Important Disclosures: Awards Granted to Crestwood Advisors Group, LLC & Professionals Employed at Crestwood Advisors Group, LLC (“the Firm”):
Updated as of December 19, 2023
Awards and recognition’s by unaffiliated rating services, companies, and/or publications should not be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that he/she will experience a certain level of results if the Firm is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services; nor should they be construed as a current or past endorsement of the Firm or its representatives by any of its clients. The Firm makes no representation that the rating is representative of any one client’s experience. Neither the Firm nor its representatives paid a fee to participate in any survey or pay any fees to utilize the awards. Rankings published by magazines and others are generally based on information prepared and/or submitted by the recognized advisor. Investment performance generally is not a criteria for an award. Moreover, regarding all performance information contained herein, directly or indirectly, if any, note that past results are not indicative of future results. Please see below for a more detailed description of the criteria used with respect to the awards/recognition granted to some of the Firm’s individual employees.
Details on Firm Level Awards listed in Alphabetical Order:
Barron’s list of the top 100 RIA firms (Firm Acknowledgement 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023): Barron’s ranking is based on a formula which takes into account firm’s assets, revenue, and the quality of their practices. Barron’s most recent annual ranking of independent advisory companies is based on assets managed by the firms, technology spending, staff diversity, succession planning and other metrics.
Boston Business Journal (Firm Acknowledgement 2022): Boston Business Journal criteria is assets under management for Massachusetts advisers.
CNBC FA 100 List (Firm Acknowledgement 2023): This ranking was created by CNBC based on data provided by AccuPoint Solutions, as well as survey responses and applications details provided by firms. AccuPoint Solutions compiled the data and applied weights to certain categories based on CNBC’s proprietary algorithm to develop the final list. Key data points considered include: The advisory firm’s regulatory/compliance record, number of years in business, number of certified financial planners, number of employees, number of investment advisors registered with the firm, the ratio of investment advisors to total employees, total assets under management, percentage of discretionary assets under management, total accounts under management, number of states where the RIA is registered, and the country of domicile.
Financial Advisor’s 2020 Top 50 Fastest-Growing Firms (Firm Acknowledgement 2020): FA’s RIA survey is a ranking based on assets under management at year end of independent RIA firms that file their own ADV with the SEC. FA’s RIA ranking orders firms from largest to smallest, based on AUM reported to us by firms that voluntarily complete and submit FA’s survey by our deadline. FA verifies AUM by reviewing ADV forms. To be eligible for the ranking, firms must be independent registered investment advisors and file their own ADV statement with the SEC and provide financial planning and related services to individual clients. Firms must have at least $300 million in assets under management as of December 31, 2019.
Financial Advisor Magazine RIA Ranking (Firm Acknowledgement 2022, 2023): The ranking was based on 2022-year end discretionary and non-discretionary AUM reported on the Firm ADV. To be eligible for the ranking, firms must be independent registered investment advisors and file their own ADV statement with the SEC and provide financial planning and related services to individual clients. Firms must have at least $50 million in assets under management as of December 31, 2022. Corporate RIA firms and investment advisor representatives (IARs) were not eligible for this survey. The list was segmented by asset categories: 1) $1 billion and over; 2) $500 million to <$1billion; 3) $250 million to <$500 million; 4) $150 million to <$250 million; and 5) $50 million to <$150 million. Within each of the asset category segments, firms were ranked by 2022-year end discretionary and non-discretionary AUM. The comprehensive list consisted of 521 firms.
Financial Times 300 Top Registered Investment Advisers (Firm Acknowledgement 2020): This seventh edition of the FT 300 assesses registered investment advisers based on desirable traits for investors. The FT 300 is an elite group, not a competitive ranking of one to 300. This is the fairest way to identify the industry’s elite advisers while accounting for the companies’ different approaches and specializations. To ensure a list of established companies with substantial expertise, FT examines the database of RIAs registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission and selects those with more than $300m in assets under management (AUM). The Financial Times and Ignites Research, the FT’s sister company, invited qualifying RIA companies — more than 2,000 — to complete a lengthy application that provides more information about each firm. The application, along with research into their practices and data from regulatory filings is evaluated. Some 760 RIA companies applied and 300 made the final list.
Forbes/Shook Top RIA Firms (Firm Acknowledgement 2022, 2023): Data provided by SHOOK ® Research, LLC – Data as of 3/31/23. America’s Top Registered Investment Advisor Firms ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings and a ranking algorithm that includes: a measure of best practices, client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerance vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports.
USA TODAY – Best Financial Advisory Firms (Firm Acknowledgement 2023): The ranking was based on both recommendations of clients and peers and a firm’s growth of Assets under Management (AUM). The recommendations were collected via an independent survey sent to over 20,000 individuals. Clients were able to evaluate and recommend their RIA firm, while financial advisors were directed to omit their own firm from consideration. The development of AUM was based on publicly available data looking at AUM growth over a 12-month period and over five-year period, respectively. In consideration of the top 500 RIA firms, recommendations had a weight of 20% while development of AUM had a weight of 80% (short-term growth and long-term growth were equally weighted) to derive the final score.
WealthManagement.com’s RIA Edge 100 List (2023): Qualifying firms were limited to those that provide financial planning services, have high-net-worth individuals as more than half of their client base and manage at least $250 million in assets as of June 30, 2022. RIA Edge 100 firms exemplify the most impressive growth rates combined with the best client ratios and CFP certifications, according to WealthManagement.com.
Details on Professional Individual Awards listed in Alphabetical Order:
Five Star Professional criteria (Crestwood Professional Award – Michael Eckton, multiple years, most recent 2022; Leah Sciabarrasi, multiple years, most recent 2021): To receive the Five Star Wealth Manager award, a wealth manager must satisfy 10 objective eligibility and evaluation criteria that are associated with wealth managers who provide quality services to their clients. Factors taken into account include assets under management and client retention rate. Candidates also undergo a thorough regulatory and complaint review.
