Flexible US Growth
Program Summary:
HCM’s Flexible US Growth program is an actively managed investment strategy designed for investors seeking (1) growth of capital in the U.S. stock market and (2) a risk management approach to investing.
While there is no guarantee that our objectives will be met, the program strives to maintain an invested position in the U.S. stock market via index-based ETF’s when HCM’s market models indicate a positive market environment and to reduce exposure to market risk when our models suggest a negative environment is present.
Alternatives to: Growth Mutual Funds, Index Funds, Index ETF’s
Securities Used: Exchange Traded Funds
Flex US Management Strategy:
The management strategy employed by the Flexible US Growth Program is based on three tenets:
- Seek Absolute Returns
- Focus on the Leaders
- Manage Risk at all Times
Flex US Seeks "Absolute Returns"
Although there are never any guarantees in investing, beginning in January 2010, the primary objective of the Flexible US Growth strategy is to seek "absolute returns. In simple terms, this means we will strive to produce positive returns regardless of market conditions over a reasonable period of time.
Flex US Focuses on the Leaders
At Heritage Capital Management, our motto is "own the best and ignore the rest." Thus, one of the primary tenets of our management style is to focus on the leading indices of the U.S. stock market.
One constant in investing is market leadership is always on the move. Therefore, we believe it is vital to employ a management strategy that can adapt when market environments change. HCM’s US Growth program has the flexibility to allocate assets to the indices which, in our opinion, are best suited for each market environment.
Flex US Manages Risk at All Times
If the "Credit Crisis" of 2008 taught investors anything, it was that a buy-and-hold approach to the stock market may not be sufficient for all market environments.
We believe strongly that risk management strategies should be part of every investor’s portfolio as we are confident that if given a choice, no investor would intentionally remain fully invested in the stock market during severe market declines.
Unlike traditional growth oriented strategies, HCM’s Flexible US Growth program has the discretion to move to a fully defensive position when we believe market conditions have turned negative.
During negative market cycles, the Flex US Growth program may utilize a cash position or ETF’s designed to provide an inverse relationship to market indices.
