Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc. (Reston)

Name: Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc.
Address: 1875 Campus Commons Drive, Reston, VA, 20191
Telephone: (703) 293-3100

Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc. is a large advisory firm based in Reston. It manages $810.8 million of regulatory assets for 3,337 client accounts. It has been registered with the SEC as an adviser since 2006 and has operated in the jurisdictions of Arizona, Arkansas, California, and 18 other states.

Acorn Financial Advisory Services provides financial planning services, portfolio management for individuals and small businesses, portfolio management for businesses and institutional clients, pension consulting services, selection of other advisers, educational seminars and workshops, and subadvisory portfolio management services other registered investment advisers. It prepares financial plans for more than 25 clients. On top of advisory services, the firm doesn't engage in other business activities.

Acorn Financial Advisory Services: assets under management

The assets under management (AUM) of Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc. is $810.8 million. The firm's AUM has grown by 365% since the beginning of its operation, and the company doesn't manage any assets belonging to foreign clients.

The firm manages $272.11 million in discretionary accounts and $538.69 million in non-discretionary accounts. On average, the discretionary accounts where all decisions are made on behalf of the client hold $244.26 thousand each. Non-discretionary accounts, where clients actively manage their portfolios, generally hold around $242.33 thousand.

Investments

The firm invests in investment and business development companies the most. They account for 82% of the total AUM. The second-largest asset type is exchange traded securities, which make up 15% of the firm’s portfolio. Investments in other assets form 2% of the total invested assets.

Fees & Commissions

The advisory firm has several streams of revenue. Clients pay Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc. for their services and products based on a percentage of assets under management, hourly charges, and fixed fees. 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 Acorn Financial Advisory Services serves?

The firm provides services to individuals and high net worth individuals. The largest group of clients of Acorn Financial Advisory Services is individuals with 1,231 clients and $422.41 million of assets under management. Among the 12 most similar advisory firms, Acorn Financial Advisory Services has the highest percentage of individuals out of all clients.

The amount of regulatory assets under management is $810.8 million for 1,534 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.

Acorn Financial Advisory Services doesn't advise any private funds.

Careers at Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc.

The company employs 41 people that are either part- or full-time employees. 68 percent of the employees work as investment advisers or researchers. 28 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 compensates employees in addition to the salary for bringing in new clients. Employees don’t receive compensation from other entities for client referrals.

Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc. is owned by Bobby Lee Glass. Matthew Patrick Brennan joined the executive team most recently as the Chief Compliance Officer.

Direct owners and executive officers

Name	Entity	Date acquired	Ownership	Employer ID
Bobby Lee Glass	Owner	1 Jun 1996	75% - 100%	222733
Stephanie Lynn Glass Zimmermann	Cco	1 Oct 2004	Other	2897299
James Michael Gambaccini	Co-owner	1 Jan 2008	50% - 75%	4619759
James Michael Gambaccini	Chief executive officer, president, chief compliance officer	1 Jan 2012	75% - 100%	4619759
Bobby Lee Glass	Chief compliance officer, vice president	1 Jan 2012	Other	222733
Matthew Patrick Brennan	Chief compliance officer	1 Jan 2015	Other	4658620

Based in Reston

The principal office where Acorn Financial Advisory Services, Inc. performs its advisory services is located at 1875 Campus Commons Drive, Reston, VA 20191, which is also the mailing address of the firm. An additional office of the firm is in Wilmington, NC. It doesn’t run an office outside of the United States.

You can reach the main office by calling the phone number (703) 293-3100 or by fax 703-870-2412. The normal business hours are 9am-5pm on Monday - Friday. You can find more information about the New York firm at acorn-financial.com.