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Essex Financial Services, Inc.

Essex, CTSEC-registered investment adviserCRD 127549

Filed as ESSEX FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC.

Essex Financial Services, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment advisory firm in Essex, CT, registered since 2003, reporting $1 billion to $5 billion in regulatory assets under management in its Form ADV filing dated August 25, 2026.

23 years
registered since 2003
$4,169,984,114
assets under management
3 arrangements
Percentage of assets, Hourly and more
3
disclosure items (Item 11)

Quick answers

From the filing

How is Essex Financial Services, Inc. compensated?

On its Form ADV (Item 5.E, October 2026), Essex Financial Services, Inc. reports these compensation arrangements: a percentage of assets under its management; hourly charges; fixed fees (other than subscription fees).

What does Essex Financial Services, Inc.'s brochure say about its fees?

Its Form ADV Part 2A brochure dated August 25, 2026 states: Asset-based fee: 0.5% to 1.5% a year (a range, as the brochure states it). Fees can differ by service and may be negotiable; the brochure is the complete statement.

Where is Essex Financial Services, Inc. located?

Essex Financial Services, Inc.'s principal office is in Essex, CT, according to its Form ADV; the September 2026 filing also lists 3 other offices (Schedule D, Section 1.F).

Is Essex Financial Services, Inc. registered with the SEC or a state?

Essex Financial Services, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment advisory firm, registered since 2003. Status as filed: Approved. CRD 127549.

How much does Essex Financial Services, Inc. manage?

Essex Financial Services, Inc. reports $4,169,984,114 in regulatory assets under management in its Form ADV filing dated August 25, 2026 (78% discretionary).

How have Essex Financial Services, Inc.'s assets and staff changed since 2021?

In the Form ADV data for Essex Financial Services, Inc.: Regulatory assets under management: $2,272,726,892 in the October 2021 data and $4,169,984,114 in the October 2026 data, up 83%. Total employees: 41 in October 2021 and 46 in October 2026. Assets under management move with markets as well as with clients coming and going.

What types of clients does Essex Financial Services, Inc. serve?

By number of clients on Form ADV Item 5.D: individuals (other than high net worth individuals) (1,885); high net worth individuals (895); pension and profit sharing plans (but not the plan participants or government pension plans) (108).

Which custodians does Essex Financial Services, Inc. use?

Essex Financial Services, Inc.'s most recent Form ADV filing (Schedule D, Section 5.K(3)) lists Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC and Pershing LLC as custodians holding 10% or more of its separately managed account assets.

Does Essex Financial Services, Inc. report any disciplinary disclosures?

Reports 3 disclosure items on Form ADV Item 11: yes answers to 11.C(2) (SEC or CFTC finding of a violation), 11.C(4) (SEC or CFTC order), and 11.C(5) (SEC or CFTC civil money penalty or cease-and-desist order). Each question covers the firm and its advisory affiliates, and one event can produce several yes answers. The detail of any item is on the firm's SEC record: https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/127549

Does Essex Financial Services, Inc. state an account minimum?

Its Form ADV Part 2A brochure dated August 25, 2026 says: "Essex Financial generally requires a minimum account size of $250,000 to effectively implement its investment process. The account minimum may be waived at the sole discretion of the Advisor."

What changed in Essex Financial Services, Inc.'s recent Form ADV filings?

In the September 2026 filing data: Updated its list of owners and control persons (Schedule A).

From the Form ADV filing

Every figure below is as the firm filed it with regulators, as of October 2026.

How the firm is compensated

Item 5.E
  • A percentage of assets under your management
  • Hourly charges
  • Fixed fees (other than subscription fees)

Item 5.E lists how the firm is compensated for its advice; Items 5.B, 6.A, and 7.A show whether its people or related companies can also earn commissions. Percentage of assets, fixed, hourly, subscription, and performance-based fees come from clients (a performance-based fee depends on investment results); commissions come with a sale or a trade, often from the company behind the product. How fees, commissions, and other arrangements differ

Fees and minimums

Form ADV Part 2A

Asset-based fee: 0.5% to 1.5% a year (a range, as the brochure states it)

The brochure's wording
Investment advisory fees range from 0.50% to 1.50% annually based on several factors, including: the scope and complexity of the services to be provided; the level of assets to be managed; and the overall relationship with the Advisor.

Account minimum: $250,000 (the brochure says it may be waived or negotiated)

The brochure's wording
Essex Financial generally requires a minimum account size of $250,000 to effectively implement its investment process. The account minimum may be waived at the sole discretion of the Advisor.

As stated in the firm's Form ADV Part 2A brochure dated August 25, 2026. Fees can differ by service and may be negotiable; the brochure is the complete statement. Read the brochure on the SEC's IAPD site

Regulatory assets under management

Item 5.F
$4,169,984,114

$4,169,984,114 as of October 2026, filing dated August 25, 2026.

Discretionary: $3,247,330,333.Non-discretionary: $922,653,781.

A measure of scale, not skill or returns. Discretionary means the firm decides trades; non-discretionary means clients approve each one. What assets under management means

Who the firm serves

Item 5.D
Individuals (other than high net worth individuals)
Clients 1,885 Assets $580,806,775 (14%)
High net worth individuals
Clients 895 Assets $2,870,661,046 (69%)
Pension and profit sharing plans (but not the plan participants or government pension plans)
Clients 108 Assets $565,276,917 (14%)
Charitable organizations
Clients 60 Assets $104,290,493 (3%)
State or municipal government entities (including government pension plans)
Clients Fewer than 5 Assets $5,471,894 (0%)
Corporations or other businesses not listed above
Clients 15 Assets $43,476,989 (1%)

A firm with no individual clients is an institutional manager even if it manages billions; the mix tells you whom the practice is built around.

Advisory services

Item 5.G
  • Financial planning services
  • Portfolio management for individuals and/or small businesses
  • Portfolio management for businesses (other than small businesses) or institutional clients
  • Pension consulting services
  • Selection of other advisers (including private fund managers)

Registration and firm details

Items 1, 2, 5
Also doing business as
ESSEX FINANCIAL
Registration
SEC-registered investment adviser. Status as filed: Approved.
Registered since
2003 (23 years)
Employees
Total: 46. Performing investment advisory functions: 42.
Wrap fee program participation
No.
Custodians (Schedule D, Section 5.K(3))

Custodians holding 10% or more of the firm's separately managed account assets, as filed on Form ADV (Schedule D, Section 5.K(3)). A custodian holds client assets; it does not endorse or supervise the firm. AdvisorCensus has no relationship with any custodian.

Other offices (Schedule D, Section 1.F)
3 other offices, as of the September 2026 filing
Farmington, CTMadison, CTSouthport, CT
States registered or notice-filed
28 states or jurisdictions
AZCACOCTDCDEFLGAILLAMAMDMEMINCNHNJNVNYORPARISCTNTXVAVTWA

SEC-registered investment advisers are examined by the SEC. SEC, state, and exempt registration

Disclosures

Item 11

3 Reports 3 disclosure items on Form ADV Item 11. View on IAPD.

Questions answered yes on this filing

Regulatory matters Items 11.C to 11.G

  • 11.C(2) Has the SEC or the CFTC ever found that the firm or an advisory affiliate was involved in a violation of SEC or CFTC regulations or statutes?
  • 11.C(4) Has the SEC or the CFTC ever entered an order against the firm or an advisory affiliate in connection with investment-related activity?
  • 11.C(5) Has the SEC or the CFTC ever imposed a civil money penalty on the firm or an advisory affiliate, or ordered the firm or an advisory affiliate to cease and desist from an activity?

Each question covers the firm and its advisory affiliates: its current employees other than clerical staff, its officers, partners, and directors, and anyone who controls the firm or is controlled by it. One event can produce yes answers to several questions. SEC-registered advisers and exempt reporting advisers may leave out events more than ten years old, and may answer 11.A(2) and 11.B(2) for pending charges only. What happened, and who was involved, is on the Disclosure Reporting Pages of the IAPD record. Reading a firm's disclosures

Assets and staff over time

Items 5.A, 5.F
$2.27B 2021 $3.08B 2022 $2.77B 2023 $3.38B 2024 $3.77B 2025 $4.17B 2026
Data periodAssets under managementEmployeesFiling dated
October 2026$4,169,984,11446August 25, 2026
October 2025$3,774,949,28845June 2, 2025
October 2024$3,383,035,71741August 1, 2024
October 2023$2,771,901,77741January 3, 2023
October 2022$3,084,924,29039December 26, 2021
October 2021$2,272,726,89241September 29, 2021

Regulatory assets under management: $2,272,726,892 in the October 2021 data and $4,169,984,114 in the October 2026 data, up 83%.

Total employees: 41 in October 2021 and 46 in October 2026.

As filed in each year's data for the same month. Assets under management move with markets as well as with clients coming and going; they measure scale, not skill or returns. Most firms update these figures once a year.

Changes in the filing

Last 12 months
  1. September 2026
    • Updated its list of owners and control persons (Schedule A).
  2. January 2026
    • Item 11 disclosure answers changed: 3 yes answers, previously 5 (now no: 11.D(2), 11.D(4)).
  3. December 2025
    • Employees performing advisory functions went from 43 to 42.
    • Regulatory assets under management went from $3,774,949,288 to $4,169,984,114 (+10%).
  4. November 2025
    • Updated its list of owners and control persons (Schedule A).

Compared month to month from the SEC's monthly adviser data and the state compilation feed. Owners and control persons are summarized, never named.

Websites listed on Form ADV

Item 1.I
essex.financialessexfinancialservices.comessexfinancialservices.net

Source: Form ADV, as of October 2026. Values appear as filed; a value the firm did not report is shown as "Not reported."

Cite this page

AdvisorCensus. Essex Financial Services, Inc. (CRD 127549): Form ADV filing data as of October 2026.
https://advisorcensus.com/firm/essex-financial-services-inc-essex-ct-127549