Institutional Investment Advisory Services
Through Hancock Investment Advisors, we provide investment portfolio management services to banks, thrift institutions, financial service companies and other institutional clients. Additionally, we provide both strategic advice and management oversight services related to formulating and implementing Asset/Liability Management (ALCO) strategies for banking and thrift institutions. Through the use of in-depth analytics and various ALCO strategies, we assist clients in maximizing performance while quantifying and minimizing risks.
Hancock Investment Advisors utilizes total return as the foundation for our investment management decisions. We recognize that a fundamental, math-based decision making process is critical to making the best risk versus reward decisions. Hancock Investment Advisors evaluates the performance of an investment portfolio over three different time frames and seven different interest rate scenarios. We calculate a portfolio’s income potential in conjunction with its market value change to determine the portfolio's true return. Calculating multiple potential outcomes for an investment portfolio allows us to optimize the portfolio’s return while maintaining an acceptable level of risk.
Hancock Investment Advisors employs the same total return approach when evaluating individual securities for purchase or sale. Comparing investment options with various yields, maturities and cashflows is confusing without the benefit of calculating the security’s total return. Only through the understanding of a security’s risks will we be able to evaluate whether a return is acceptable. Our math-based approach takes assumptions about interest rates out of the equation and focuses on risk versus reward.
Individual Accounts
Through a series of initial consultations, we establish an investment strategy best suited to the individual investor and his or her family. These consultations allow us the opportunity to learn a great deal about a client’s background – age, health, family situation and psychological approach to the world of investing. Once we assess these factors, we mutually determine a reasonable allocation and distribution of assets. The end result is an understanding of “risk versus reward” parameters.
The security selection process is the second phase and results from a combination of analyzing research material from outside sources and our own independent evaluation. Hancock Securities has expertise in common and preferred stocks, fixed income securities (such as government, municipal, mortgage-backed and corporate bonds), mutual funds and money market funds and private equity investments.
Once the portfolio is established, we monitor movement in various segments of the portfolio for adherence to our client’s objectives. We may, for example, suggest rebalancing an account after a substantial swing in the securities markets to ensure the strategy guidelines are followed, no matter what the direction of the swing.
Commission income from the buying and selling of securities has traditionally been the only compensation for most brokerage firms. In our view, the purchase or sale of securities is merely the last step in our total effort on the client’s behalf. Moreover, we recognize that many of the perceived problems associated with the securities industry stem from a transaction-based compensation system that has persuaded firms to become sales oriented rather than to be focused on client services. Hancock Securities overcomes this transaction bias and focuses on consistent financial advice that provides greater value to our clientele.
Some of our clients and prospective clients prefer fee-based investment advisory relationship with our firm rather than a brokerage relationship. For this reason, we created Hancock Investment Advisors. Investment advisory relationships have unique characteristics:
- An investment advisor has a strong fiduciary relationship with the client. This fiduciary relationship mandates more frequent and intense qualitative and quantitative reporting responsibility
- Advisory clients pay Hancock Investment Advisors a fee relative to the amount of the portfolio
Our goal is to offer the best of both the brokerage and investment advisory worlds, with a fee structure that is both affordable and competitive. We prefer our clients to choose the method of our compensation.
Corporate Accounts
In addition to brokerage services and investment advice, Hancock Securities offers the following services to its corporate, institutional and non-profit clients:
- Cash management services
- Retirement, profit sharing and 401(k) programs
- Life insurance programs
- Healthcare savings accounts
