Equity Services, Inc. (Montpelier)


Equity Services, Inc. is a large advisory firm based in Montpelier. It manages $1.29 billion of regulatory assets for 8,758 client accounts. It has been registered with the SEC as an adviser since 2001 and has operated in the jurisdictions of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, and 43 other states.

Equity Services provides financial planning services, portfolio management for individuals and small businesses, pension consulting services, selection of other advisers, and educational seminars and workshops. It prepares financial plans for more than 100 clients. On top of advisory services, the firm doesn't engage in other business activities.

Equity Services: assets under management

The assets under management (AUM) of Equity Services, Inc. is $1.29 billion. The firm's AUM has grown by 20% since the beginning of its operation, and the company doesn't manage any assets belonging to foreign clients.

The firm manages $150.96 million in discretionary accounts and $1.14 billion in non-discretionary accounts. On average, the discretionary accounts where all decisions are made on behalf of the client hold $202.9 thousand each. Non-discretionary accounts, where clients actively manage their portfolios, generally hold around $142.37 thousand.

Investments

The firm invests in investment and business development companies the most. They account for 68% of the total AUM. The second-largest asset type is exchange traded securities, which make up 26% of the firm’s portfolio. Investments in cash and cash equivalents form 5% of the total invested assets.

Fees & Commissions

The advisory firm has several streams of revenue. Clients pay Equity Services, Inc. for their services and products based on a percentage of assets under management, hourly charges, fixed fees, and commissions. Compensation based on assets under management promotes a long-term relationship between a client and the adviser and helps align mutual interests. These fees don’t include brokerage commissions, interest, taxes, and other account expenses.

What kind of clients Robert Earl Cotton serves?

The firm provides services to individuals, charitable organizations, high net worth individuals, corporations or other businesses, and pension and profit sharing plans. The largest group of clients of Robert Earl Cotton is individuals with 6,750 clients and $765.5 million of assets under management. Among the 13 most similar advisory firms, Equity Services has the highest percentage of individuals out of all clients.

The amount of regulatory assets under management is $1.29 billion for 8,750 clients that can include trusts, estates, and 401(k) plans and IRAs of individuals and their family members. None of the firm’s clients are foreign persons or businesses.

Equity Services doesn't advise any private funds.

Careers at Equity Services, Inc.

The company employs 420 people that are either part- or full-time employees. 95 percent of the employees work as investment advisers or researchers. 300 employees are registered as investment adviser representatives with the state securities authorities.

There are 10 people 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 receive compensation from other entities for client referrals.

Robert Earl Cotton has been acting as President since 1 Jun 2010. Gregory Dwight Teese joined the executive team most recently as the Sr. Vice President, Operations.

Direct owners and executive officers


Name Entity Date acquired Ownership Employer ID
National Life Investment Management Company Direct ben owner 1 Oct 1968 75% - 100% 03-021140
Nl Capital Management Inc. Direct ben owner 1 Oct 1968 75% - 100% 03-0221140
Lisa Ann Pettrey Secretary 1 Aug 1984 Other 2533266
Joseph Michael Rob Chairman, ceo, director 1 Feb 1985 Other 400554
David Russell Jr Morgan Counsel 1 Feb 1986 Other 1457549
Thomas Henry Macleay Director 1 Aug 1996 Other 2808384
Rodney Allen Buck Director 1 Feb 1997 Other 1839120
Gregory Dwight Teese Sr. vice president, compliance & chief compliance officer 1 Mar 1997 Other 2135269
Patrick Edward Welch Director 1 Mar 1997 Other 1276218
John Michael Jr Grab Senior vice president, cfo 1 Oct 1997 Other 1162133
Sharon Ellen Bernard Controller, treasurer 1 Oct 1998 Other 2413692
Kenneth Ray Ehinger President, coo 1 May 1999 Other 1525408
Stephen Anthony Englese Senior vice president 1 Jun 1999 Other 1011107
William Alfred Smith Director 1 Jun 2000 Other 1184651
James Kenneth Mcquestion Secretary 1 Jun 2000 Other xxx-xx-xxxx
Kenneth Ray Ehinger President, ceo, srop/crop 1 Aug 2001 Other 1525408
Joseph Michael Rob Chairman, director 1 Aug 2001 Other 400554
Tammy Lynnette King Vice president - marketing & field development 1 May 2002 Other 1843437
Thomas Henry Macleay Director 1 Jun 2002 Other 2808384
Edward John Bonach Director 1 Jun 2002 Other xxx-xx-xxxx
Kerry Anne Jung Counsel 1 Jun 2005 Other xxx-xx-xxxx
Christopher Maryanopolis President 1 Oct 2005 Other 3041077
Nlv Financial Corporation Shareholder 1 Dec 2005 75% - 100% 03-0359222
Donald Paul Messier Vice president - finance 1 Jun 2006 Other 5075888
Mark Joseph Viviano Vice president 1 Jun 2006 Other 4135838
Lance Alan Reihl Ceo, president, rosfp 1 Apr 2007 Other 828685
Ian Andrew Mckenny Counsel & secretary 1 May 2007 Other 5352951
Kerry Anne Jung Counsel, investment advisory services 1 Jun 2007 Other xxx-xx-xxxx
Michele Susan Gatto Director 1 Jun 2007 Other xxx-xx-xxxx
Mehran Assadi Director & chairman of the board 1 Feb 2008 Other 5270638
Edward J Iii Parry Director 1 Jul 2008 Other xxx-xx-xxxx
Heather Lynn Lyon Vice president, esi operations 1 Oct 2008 Other 3011389
Vincent Gerard Vitiello Director 1 Jun 2009 Other 1059845
James Edmond Clements Sr. vp, business development 1 Jun 2009 Other 2445775
Robert Earl Cotton Director 1 Jun 2010 Other 3085405
Jeffrey Wood Sr. vice president, business development and advisory services 1 Aug 2011 Other 2402574
Ruth Marie Smith Director 1 Aug 2011 Other 1053050
Denise Sullivan Vice president, finance 1 Oct 2011 Other 5585332
Andrew Robert Speirs Chief information security officer 1 Jun 2012 Other 6003967
Frances Tierno Vp, compliance 1 Jun 2012 Other 2547772
Eric Keith Kucinskas Vp, finance and finop 1 Dec 2014 Other 6072823
Timothy Van Ryder Svp, operations 1 Jan 2016 Other 3096529
Pamela Newcomb Blalock Director 1 Sep 2016 Other 4951558
Shukri Khader Chief information security officer 1 Apr 2018 Other 6909446
Gregory Dwight Teese Sr. vice president, operations 1 Apr 2019 Other 2135269
Scott Richard Solod Vp, compliance and chief compliance officer 1 Apr 2019 Other 2116968

Indirect Owners

The SEC currently registers 5 indirect owners.

Name Entity Date acquired Ownership Employer ID
National Life Insurance Company Shareholder 1 Oct 1968 75% - 100% 03-0144090
National Life Holding Company Shareholder 1 Jan 1999 75% - 100% 03-0359221
National Life Of Vermont Financial Corporation Shareholder 1 Jan 1999 75% - 100% 03-0353222
National Life Of Vermont Holding Company Shareholder 1 Jan 1999 75% - 100% 03-0359221
Nlv Financial Corporation Shareholder 1 Jan 1999 75% - 100% 03-0359222

Based in Montpelier

The principal office where Equity Services, Inc. performs its advisory services is located at One National Life Drive, Montpelier, VT 05604, which is also the mailing address of the firm. An additional office of the firm is in White Plains, NY. It doesn’t run an office outside of the United States.

You can reach the main office by calling the phone number 800-344-7437 or by fax 802-229-7244. The normal business hours are 8:00am - 5:00pm on Monday - Friday. You can find more information about the New York firm at equity-services.com.