Most days, she’ll review trades and meet with at least one family on investments or tax planning. For major decisions, she assembles an eight-person committee that includes herself and seven senior employees.
Original Client
She called a meeting on Oct. 15, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled and the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries dropped below 2 percent. That day, the firm had planned to reinvest money pulled from the Pimco Total Return Fund after Bill Gross, manager of the bond fund, left Pacific Investment Management Co. in September for Janus Capital Group Inc. Instead, it waited until markets calmed.
Saul Feldman is one of Wetherby’s original clients. He met her at Morgan Stanley in the 1980s, when he was an executive at General Parametrics Corp. and the bank helped take the technology company public.
Feldman, 84, became CEO of HealthAmerica Corp. of California and later United Behavioral Health. He says he appreciates Wetherby’s steady hand. She’s guided his family through financial ups and downs -- and preserved their capital.
Now, Wetherby is helping to transfer Feldman’s wealth to his sons and grandchildren. She says her firm’s advice revolves around such goals.
“It’s not about the money,” she says. “It’s about what you want money to do for you in your life.”
(See Financial Advisor magazine's profile of Wetherby here.)
How We Crunched the Numbers
Bloomberg Markets ranked active U.S. registered investment advisers that provide financial planning services based on the data they reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission as of June 2, 2014. We used filings as of June 3, 2013, for year- over-year comparisons.