Here at Schaeffer's Investment Research, we expect and demand the highest ethical standards from our employees. Those standards allow us to provide our clients and readers full transparency and help to hold ourselves accountable. Especially in our trading advice and analysis, we strive to ensure that information and analysis provided to our customers is accurate. With that in mind, Schaeffer's Investment Research developed the following Ethics and Disclosure Policy to guide our business and our employees, with respect to our customer communications.
- Schaeffer's Investment Research regularly communicates about equities in writing within both our free and paid content. We also make trade recommendations available via our various premium services. While Schaeffer's employees may own positions and/or trade in the securities mentioned in the information we provide, we strictly prohibit any employee from engaging in any securities transaction that directly or indirectly competes with the interests of our subscribers to the extent those interests are known to Schaeffer's Investment Research. Additionally, Schaeffer's Investment Research is not compensated in any way for publishing information about the companies described in our analysis.
- Schaeffer's Investment Research is not a registered investment adviser. Instead, we rely upon the "publishers' exclusion" from the definition of investment adviser under Section 202(a)(11) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and corresponding state securities laws. As such, our company does not, and cannot, offer or provide personalized investment advice. Rather, we publish generalized information about companies that we believe our readers may have an interest. The information that we provide via our communications or website, is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, personalized investment advice.
- Information contained on our website or provided via other communications should not be construed by any subscriber or prospective subscriber as an effort by Schaeffer's Investment Research to effect, or attempt to effect, any transaction in a security. Investments in the securities markets, especially with respect to options and futures, are speculative and naturally involve substantial risk. The information that Schaeffer's Investment Research provides, or that is derived from our website, should not be considered a substitute for advice from an independent investment professional. We encourage you to obtain personal advice from your professional investment advisor and to make independent investigations before acting on any information that you obtain from Schaeffer's Investment Research or www.schaeffersresearch.com. Only you can determine the appropriateness of any investment transactions and/or what level of risk that is right for you.
- Schaeffer's Investment Research is not affiliated with any brokerage firm and does not endorse or recommend the use of any specific brokerage firm. Schaeffer's Investment Research is not, and will not, be responsible for any trades made by a broker on your behalf under any circumstances. Trades made by any brokerage platform, or by you or your designated broker, are exclusively your responsibility.
- The majority of information on www.schaeffersresearch.com or contained in our communications, is derived directly from information published by the companies on which we report and/or from other sources we believe to be reliable. However, Schaeffer's Investment Research cannot guarantee the accuracy of any third party representations upon which it reports. Specifically, Schaeffer's is unable conduct independent verification of every third-party representation contained in its communications. Therefore, Schaeffer's Investment Research cannot assure you that all information contained in its reports is accurate or complete. For example, the information reported may contain discussions of, or provide access to, certain positions and recommendations as of a specific date. Due to various factors, including, but not limited to, changing market conditions, such discussions and positions/recommendations may no longer be reflective of current discussions and positions/recommendations at the time they are reviewed. Thus, Schaeffer's Investment Research does not in any way warrant or guarantee the success of, or endorse any action, which you take in reliance on the information that we provide or that is derived from our website.
- All submissions from outside contributors on www.schaeffersresearch.com are the responsibility of their respective authors, creators, and/or owners. Schaeffer's Investment Research is not responsible for such submissions, and the views and opinions expressed by outside contributors are not necessarily a reflection of Schaeffer's views or opinions. Further, Schaeffer's Investment Research does not guarantee the accuracy or validity of the submissions. While we use our best efforts to review contributor submissions for formatting prior to posting on our website, we do not review or edit these submissions for content. We make no representations and provide no warranties whatsoever concerning submissions. Finally, the fact that Schaeffer's Investment Research has posted outside contributions does not constitute, and should not be seen as constituting, an endorsement, authorization, sponsorship, or affiliation with respect to the author, creator and/or owner of the submissions. We expressly disclaim any responsibility and or liability for any information or content provided in these submissions.
- Marketing/advertising affiliates identified on Schaeffer's Investment Research's website may provide individualized investment advice and investment products. These companies may recommend or purchase or hold the securities mentioned in Schaeffer's Investment Research publications. However, Schaeffer's editorial personnel have no knowledge of any affiliates' holdings and/or specific investment recommendations. Similarly, the affiliates have no knowledge of any editorial content that Schaeffer's Investment Research intends to publish before it is actually published. Our affiliate companies may also have their own disclosure policies that should be consulted for further information.
- “Front Running,” includes the practice of purchasing or selling a security based on yet unpublished investment reports. Front-running is absolutely forbidden by Schaeffer's Investment Research employees with knowledge of a yet-to-be-published article or trade alert. No employee may, under any circumstance, engage in any securities transaction that directly or indirectly competes with the interests of our subscribers.
- Schaeffer's Investment Research employees are prohibited from accepting anything of value in exchange for placing promotional links, etc. in a report, without clearly disclosing any relationship that exists between the employee and the party being promoted. There are certain instances in which Schaeffer's Investment Research is paid to link to sponsors' sites, but under those circumstances, those relationships are disclosed in a conspicuous manner.
The team at Schaeffer's Investment Research designed our Ethic Policy and internal trading guidelines to provide clarity and transparency between and among our business, our customers, and our employees. As always, you should remember to consider every piece of investment analysis you receive from Schaeffer's, whether it derives from Schaeffer's Investment Research or elsewhere, not as an explicit recommendation, but as an idea for further consideration and/or review with your investment advisor. Even the strongest disclosure policy in the world does cannot excuse individuals from taking responsibility for their own decisions. Due diligence, critical thought, diversification in informational resources, and discussion with your individual investment advisor are crucial to your financial success.