The Compounding Memo is a monthly paid investment portfolio newsletter published by Compounding Memo LLC. We offer three distinct model portfolios—Capital Appreciation, Cash Flow, and Capital Preservation—each designed with a different investment objective. Our content is educational and informational in nature. We are not registered investment advisers, and nothing we publish constitutes personalized investment advice.

The Compounding Memo is intended for self-directed individual investors who are interested in portfolio construction, asset allocation, and long-term investing. Our content is designed for investors who want to learn, stay informed, and make their own investment decisions. You should be at least 18 years old and comfortable making your own financial decisions. We always recommend consulting a licensed financial professional before making investment decisions.

Each of our three portfolios has a distinct objective.

Capital Appreciation: The goal is to grow capital faster than the S&P 500 Total Return Index over a long period of time.

Cash Flow: The goal is to generate resilient, substantial, and consistent current income while maintaining the purchasing power of the initial principal and the income stream.

Capital Preservation: The goal is to maintain the purchasing power of the principal in the lowest-risk way possible.

Our subscriptions are billed monthly with no long-term commitment. Capital Appreciation is $9.99/month. Cash Flow is $7.99/month. Capital Preservation is $2.99/month. Each subscription is billed independently, and you can subscribe to one, two, or all three.

No. We do not offer free trials, promo codes, or annual subscription plans at this time. All subscriptions are month-to-month. All payments are final and non-refundable. For full details, please see our Refund & Cancellation Policy.

Each memo is released on a monthly basis, typically on the first Sunday after the prior month has ended. For example, the memo covering January’s data and portfolio updates would generally be released on the first Sunday in February.

After purchasing a single subscription, you will receive two emails. The first is a receipt from Stripe, which includes a link to the customer billing portal where you can manage your subscription. You’ll receive a second email containing a link to your Dropbox folder for that memo. Inside the Dropbox folder, you will find at least three PDF documents: the latest version of the portfolio manual, the most recent monthly memo, and a portfolio weights document that is updated daily (typically around 7–8 PM EST), plus any intramonth trade notifications. You will receive monthly emails when new memos are released, which will include updated Dropbox links.

You can manage your subscription through the Stripe customer billing portal. A link to the portal is included in your Stripe receipt email, which you received at the time of purchase. From the portal, you can update your payment method, view your billing history, or cancel your subscription. If you need further assistance, contact us at contact@compoundingmemo.com.

Each of the three portfolios — Capital Appreciation, Cash Flow, and Capital Preservation — has its own instruction manual. The manuals explain how to get started, the portfolio’s investment philosophy, how the portfolio is constructed, how to read the charts and data, and how to interpret the monthly updates. The latest version of the manual is always included as a PDF in your Dropbox folder. We recommend reading the manual before diving into the monthly memos, as it provides the foundational context you’ll need.

Dropbox folder links are typically deactivated after about one to two months, so we encourage subscribers to download all materials promptly after receiving them. If your link has expired or isn’t working, please email us at contact@compoundingmemo.com and we will provide an updated link as soon as possible.

First, check your spam, junk, or promotions folder, as emails from new senders are sometimes filtered automatically. If you find our emails there, mark them as “Not Spam” or move them to your inbox. You should also add contact@compoundingmemo.com to your contacts or safe sender list. If you’re still not receiving emails after checking these steps, please contact us at contact@compoundingmemo.com so we can investigate.

Yes. All subscriber content is accessible on mobile devices. You can view emails through your standard email app, access Dropbox links through a mobile browser or the Dropbox app, and read all PDF documents on your phone or tablet.

We aim to respond to all inquiries as quickly as possible. Our normal support hours are 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST. Emails received during support hours are typically answered promptly. Emails received outside of support hours will be addressed the next business day.

A model portfolio is a hypothetical example portfolio published for educational purposes. It shows a set of holdings and their target weights to illustrate a particular investment strategy. You should not feel obligated to copy it exactly. Everyone’s financial situation, risk tolerance, tax circumstances, and goals are different. The model portfolios are meant to be educational tools, not personalized investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a financial professional before making investment decisions.

Portfolio weights are updated on two schedules. The monthly memo provides a comprehensive update with commentary and analysis. In addition, the portfolio weights document in your Dropbox folder is updated daily, typically around 7–8 PM EST, so you can check the current weights at any time.

Yes. Compounding Memo’s owner(s) may hold positions in the same securities discussed or included in the model portfolios. This means we may have a financial interest in the securities we write about. For full details on how we handle potential conflicts of interest, please review our Disclosure Policy.

The total return charts show the cumulative performance of the model portfolio over time, assuming all dividends and distributions are reinvested. The Y-axis represents the percentage return, and the X-axis represents time. These charts allow you to see how the portfolio’s total return compares to its benchmark index over the same period. A detailed walkthrough of how to read these charts is included in each portfolio’s manual.

Price return measures only the change in the price of an investment over time. Total return includes both the price change and any income received, such as dividends or interest, assuming that income is reinvested. Total return gives a more complete picture of an investment’s actual performance. Our charts and performance figures use total return unless otherwise noted.

All financial data used to calculate portfolio returns is sourced from Google Finance. The specific proxies used for benchmark indexes are as follows: the S&P 500 Total Return Index is tracked using SPYM, the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index is tracked using SCHD, the Cboe Nasdaq-100 BuyWrite V2 Index is tracked using QYLD, and the MVIS US Business Development Companies Index is tracked using BIZD. For inflation data, we use the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items in U.S. City Average (CPIAUCSL).

During the October 2025 government shutdown, the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not release the scheduled CPI report for that month. To maintain continuity in our data, we estimated the October 2025 CPI figure by taking the square root of the ratio between the November 2025 CPI reading and the September 2025 CPI reading. This produced an evenly distributed estimate for both October and November 2025. This approach is noted in the relevant charts and materials.

Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) is an investment strategy in which you invest a fixed dollar amount at regular intervals, regardless of the current price of the investment. For example, investing $500 on the first of every month. Because you buy more shares when prices are low and fewer shares when prices are high, DCA can help smooth out the effects of short-term market volatility over time. It is a widely used approach for long-term investors.

Rebalancing is the process of adjusting your portfolio’s holdings back to your target allocation. Over time, some investments will grow faster than others, causing your actual weights to drift from your intended targets. Rebalancing involves selling some of the overweight positions and buying more of the underweight positions to restore your target allocation. How often you rebalance depends on your personal strategy — common approaches include rebalancing on a set schedule (monthly, quarterly, or annually) or when a position drifts beyond a predetermined threshold. There is no single “right” answer, and the best approach depends on your individual circumstances, tax situation, and transaction costs.

This is one of the most important concepts in investing. It means that just because an investment, portfolio, or strategy performed well (or poorly) in the past, there is no guarantee it will continue to do so in the future. Markets are influenced by countless unpredictable factors, and historical returns reflect conditions that may not repeat. This phrase is a reminder to never make investment decisions based solely on past performance, and to always consider the risks involved.

No. The Compounding Memo is an educational newsletter service. We do not provide personalized investment advice, manage client assets, or act as a fiduciary. Our model portfolios and commentary are published for informational and educational purposes only. We do not know your individual financial situation, goals, or risk tolerance. You should always consult a licensed financial professional before making investment decisions. For full details, please see our Investment Disclaimer.