A Sling & A Stone is a fee-only, Investment Advisory firm registered with the Texas State Securities Board. Approval by the Texas State Securities Board is not an endorsement of the firm. We serve all our clients in a fiduciary capacity.
Our Motto: Our first priority is your financial security.
Our Mission: To help investors of all kinds by delivering positive absolute returns while remaining free of our industry's inherent conflicts of interest.
Location: Our firm's primary office is "just west of weird", located in Burnet, TX, about 50 miles west of Austin in the beautiful Highland Lakes.
Our Founder: Matt McCracken
Our firm was founded by Matthew McCracken. Ever since taking Finance 402: Options Pricing in college, Matt became suspicious of the hypocrisy in the financial services industry. The class's professor taught the ideology of "efficient markets", while simultaneously running an arbitrage fund. Obviously, the two philosophies contradict one another. So, Matt concluded that the professor was either lying to the class or to his clients.
After college, Matt worked at Arthur Andersen LLP, where he saw firsthand the blatant conflicts of interest that led to the firm's downfall—and he promptly resigned. Eventually, the naïveté of youth gave way to the harsh reality of the business world. Once Matt entered the financial services industry, he committed to building a better means of accessing capital markets for investors. This involved minimizing conflicts while delivering solutions that investors could rely on to build wealth and maintain their financial security. Ultimately, his goal is to help clients achieve the goal his father and grandfather accomplished, which was to provide a better life for their children.
As time progresses, Matt has learned how money is really made on Wall Street and seeks to deliver the same kind of returns to his clients. He has learned about the art of long/short investing while developing his own proprietary trading program. His program is currently available to both high net-worth individuals and non-accredited investors alike.
Our Partner: Garrett Rowe
As a Certified Financial Professional (CFP), Garrett Rowe has spent the last twelve years in the finance industry working to bring financial literacy to the average person. His journey began after graduating from God's country, aka Texas A&M in College Station with a Bachelors of Business in Finance. Anyone who know him knows that he is just as passionate about his clients as he is about his Aggies. Garrett has spent the majority of his career working in Austin, Texas with the likes of Bank of America and Equitable.
As the years went on, he realized how much of an asset he could be to his own community and joined Matt McCracken in early 2025 to help grow A Sling & A Stone, based in Burnet, Texas. His commitment to excellence (or as he says, "Maximum effort!") can be seen through his long lasting client relationships, his involvement in the community, and his never-ending pursuit of education.
Garrett is a proud member of the Burnet Rotary Club, the Burnet Education Foundation, the Boys & Girls of the Highland Lakes and the Friends of the Herman Brown Library. Outside of the office, Garrett enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife and kids, cheering for his Aggies and attending the First Baptist Church of Burnet.
Our Executive Assistant: Samantha Bankson
After nine years in customer service management with the likes of Massage Envy and Planet Fitness, Samantha found herself in the finance industry working as an executive assistant at Equitable. She quickly realized how much she loved the daily problem solving- something working with the public every day for almost a decade had taught her.
Armed with her passion for helping others and love of detail, Samantha joined A Sling & A Stone in the summer of 2025 with a goal of making finance fun. She thrives on the many hats she wears, from working directly with our clients to our social media platforms and processing business. Outside of the office, you can find her enjoying the sunset, paddleboarding or on the golf course.