Investment Management

Services Description | Portfolio Performance | IM Fee Comparison
Fee Only | Investment Philosophy | Brochure Rule

Fee Only

What is a "fee-only" investment advisor?
"Fee-only" advisors work solely for their clients and not for other investment firms such as mutual funds and are compensated only by a previously agreed upon fee by you, the customer. Therefore, they have the ability to maintain a higher degree of objectivity in both their evaluation and recommendation when providing a course of action toward strategic financial objectives.

"Fee-only" advisors do not accept commissions or receive any other compensation for recommending specific products. They simply develop and implement an investment plan based on their clients investment risk and financial goals.

No Conflicts of Interest...We're on your side
Atlas Capital is a "fee-only" advisor and is compensated as a percentage of the assets that you invest. In contrast, a commission-based advisor is compensated on each trade that you execute. ACM is a 'fee-only' advisor because we believe commission based compensation presents an inherent conflict of interest. For instance, many commission based advisors are motivated and paid to execute trades for respective mutual funds. Ultimately, we at Atlas Capital Management have structured our company and its investment philosophy to be aligned with your investments goals.  We want to  help you make sound investment decisions that grow and protect the assets in your portfolio.

Registered Investment Advisor
Atlas Capital Management (ACM) is an independent, fee-only, Registered Investment Advisor RIA" which means that we registered with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and then with the State of California. ACM provides investment management services to individuals and companies.

Let Get Started!
We at Atlas Capital Management want to be your long-term partner. We get it, because we know if you succeed, we succeed. We want to earn your trust through a sound, objective investment strategy. The first step is a personal consultation that results in a concise proposal for your portfolio. Call us or e-mail and start on your path to financial independence.

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Investment Philosophy

A better way to invest. There is a new model of investing: a model based not on speculation but on the known functions of the capital equity markets. Decades of research guide the way. The mission of Atlas Capital Management is to deliver the performance of capital equity markets and increase returns through state-of-the-art portfolio design. Discover how to become an Atlas Capital client and capture more of what these markets have to offer. Capital equity markets build wealth. Rather than trying to outguess the capital equity market, let them work for you.

Equity Markets Functions
The Capital Equity Markets throughout the world have a history of rewarding investors for the capital (financing) they supply. Companies compete with each other for investment capital, and millions of investors compete with each other to find the most attractive returns for their financing. This competition quickly drives prices to fair value, ensuring that no investor can expect greater returns without incurring a greater risk. Traditional investment managers strive to beat the market by taking advantage of pricing “mistakes” and attempting to predict the future of such equity markets. Too often, this proves costly and, for some, futile. Predictions go awry and most managers miss the strong returns that equity markets provide by holding the wrong stocks at the wrong time or the costs they incur for competing against the market forces render their effort to become sub-standard .

Investing Versus Speculating
The difficulties of speculation is good news for rational investors. It means that prices for public securities are fair and persistent differences in average portfolio returns are explained by differences in average risk. Although it is certainly possible to outperform markets, most investors are unable to do so without increasing their degree of risk or their costs for investing. When you reject costly speculation and guesswork, investing becomes a matter of identifying and understanding the risks and the compensation associated with such investment risks. Financial analysis identifies the sources of investment returns.

Gaining Clarity
At ACM, we see markets as an ally, not an adversary. Rather than trying to take advantage of the ways markets are purportedly "mis-priced," we take advantage of the ways markets are right over the long-term?\the way they compensate rational investors. The firm designs portfolios to capture what the market offers in all its dimensions. Relieve the stress and confusion of investing with a clear and empirical approach.

Take Risks Worth Taking
Evidence from practicing investors and academics alike points to an undeniable conclusion: Returns come from risk. Gain is rarely accomplished without taking a chance, but not all risks carry a reliable reward. Financial research over the last fifty years has brought us to a powerful understanding of the risks that are worth taking and the risks that are not. Everything we have learned about expected returns in the equity markets can be summarized in three dimensions. The first is that stocks are riskier than bonds and, thus, have greater expected returns. Relative performance among stocks is largely driven by the two other dimensions: small/large and value/growth.

Structure is the Strategy
Successful investing means not only capturing risks that generate expected return but also reducing those investment risks that do not. Avoidable risks include holding too few securities, betting on countries or industries, following market predictions, and speculating on new investment “information." To all these, diversification is the antidote. It washes away the random fortunes of individual stocks and positions your portfolio to capture the returns of broad economic forces. Traditional managers do one of two things: Active managers focus on picking individual stocks, the antithesis of broad diversification.  Conversely, closet index managers hold many securities to mimic arbitrary benchmarks. We choose a different path by creating strategies based on the evidence obtained through financial research rather than on commercial indexes. The firm diversifies not only in the amount of securities it holds (thousands) but also in the range of capital equity market strategies it explores and develops. Small cap strategies target smaller stocks more consistently. Value strategies target value returns with greater focus. As a result, investors achieve a portfolio structure that is more likely to reflect their tolerance to investment risk.

A Plan for the Future
The work is never complete. The final chapter will never be written. But a process grounded in solid, academia financial research can only improve your investment plan. The peace of mind and clarity of such an approach would be reward enough were it not for its long history of documented performance. By applying modern financial principles to wealth management, ACM remains ahead of the industry, ready to address your future needs. Get involved today. Become a client and bring rational investing into the life of your wealth.

Active Management	ACM's Approach	Indexed Management
Attempts to add value through stock picking and market timing Varies asset class exposure Lacks consistency High cost	Based on the idea that market prices are rational Adds value through innovative trading and portfolio structure Delivers true asset class exposure	Cannot beat the market, so settles for less than the market Minimizes tracking error to benchmark Returns are sacrificed due to transaction costs
ACM’s approach is based upon the belief that markets are efficient and investment returns are determined principally by asset allocation, not market timing or stock picking. Atlas Capital constructs portfolios that utilize strategies designed to capture the return behavior of an specific asset classes. Atlas does not believe in forecasting business cycles, market timing strategies, technical analysis, or searching for undiscovered stocks.
Atlas Strategies strategies are designed to expose investments to specific aspects of worldwide returns. These returns are accompanied by independent sources of risk. How do we determine our asset allocations? Asset classes are identified by rigorous academic research, often conducted by one or more of the leading financial economists with which our firm maintains a relationship. Atlas' overall objective is to help clients structure globally diversified portfolios that may have higher expected returns than the market by utilizing simple index strategies.		Principles: Markets Work: Prices are efficient. There aint no such thing as a free lunch. Structure Determines Performance: How assets are allocated across investment classes is of key importance. Active stock selection and market timing are unproven and risky. Risk and Return are Related: Increasing exposure to market, small cap, and value factors is the only way to increase expected returns. Diversification Works: Invest in broad-based portfolios of every asset class where risk is rewarded over the long term in a strong and documented manner.

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Brochure Rule

Atlas Capital Management has been incorporated in California as a Registered Investment Advisor since 1997. ACM was formed in 1995 and incorporated on January 1, 1997.

The Management Team

Craig Arsenault: President & Director
Born in Illinois in 1969, Craig has been involved in the business of financial services since 1995. He graduated in 1992, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University. Concurrently, he worked as a researcher at Purdue for a six-month period. In 1992, Ashland Chemical Corporation recruited him as a chemical engineer and in 1996, Craig was promoted to West Coast Technical Manager. In 1998 Craig was recruited as the Environmental Director for Lasco Bathware where he became one of the experts in MACT regulations for the plastics industry.  1997 was the year in which Craig successfully completed the Series 65, Series 24 Exams and received his MBA degree with an emphasis in finance from the University of Southern California.  In 1999 Craig was recruited to be Director of Engineering for RSI products and was instrumental in creating a patented process to manufacture plastic parts with virtually no hazardous emissions.  Ultimately, Craig became co-founder of Atlas Capital Management.

Tracy Towner: Treasurer & Director
Born in California in 1962, Tracy has been involved in the business of financial services since 1996. In 1986 he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo, California. In 1987, he was recruited by the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department and entered into the law enforcement profession. In 1988, he continued his work in law enforcement with the City of Morgan Hill, California, until the City of San Jose hired him in 1989. In January 1993, he left the City of San Jose and to join the City of Arcadia’s police department. He remained with the City of Arcadia until the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office hired him in June of 1996. Also, in June 1996, Tracy successfully completed the Series 65 examination. In January 1996, Tracy became the treasurer and a one- half equity shareholder of ACM. In May of 1997, he received his MBA degree with an emphasis in finance from the University of Southern California. After successfully completing the Series 24 examination in August of 1997, Tracy became a Registered Investment Advisor with the State of California.

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