Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC (San Diego)

Name: Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC
Address: 2125 Poinsettia Drive, San Diego, CA, 92107
Telephone: 619-255-0700

Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC is a large advisory firm based in San Diego. It manages $301.13 million of regulatory assets for 1,225 client accounts. It has been registered with the SEC as an adviser since 2013 and has operated in the jurisdictions of Arizona, California, New Hampshire, and 4 other states.

Gradient Capital Advisors provides financial planning services, portfolio management for individuals and small businesses, portfolio management for businesses and institutional clients, and pension consulting services. It prepares financial plans for more than 10 clients. On top of advisory services, the firm doesn't engage in other business activities.

Gradient Capital Advisors: assets under management

The assets under management (AUM) of Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC is $301.13 million. The firm's AUM has grown by 93% since the beginning of its operation, and $125 thousand of the total AUM is attributable to clients outside of the United States.

The firm manages $240.8 million in discretionary accounts and $60.33 million in non-discretionary accounts. On average, the discretionary accounts where all decisions are made on behalf of the client hold $262.03 thousand each. Non-discretionary accounts, where clients actively manage their portfolios, generally hold around $197.16 thousand.

Gradient Capital Advisors has custody of $95.66 million in cash and securities for 167 clients in total but doesn’t act as a qualified custodian.

Investments

The firm invests in exchange traded securities the most. They account for 51% of the total AUM. The second-largest asset type is investment and business development companies, which make up 39% of the firm’s portfolio. Investments in cash and cash equivalents form 6% of the total invested assets.

Fees & Commissions

The advisory firm has several streams of revenue. Clients pay Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC for their services and products based on a percentage of assets under management, hourly charges, and fixed fees. Hourly charges are usually charged for consulting work and special projects. These fees don’t include brokerage commissions, interest, taxes, and other account expenses.

What kind of clients Gradient Capital Advisors serves?

The firm provides services to individuals, high net worth individuals, corporations or other businesses, and pension and profit sharing plans. The largest group of clients of Gradient Capital Advisors is high net worth individuals with 130 clients and $204.78 million of assets under management. Among the 6 most similar advisory firms, Gradient Capital Advisors has the 3rd highest percentage of high net worth individuals out of all clients.

The amount of regulatory assets under management is $301.13 million for 415 clients that can include trusts, estates, and 401(k) plans and IRAs of individuals and their family members. 1% of the firm’s clients are foreign persons or businesses.

Gradient Capital Advisors doesn't advise any private funds.

Careers at Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC

The company employs 6 people that are either part- or full-time employees. 83 percent of the employees work as investment advisers or researchers. 4 employees are registered as investment adviser representatives with the state securities authorities.

There isn’t anyone with the role of looking for and bringing in new clients on behalf of the firm. The firm doesn’t compensate employees in addition to the salary for bringing in new clients. Employees don’t receive compensation from other entities for client referrals.

Direct owners and executive officers

Name	Entity	Date acquired	Ownership	Employer ID
Rodney Allen Simms	Senior partner	1 Jan 2014	50% - 75%	1854316
Timothy Akira Sagawa	Senior partner and chief compliance officer	1 Jan 2014	Other	4627677
Eric Eugene Simms	Senior partner	1 Jan 2014	25% - 50%	2575354

Based in San Diego

The principal office where Gradient Capital Advisors, LLC performs its advisory services is located at 2125 Poinsettia Drive, San Diego, CA 92107, which is also the mailing address of the firm. It doesn’t run an office outside of the United States.

You can reach the main office by calling the phone number 619-255-0700 or by fax 619-255-0777. The normal business hours are 8:30 am - 5:00pm on Monday - Friday. You can find more information about the New York firm at gradientcapital.com.