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Webull Smart Advisor Review (2024)
Does Webull have a robo-advisor service in 2024? Is Webull offering managed accounts?
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Does Webull Offer Robo-Advisor and Managed Accounts?
Webull now offers robo accounts. Let’s check them out.
Webull Smart Advisor Overview
Webull calls its automated-investing service Smart Advisor. It uses a software program to buy and sell securities in accounts. These securities are ETFs, and most of them are from State Street. Most commonly known as SPDRs, they are funds with low expense ratios. Most are passively-managed, meaning they track indexes. Examples of possible funds include:
- SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
- Vanguard FTSE Pacific ETF (VPL)
- SPDR Portfolio Developed World ex-US ETF (SPDW)
- SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL)
- SPDR Bloomberg High Yield Bond ETF (JNK)
- SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD)
Webull’s robot monitors accounts daily and rebalances them whenever necessary. The only condition when it would be necessary is when market prices have changed so much that an account has drifted far from original target allocations.
Speaking of target allocations, there are 6 model portfolios that the Smart Advisor uses:
- Conservative (target allocation of 80% Income and 20% Equity)
- Moderate Conservative (60% Income, 40% Equity)
- Moderate (40% Income, 60% Equity)
- Moderate Growth (25% Income, 75% Equity)
- Growth (10% Income, 90% Equity)
- Maximum Growth (2% Income, 98% Equity)
For income, Webull will use bond funds from State Street. Equity means ETFs that invest in stocks. It’s possible to have a small portion of a robo account’s value in cash and ETFs that invest in commodities.
Webull’s new Smart Advisor program is an investment-advisory service with full discretion. This means the firm will be responsible for choosing what to trade and when to place the trades. Customers of the Smart Advisor service do not have this ability. There are no human advisors, either.
Legally speaking, Webull’s investment-advisory program is operated by Webull Advisors, LLC, an
independent investment advisor firm. This outfit uses Webull Financial as the broker-dealer for its
robo accounts.
Webull Smart Advisor Pricing
Webull charges 0.20% per year for its robo service. There are no commissions assessed against trades in the account. There is a $100 opening deposit requirement to join the company’s automated-investing program.
Although the management fee is quoted on an annual basis, there is a $1 minimum fee per month, meaning that small accounts could end up paying more than 0.20% annually. In order for an account to pay 0.20% per annum and no more, it will need to maintain a balance of at least $6,000 throughout the year.
Webull Promotion
Visit Webull Website
Opening a Smart Advisor Account
Full-time U.S. residents age 18 or older are eligible
to open a Smart Advisor account. During the application process, applicants will need to fill out a questionnaire. It asks questions about risk tolerance, age, investing experience, time horizon, and other factors. Here’s a sample question and possible answers:
When will you need this money?
- Less than 1 year
- 1-5 years
- 6-10 years
- Over 10 years
It will take about 1 to 3 business days for the account application to be processed. Once the account is open, it is possible to change the risk tolerance on the account by one level in the mobile app. To change by more than one level, the questionnaire must be taken again. This can be done once every 3 months but not more frequently.
Funding a Robo Account
A robo account at Webull can be funded with either an ACH or wire transfer. Some automated accounts may be able to perform an internal transfer from a self-directed account at Webull, although this service is a work in progress.
Software
Webull’s regular mobile app can be used to monitor both self-directed and automated accounts. At this
time, the website and desktop platform cannot be used to open or manage a robo account, although this
will change in the future.
Promo
Webull is offering a $10 cash bonus right now for opening and funding a new Smart Advisor account. The standard $100 opening minimum is required. To qualify for this special, simply open the Webull mobile app and go to the Menu tab. In the Promotion Center, there will be an icon for the Smart Advisor special. Tap on this and open the robo account through the relevant button.
Webull Smart Advisor Review Judgment
Webull is no longer a self-directed brokerage firm only. Its Smart Advisor program delivers robo
accounts at low cost, at least for accounts above $6,000 in assets. We did not find some features,
such as tax-loss harvesting and free phone calls with human investment advisors. Nevertheless, Webull
has a good start here in the advisory investing
realm, and there will definitely be improvements in the future.
Webull Promotion
Visit Webull Website
Updated on 7/24/2024.
Chad Morris is a financial writer with more than 20 years experience
as both an English teacher and an avid trader. When he isn’t writing
expert content for Brokerage-Review.com, Chad can usually be found
managing his portfolio or building a new home computer.
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