Safford Nicholas H & Co Inc

Nicholas H. Safford & Co., Inc. provides professional investment counsel and portfolio management to individuals, high‑net‑worth clients, trusts, IRAs, charitable institutions, foundations, endowments and other investment advisory firms. The firm is a four‑advisor team overseeing about $1.8 billion in assets and typically requires a $5 million portfolio minimum.

The firm’s investment advice is driven by in‑house fundamental research, including company visits and discussions with management, and emphasizes high‑quality, dividend‑paying companies with a dividend‑growth orientation; it also applies the same research framework to selected non‑U.S. equities and conservative fixed‑income laddering. Accounts are generally managed on a non‑discretionary basis, with recommendations tailored to client objectives and regular telephone contact used to review and obtain client approvals before trades.

What is distinctive about the firm compared with peers is its high assets under management per advisor and the fact that the vast majority of its assets are non‑discretionary (roughly $1.73 billion non‑discretionary versus about $69.5 million discretionary); it also accepts other investment adviser clients, which is uncommon for similar teams. The firm does not list financial planning among its services, follows a client‑directed brokerage policy, provides quarterly printed asset appraisals to clients, and maintains a formal Code of Ethics and personal‑trading controls.