Although not our primary objective, investment performance is important to us. We are fortunate to have a competitive long-term track record. We believe honorable corporate values often lead to good, long-term financial results. But, because our values and freedoms are at stake, we strive to put principles before profits. Maintaining these priorities is in the best interest of all Americans.

Risk Management and Disclaimers

All investments in all asset classes are subject to risks including the risk of losing value. Risk can be managed but cannot be eliminated. Overall risk is managed by spreading the risk over more than one asset class also known as asset allocation. Risk can be further managed within each asset class of which equity investments is one. American Values Investments manages equity risk by:

1. Our primary goal is not investment performance but helping investors advance freedom. We, therefore limit ourselves to investing only in American Hero Company stocks which make up a very small segment of the market. There are many other stocks which have better prospective investment merit but are not considered for our portfolios.
2. Figures are shown as percentages (%).
3. An allowance of .6% per annum (60 basis points) for fees and/or expenses has been deducted from both models which reflects an estimate of fees charged by American Values Investments. Most financial advisors will charge additional fees. No fees were deducted from the benchmark return figures.
4. The primary benchmark is the Wilshire 5000 Index Equal Weight which contains over 6,500 stocks that trade in the U.S. including issues on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), NASDAQ Stock Market, and the American Stock Exchange (AMEX). It is often referred to as the ‘Total Market Index’ because it covers a wide variety of publicly traded companies. Performance assumes all dividends are reinvested; you cannot invest directly in the index. We use an “equal weighted” index as a benchmark because once each year we adjust all of our holdings so that each individual stock position represents an equal dollar amount (or close to an equal dollar amount) of the portfolio.
5. We believe the Wilshire 5000 Equal Weight index is a reasonable benchmark on which to evaluate the financial effectiveness of our individual equity selections.
6. The above figures are not audited but were computed by a third party, Bridge Portfolio. They reflect the performance of our models which is not necessarily the composite performance of all accounts invested in these models.
7. The one, three, five and ten year figures are annual percentage returns
8. The figures are not audited and do not represent performance of individual accounts.
9. The American Hero Equity Model is a concentrated (20-30 stocks) selected exclusively from the American Hero Universe, equal weighted representing at least 7 of 10 sectors as defined by Standard & Poor’s. The stocks can range from small to large and from value to growth as defined by Morningstar. Any sector represented is at least 50% of the S&P 500 weighting and no more than 200%. No stock represents more than 5% of the model at initial purchase. The model is rebalanced annually. The stocks are selected based on a proprietary investment merit analysis based on 10 -15 fundamental matrices.
10. The American Hero Index Model consists of the total American Hero Company Universe of 90-125 public companies. To be included in the American Hero Universe a company must score a minimum 400 out of 500 on a proprietary analysis of the company’s corporate culture. The analysis focuses on the three key values of Integrity, Caring and Courage.
11. Past performance is no assurance of future results. Investing in equity markets involves risk; you could lose a significant portion or all of your original investment. All recommendations are based on our experience and may or may not have been profitable in the past, now or in the future. These performance figures may not reflect the impact that material economic and market factors might have had on our decision making if we had actually managed clients’ account.

The people or companies we have featured in our articles may or may not endorse our company. They may or may not agree with our goals or investment strategy. The views presented in this publication may not always reflect the current opinion of American Values Investments on the values or the prospects for investment performance of any company mentioned. Each of our stock holdings performs differently and it should not be concluded that all of our stock selections have performed as well as the ones mentioned. The securities identified and described do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold or recommended for client accounts. The reader should not assume than an investment in the securities identified was or will be profitable. For a complete list of recommendations made by American Values Investments, please contact us. Our goal is first to support companies that best reflect authentic American values and only then seek market competitive returns. We reserve the right to buy or sell any stock from our current portfolios or add or subtract companies from our American Hero Universe. Investing in stocks involves risk including the loss of principle. American Values Investments research criteria limit the number of stocks available for investment. Stocks eliminated may have potential for higher returns. Companies acting on higher ethical standards may sacrifice short-term profits, which could be reflected in lower stock price. Investors should carefully consider their investment objectives, risk tolerance, and the expenses of investing in our portfolios. Due to changes in the products or services of the companies in which the strategies invest, the strategies may temporarily hold securities that are inconsistent with its investment criteria. Past performance is no assurance of future results.

More complete disclosure/risk information can be found in our firm disclosure brochure.