The Sterling Difference

“We define risk as the permanent loss of capital, not the academic description of security price volatility. In fact, we welcome volatility as unstable market episodes provide opportunities to trade securities at attractive prices.”

Small Firm Values – Global Reach

We believe in active management

Capital markets are dynamic and provide both opportunities and threats.

Every step of our disciplined investment management process is performed in-house

Our proprietary research, management, and trading capabilities allow us to quickly adjust risk/return parameters should circumstances warrant.

Our personal portfolios are structured the same as our clients

We align our incentives alongside our clients – our success is directly tied to yours. We invest in individual securities to maximize returns, manage risk, and be tax efficient.

We charge one, transparent fee

Hidden and undisclosed fees are a direct impediment to building long-term wealth.

Our clients have direct access to our experienced portfolio management team

It is a privilege to serve our clients. We are available during times of market stresses to address any topic of interest.

We know all our clients on a first-name basis

Our primary goal is to make each client feel as if they are our only one. Consistent communication and attention to detail is critical.

Capital Management Process:

Our investment process combines top-down global and macroeconomic analysis with disciplined fundamental security research to structure and manage investment portfolios. Portfolio holdings are composed of individual securities from a wide range of asset classes.

As sophisticated investors understand, multiple factors may influence the returns of every investment vehicle. At Sterling, we identify and exploit those opportunities through a rigorous capital management process. We begin with the formulating of investment themes based on an assessment of macroeconomic variables and trends. We also uncover unique investment opportunities we believe have a high probability of generating attractive returns under diverse scenarios. Predicated on those themes, we select assets and securities based on strict and meticulous security analysis.

Every asset class has unique valuation and return structures requiring strategic and tactical asset allocation decisions to maintain client risk and return objectives. We measure risk as the permanent loss of capital, not the academic or wealth management description of security price volatility. In fact, we welcome volatility as unstable market episodes provide the best opportunities to purchase or sell securities at attractive prices.

Equity Management:

Our equity investment philosophy is to maximize the total returns in investment portfolios while assuming a reasonable level of risk. Sterling approaches securities analysis from the perspective of a business owner. We seek to own a fractional interest in a business with a very high probability of generating attractive returns on invested capital over a long-term time horizon.

Our Investment Philosophy Consists of Five Principles:

  • Invest for the long term
  • Search for businesses that possess competitive advantages relative to peers
  • Identify companies with strong financial characteristics
  • Invest with entities that have capable management teams
  • Pay a reasonable price

Fixed Income:

Sterling’s fixed income security analysis complements the same principles we follow in our equity investment process; however, this asset class is evaluated from the perspective of a lender.

Our Fixed Income Philosophy Is To:

  • Generate attractive risk-adjusted returns
  • Minimize risk by assessing entity quality and solvency
  • Analyze the current interest rate structure and exploit opportunities that develop within different sectors of the yield curve
  • Analyze the price and yield sensitivity in our fixed income book to differing economic scenarios
  • Have access to a global range of fixed income assets
  • Negotiate attractive bid and ask prices

Alternative Assets:

Asset diversification is widely recommended by the investment community but rarely understood in the context of meeting long-term financial investment objectives. Simply stated, the valuation of every asset class is not always attractive at the same time. Subsequently, preordained asset allocation targets will fail to meet long-term financial needs.

Properly structured, alternative assets can provide portfolios with asymmetrical return distributions in a manner that truly enhances and diversifies the return profile of each portfolio. Our experienced team uses a wide range of conservative alternative investments to assist our clients in hedging both market and sector risk, as well as add incremental current income in extremely low interest rate environments.