Ralph C. Freibert III
MBA, CLU®, CIMA®, CFP®
President and Chief Investment Officer
Ralph was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana where he attended Brother Martin High School before attending the University of New Orleans (UNO). Ralph later attended UNO as a graduate student where he received an master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA). He was recognized as the co-valedictorian of the MBA class and published multiple academic papers in major research journals. In 2006, he returned to campus as an adjunct faculty member in the Economics and Finance Department until 2014.
Ralph’s career in the financial services industry began in 1987 where he worked at several major firms including Dorsey and Company, Northwestern Mutual and Prudential. In 1997, he became the general agent of the Mass Mutual Financial Group’s Louisiana agency which operated offices across the state. Ralph grew the firm from eleven advisors and four staff members to over seventy-five advisors and staff during his seven years at the helm. It was during his time at Mass Mutual that the name Planning Associates of Louisiana was created. In 2005, Ralph departed Mass Mutual to open a fully independent financial planning and investment management firm called Planning Associates. During those ten years, the firm grew to more than $150 million of assets under management, 6 professional advisors, serving over 300 clients, and advising on many corporate retirement plans. In 2015, he was recruited to join Ameriprise Financial as a Managing Director but left four short years later to reestablish Planning Associates as a fee only fiduciary Wealth Management firm, free of the pressure from corporate leadership to sell products to clients. He serves as president, as well as directs all research efforts as chief investment officer.
Ralph currently resides in Metairie, Louisiana with his wife Melanie (previously Aguilar). They have two sons, Ralph IV and Christopher who both have served in the U.S. Army Infantry Division. During his time away from the office, Ralph enjoys reading, spending time with his family, flying as a private pilot, and serving as a member of St. Angela Merici Catholic Church’s. Ralph also serves the country as a Senior Member of the Billy Mitchell Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol, the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary.
Robert L. Heintz
CFA®
Investment Advisor Representative
Born and raised in Metairie, Louisiana, Robert attended Archbishop Rummel High School before attending Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York where he studied Economics. During his junior year, he spent a semester at Tulane University after completing the Duke-Vassar Summer German Program in Muenster, Germany. Upon graduation from Vassar, Robert attended New York University’s Stern Graduate School of Business where he earned his MBA in Finance.
Robert’s career on Wall Street began in 1979 with Bank of New York as a Trust Portfolio Manager. In 1983, Robert moved to Houston, Texas. He remained in this role for 18 years while successfully growing the multi billion dollar funds with the successor organizations including Chemical Bank, Chase Manhattan Bank, and JPMorgan Chase and Company. During his tenure as a Portfolio Manager, Robert earned industry recognition from leading publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Standard & Poor’s, Investor’s Business Daily and Morningstar. After a poster-merger consolidation, Robert joined Amegy Bank in 2004 where he was responsible for the bank’s Multi-Strategy Investment Management Platform for private clients and endowments. In 2006, he joined Avalon Advisors, LLC in Houston, Texas as a partner and senior member of the Equity Research and Portfolio Management Team for the Avalon U.S. Core Equity Portfolios. Robert spent 11 years as an Investment Consultant before joining Planning Associates Wealth Management, LLC in 2020.
Robert currently resides in Pearland, Texas with his wife Liza. They have two children, daughter Alia who is an attorney in Houston, Texas and son Evin who is a junior in college.