Portfoliosense®
Based on Nobel prize-winning theory, our investment strategy is an evidence-based, low-cost, scientific approach to managing money.
We cannot stress enough the peace of mind this has all given us to get on with our lives. It's great to skip past the investment adverts in the Sunday papers and think, no thanks, we're all sorted!
Chris Reynolds, retired executive
Portfoliosense®
How it works
Our Portfoliosense® service is designed to deliver disciplined investment management and long-term outperformance at a low cost. This includes behavioural finance support, quarterly commentaries and online reporting. It was born out of the scientific study of how the capital markets work, it is intellectually robust, with all decision-making based on Nobel-Prize winning academic theory and strong empirical evidence.
Within Portfoliosense®, we have a range of risk-based portfolios that have expected returns based on evidence-based research and the historic returns they have demonstrated.
We use these expected returns of the portfolio over certain periods and relate those to your financial plan. We know the return you need to live the life you want to live, and our team is highly qualified to match portfolios with plans to provide the best results.
Portfoliosense® is built around the following nine principles of successful investing:
1. Invest on purpose
By clearly understanding your objectives, we identify the return that you require. We select the optimum portfolio to achieve this, subject to this being within your risk tolerance. Understanding these expectations and then using portfolios that have a proven history of meeting target returns, increases your chances of a successful investment outcome.
2. Risk and return are related
One of the inescapable truths of investing is that to achieve higher returns, you must take on more risk. That seems logical enough, but you would be surprised just how many investors seem to think that it is possible to get high returns with low risk. The one thing we know for sure about risk is that if an investment looks too good to be true, it probably is. Risk and reward are always related.
3. Retain a healthy cash reserve
A healthy cash reserve acts as an anxiety management device, enabling you to reap the rewards of long-term investing. Having a significant cash reserve will help you avoid the negative impact of distressed sales, dissuading you from selling when the stock markets have temporarily fallen.
4. Track, don’t pick
Many investors still believe some active managers predict the future, anticipate market movements and select the next top-performing stocks. Overwhelming evidence demonstrates that this is a futile and costly exercise. You should avoid active managers and adopt an evidence-based, diverse index strategy.
5. Invest for the long term
Investors know they should be long-term investors. This often gives rise to the question: “How long is long-term?”. The answer for many investors is surprising, your long-term horizon should be as far into the future as possible. One of the many surprising facts about investing is that having a long horizon is a powerful advantage, given the impact of compound returns and the risk reduction factors over time. You want your horizon to be as long as possible because, as an investor, time is your biggest ally.
6. Keep emotions in check
Many people struggle to separate their emotions from investing. Markets go up and down all the time. Reacting to market conditions may lead to making poor investment decisions. A great investment strategy, controlled by an investor with no discipline, is doomed to underperform and, like many before them, lose the “loser’s game”. Don’t be a loser! There’s no such thing as bad investments when following an evidence-based approach, just bad investors.
7. Capitalism works
It can sometimes even feel that capitalism is on its last legs, or at least struggling for credibility. Capitalism is an adaptive, robust economic system that has delivered incredible developments to the benefit of mankind, and as investors we should use capitalism to do the heavy lifting as we try and generate returns from our portfolios.
8. Time in the market, not timing the market
You never know which market or asset class will outperform from year to year. By spreading investments across countries and asset classes, Portfoliosense® does not put all of an investors eggs in one basket, and is well positioned to seek returns wherever and whenever they occur.
9. Keep your costs low
As consumers, we are conditioned to think that the more, we pay for a product or service, the better quality it generally is. In the investment world the opposite is true! 0.01% here or there may not sound like much, but it is. Small differences accumulate into large ones over the long term. Portfoliosense® cannot control markets, but it can often control what its investors pay to invest, which can make an enormous difference over time. Fees destroy investor returns.
Investing a lump sum
BENEFIT FROM GREATER RETURNS
If you have recently experienced a life-changing experience, such as selling a business or inheriting a substantial sum of money, you may have many questions about what to do with this large sum.
Whichever situation has led you to invest a lump sum, you want to be sure that your investments aren’t based on a hunch. That’s where our expertise comes in.
About Portfoliosense®
A dedicated team
Our portfolios are monitored on an ongoing basis by our dedicated Investment Manager and experienced investment committee of internal and external professionals. Your financial planning team is always available to answer any ongoing investment queries or deal with the associated administration of managing your investment affairs.
About Portfoliosense®
The benefits to you
With the Portfoliosense® service, you benefit directly from our expertise in investment management, state-of-the-art portfolio design and access to Portfoliosense®. Other benefits include:
Globally diversified portfolios, not focused on specific countries.
Portfolios tilted towards factors that, evidence highlights, generate a return in excess of the market over the long term.
Clearly defined asset allocated portfolios.
Low-cost, evidence-based funds that remove the reliance on a fund manager's skill to generate investment returns.
Regular investment-related updates.
Client stories
Let our clients do the talking
We didn’t get here by accident. We had help from Henwood. We feel incredibly lucky and fortunate to have this time.
If I was to have planned what I would want from a service, Nick and his team have ticked every box.
We can rest assured that the decisions we are making are good ones and that our family and children are going to be looked after.
We’re heading in a much better direction than we’d ever get to with another financial adviser. It’s not too strong to say it has changed our lives.
A business owner should engage with a financial planner at the earliest opportunity so they build up a relationship and have a support network behind them.
Some of the questions Nick was asking us were much broader than just looking at finances, he was looking at lifestyle choices.
Henwood really has helped us to live the life we want. All the staff know us and give us a warm welcome whenever we go there and I trust the whole team for their knowledge.
All the people we deal with make you feel like you’re the only person they deal with. They’re very individual in the way they handle your issues.
I’ve been impressed by the way Nick has chosen to work with a select number of higher value clients, which means the business can deliver a highly personal service.
One of our friends had recommended Henwood and we were immediately impressed.
We always get the impression that the whole team at Henwood have our best interests at heart and are focused on what we want to do, rather than pushing products and services.
I felt an instantaneous connection with Henwood and the way they operate their business. They have a totally customer-centric and relationship-based approach.
