S6 BARRON’S March 16, 2020
AMERICA’S TOP 1200 FINANCIAL ADVISORS 2020
Growing up in the Texas Panhandle,Brent Beene
often witnessed the strain that a season of below-
average rainfall could put on his farming community.
Now a partner and wealth planner at RegentAtlantic
Capital in Morristown, N.J., Beene, 43, says it’s no coin-
cidence that he chose a career helping folks with finan-
cial preparedness for unpredictable events.
Many of his clients are current or former business
owners who have poured heart and soul—and personal
assets—into building their companies, much like the
farming families he grew up with in Friona, known as
the cheeseburger capital of Texas for its dairy and beef
production.
Preparation involves smart asset allocation and
diversification, but also a dialogue with clients to temper
emotional responses to negative events, says Beene,
whose firm oversees $4.8 billion in client assets.
“We spend a lot of time talking about the ups and
downs of the markets to put short-term disruptions into
context,” he says. His clients’ average net worth is about
$5 million.
Beene’s current asset allocations for modest-risk port-
folios were established earlier this year to position for
projected higher volatility: 55% in stocks, 35% in bonds,
and 10% in alternatives. That compares with last year’s
57% in stocks, 40% in bonds, and 3% in alternatives.
Breen may well recommend further changes when
epidemiologists and economists learn more about the
impact of the Covid-19 virus. “There will be great oppor-
tunities to rebalance client portfolios as the facts come
into focus,” he says.
In January, RegentAtlantic’s 2020 Investment Out-
look summarized the markets as being in a “Rolling
Stones recovery,” because, like the band, the long
economic expansion appeared it would persevere.
That view is now in question. “If factories and busi-
nesses shut down and people are not out consuming for
an extended period of time, the threat of a recession is
certainly real,” Beene says.
For now, he is telling clients to sit tight and avoid
knee-jerk reactions, since the full effects of the virus are
still unknown.—KAREN HUBE
Photograph byBENEDICT EVANS
$4.8B $2M $5M
Total Assets Typical Account Typical Net Worth
Morristown, N.J. No. 36
BRENT
BEENE
RegentAtlantic Capital