Zaks Investment Advisory Service, LLC

Zaks Investment Advisory Service is a state-registered investment advisor that provides discretionary and nondiscretionary separately managed accounts for individual clients, establishing investment objectives and risk tolerance in an initial conference. The firm reports a $50,000 minimum account size and managed just over $2.5 million in discretionary client assets as of October 1, 2024, and it serves individual (including non–high-net-worth) households rather than primarily institutional or pooled investors.

The firm’s investment approach emphasizes asset allocation and passive management, implementing diversified portfolios principally through exchange-traded funds and passively managed mutual funds and avoiding market timing or technical analysis. Portfolios are adjusted to reflect client circumstances, trading volume is low, the firm does not employ leverage, and it focuses on liquid, broadly diversified funds.

Noteworthy features include a very small operating structure with no employees and investment recommendations made by the firm’s principal, who discloses devoting a substantial portion of his time to another business; the firm is fee-only and charges percentage-of-AUM advisory fees, does not participate in wrap programs, and declines proxy-voting responsibility. Compared with peers classified as investment managers for pooled or institutional assets, its focus on individual retail clients and the principal’s significant outside business activity are atypical.