FIRM PROFILE
Firm Name: Stewart-Peterson Group Inc.
Founded: 1985
Number of Brokers: 20+
IB Status: GIB
NIBA Member Since: Its inception
Address (City, State): West Bend, Wisconsin
Number of Branch Offices: 6
Website: www.stewartpetersongroup.com
NFA Registration Number: 0185491
About the Firm: How did you get started? Do you provide additional services besides brokerage?
The founder of Stewart-Peterson Group, Scott Stewart, has a passion for agriculture, and wanted to do what he could to help producers in their marketing.
Stewart-Peterson provides services to producers that help them make impactful pricing decisions through one-on-one relationships and newsletters.
What are the biggest challenges your clients face today, and how do you help them?
The biggest challenge is the temptation to get caught up in the day-to-day events that move the market, causing one to lose focus on the bigger picture. This causes one to be reactive to events and make pricing decisions after the market move is over. We help by assisting the producer to be more proactive and disciplined in their pricing decisions.
How has hedging evolved since you first started the business?
The volatility has increased dramatically. Market moves happen over hours and days, where it used to be weeks. The ability for producers to constantly be in communication with their elevators, advisors and vendors through cell phones. It used to be that our phones were busy early in the morning and over the lunch hour. Now it’s constant all day and sometimes into the evening.
What do you believe to be the keys to your success?
Our focus on being proactive rather than reactive. Planning for all that the market may do, rather than simply on the one direction we think it will go.
How does your firm handle the burdens of compliance?
We have staff dedicated to compliance. Here too, we are proactive. We rely on our FCM, NFA and organizations like the NIBA to keep us informed of upcoming changes in rules and regulations. This is incredibly helpful to us. That, along with the practice of simply following the rules, makes it easier for us to comply with the ever-changing regulations.
What trends are you most excited about/worried about?
Increasing regulations, fees and expenses. Some of the increased regulations appear to have no benefit to the producers – it seems simply a way to make the public feel that the regulators are doing something to prevent another disaster in the marketplace or in the industry. Increased quote fees are making it difficult for IBs to justify the expense of staying in business. Health insurance is also taking huge leaps and bounds into profitability.
What do you believe producers are most concerned about today?
Low grain prices have certainly caught their attention.
Tell us about your research department
We look at trends and historical data to show how a market may react. It’s easy to forget what has happened in the past. The milk market crash of 2008/2009 is forgotten by some dairy producers. After the crash, we heard producers say they never want to go through that again without protecting their price. Yet today, some are unwilling to price at these relatively high levels.
Why did you join the NIBA and what value added does your NIBA membership give you/your firm?
Scott Stewart was one of the charter members of the NIBA, board member and past president. He saw the need for IBs to have a unified voice. The NIBA has provided that voice and become an organization whose opinion is sought out. For our firm, it is a resource for information concerning regulations and other industry news.