocation Plus offers:
• Minimum target (20%) and maximum target (60%) allocations for each asset class.
• Target for Domestic 20%-60%, International 20-60%, Bonds 20-60%.
• The money market fund is not an option.
• This product will always be fully invested and as a result have a higher beta (more risk) than the
traditional Advisor service offerings.
• A wider array of asset classes will be considered, including short funds, leveraged funds, and specific
sectors such as gold.
• With short funds being an option, Allocation Plus has the potential to post positive results during a
market decline.
• Investors should be aware that a loss could also result.
Allocation Plus can utilize short or inverse funds which are subject to increased risks and is not suitable
for all clients. The fund’s use of derivatives such as futures, options, and other instruments will expose
clients to additional risk. Theoretically, securities sold short have the risk of unlimited losses and
therefore clients could lose 100% of their investment. The more the fund invests in leveraged
instruments, the more the leverage will magnify any gains or losses on those investments. The fund is
considered non-diversified and changes in the market value of a single security could cause greater
fluctuations in the value of fund shares. Securities are not deposits or obligations of any bank, are not
guaranteed by any bank, and are not insured by the FDIC. As always, clients should always review the
prospectus prior to investing.
ACCOUNT MINIMUMS
Our account size minimum is negotiable, but we encourage accounts of $50,000 or more.
ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT
Assets under management total approximately $269,439,956,. This represents total discretionary
regulatory assets under management of both ITS Asset Management and PTS Asset Management, and is
based on the market value of managed accounts as of December 31, 2023. The total assets amount is
impacted not only by new or cancelled accounts, but also by daily fluctuations in the market value of the
assets. The Firm has no non-discretionary assets under management.