Jonathan Kees

DWS Investment Management Americas, Inc. (DIMA) is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in New York City. The firm is a subsidiary of DWS USA Corp., ultimately held by Deutsche Bank AG (ETR: DBK) in Germany. The firm was founded in 1984 and formerly known as Deutsche Investment Management Americas Inc. In 2018, they changed their name into DWS as part of the rebranding of Deutsche Asset Management. DIMA provides discretionary and non-discretionary investment advisory services to various institutional clients. They also provide investment advisory services for its municipal bond strategies through wrap fee programs.

Nomura Securities Co., Ltd. (NSC) is a wholly-owned brokerage subsidiary of Nomura Holdings, Inc. (TSE: 8604; NYSE: NMR). Headquartered in Tokyo, the firm was founded in 1925. NSC places a strong emphasis on research, both fundamental and quantitative. In addition to stock and bond underwriting, their activities include IPO and M&A advisory, wealth management, separately managed accounts, fund wrap services, prime brokerage and structured equity finance. Their clients include institutions, hedge funds, private banks and private equity funds as well as corporate clients and retail investors.

Founded in 1972 by Candace King, C.L. King & Associates, Inc. is a self-clearing, service-oriented broker/dealer and investment bank located in Albany, New York with additional offices in Boston and New York City. The firm delivers investment research, equity and fixed-income sales and trading, prime brokerage, investment advisor and clearing services to institutional and high net-worth clients and to other broker/dealers. For corporations, they underwrite securities and provide strategic advice in connection with mergers, acquisitions, strategic alternatives and valuation. C.L. King & Associates is a member of FINRA and the SIPC. C.L. King & Associates follows 120 names in 9 sectors. They seek to discover uncovered investment opportunities by seeking out companies that may be ignored by other Wall Street research providers and by identifying value and growth that may be unrecognized by institutional equity investors. The firm provides comprehensive trading services including capital commitment, market making and listed block positioning for their institutional equity clients. C.L. King & Associates' fixed-income group focuses on trading fixed-income securities, primarily in the secondary market. They offer a broad cross section of agencies, convertibles, investment-grade corporates, mortgage-backed securities, municipals, CDs and preferred stock to other broker/Dealers and institutional investors. The firm's investment banking group provides strategic M&A advice and capital raising services to emerging and mid-cap companies, both public and private. In addition, they act as a WBE underwriter in stock and bond offerings by large corporate issuers. C.L. King & Associates' corporate services group offers specialized services to assist corporate clients and their executives in handling delicate stock holding matters. Their services include guiding clients through restricted stock/rule 144 transactions, developing customized rule 10b5-1 trading plans and managing corporate share repurchase programs. The firm's equity research is based on a fundamental, value-oriented approach that focuses on small- and mid-cap companies. The firm offers research on the following sectors: special situations, building materials companies, specialty retail/apparel/footwear, industrials/cyclicals, restaurants/franchising, business services/staffing companies, telecommunications equipment and medical technology/devices/supplies.

Credit Agricole Securities (USA), Inc. (Credit Agricole Securities USA) is a full service broker-dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 2004 and formerly known as Calyon Securities USA, Inc. and Credit Lyonnais Securities, Inc. They are a subsidiary of Crédit Agricole Global Partners, Inc., which is owned by Rue la Boétie SAS’s Credit Agricole SA (EPA: ACA) in France. Credit Agricole Securities USA provides investors’ customized solutions to ensure they achieve their execution objectives in the tradition of service excellence and product innovation.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC is the US-based securities broker/dealer and futures commission merchant arm of Mizuho Americas LLC, ultimately held by Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. (TYO: 8411, NYSE: MFG) in Japan. Headquartered in New York City, the firm was founded in 1994 and provides institutional and corporate clients access to commodity and financial markets around the world. Mizuho Securities USA covers the following industries: Consumer, Energy, Financial Institutions, Financial Sponsors, Healthcare, Industrial & Diversified Industries, Power, Utilities & Infrastructure, Real Estate, and Technology, Media & Telecom (TMT). The firm and their affiliates hold memberships on all major futures and options exchanges worldwide.

Founded in 1969, HSBC Securities (U.S.A.) Inc. is an SEC-registered brokerage firm and registered futures commission merchant located in New York City. The firm is a wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC North America Holdings, Inc. and their ultimate parent is HSBC Holdings Plc. (NYSE: HBC). HSBC Securities (U.S.A.) is a member of FINRA, the NYSE and the SIPC. Their securities and annuity products are provided by registered representatives and insurance agents of HSBC Securities (U.S.A.). In California, HSBC Securities (U.S.A.) conducts insurance business as HSBC Securities Insurance Services. Insurance products are offered through insurance agents of HSBC Insurance Agency (U.S.A.) Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Bank U.S.A. NA and an indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc. The company also engages in investment banking underwriting, dealing and brokering of debt and equity securities and futures contracts and is a primary dealer in U.S. Government and federal agency securities.

Glass, Lewis & Co. LLC (Glass Lewis) is an independent investment research firm headquartered in San Francisco, California. The firm was founded in 2003 by Kevin J. Cameron & Gregory P. Taxin. Glass Lewis provides investment research and advice on proxy votes to institutional investor and?publicly listed?companies. Their clients include pension plans, mutual funds, and asset managers.

Part of Burke & Quick Partners Holdings LLC, Burke & Quick Partners LLC is a brokerage services provider. The company is based in Uniondale, NY. The company was founded in 2010 by James Brian Burke. James Brian Burke has been the CEO since 2010.

Grant Thornton LLP provides accounting, tax and business consulting services. It offers advisory, business consulting, business risk, enterprise technology and innovation, transaction services, data analytics, cyber risk, and data integrity services. The firm serves the construction, real estate and hospitality, consumer and industrial products, energy, financial services, health care and life sciences, not for profit organizations, private equity, public sector, and technology industries. The company was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Chicago, IL.

Daiwa Securities Co. Ltd. (Broker) (Daiwa Broker) is the brokerage division of Daiwa Securities Co. Ltd., which is ultimately held by Daiwa Securities Group, Inc. (TYO: 8601). The firm is headquartered in Tokyo and was founded in 2012. Daiwa Broker provides brokerage services to their clients.

Part of Daiwa Securities Group, Inc., Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd. conducts economic research and provides financial and investment advisory services. The company is based in Tokyo, Japan. The Japanese company was founded in 2008. Yoriyuki Kusaki has been the CEO of the company since 2016.

MUFG Securities Americas, Inc. is the US-based broker/dealer subsidiary of MUFG Americas Holdings Corp., ultimately held by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (TYO: 8306) in Japan. The firm is headquartered in New York City with offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, and Chicago. MUFG Securities Americas was founded in 2003 and were formerly known as Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA), Inc. They offer an expansive product suite through capital markets, credit, rates, equities and structured products.

BMO Capital Markets Corp. (Broker) is the broker/dealer division of BMO Capital Markets Corp., a full-service North American financial services provider headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1998 and is a subsidiary of BMO Financial Corp., which is owned by Bank of Montreal (NYSE, TSX: BMO) in Canada. BMO Capital Markets offers corporate, institutional and government clients access to a variety of products and services including equity and debt underwriting, corporate lending and project financing, merger and acquisitions advisory services, merchant banking, securitization, treasury and market risk management, debt and equity research and institutional sales and trading.

Allied Signal Aerospace, Inc. manufactures aircraft parts & systems. It also offers automotive products and engineered materials. The company is headquartered in Norcross, GA

Daiwa Capital Markets India Pvt Ltd. (DCMI) is the brokerage subsidiary of Daiwa Securities Group, Inc. (TYO: 8601). The firm is headquartered in Mumbai and was founded in 2007. DCMI provides brokerage services to their global institutional clients investing in Pan Asian markets.

Itaú Corretora de Valores SA is a brokerage company based in São Paulo, Brazil. Part of Itaú Unibanco Holding SA, Itaú Corretora de Valores SA provides brokerage services. The Brazilian company was founded in 1965 and Leonard Bruno Linnet has been the CEO of the company since 2021.

Founded in 2010 by Jeffrey Wlodarczak, Pivotal Research Group LLC is an independent equity research firm located in New York City. The firm focuses on the media and communications sectors including the cable and satellite markets.

CLSA Americas LLC is a FINRA registered broker-dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 2012 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of CLSA Americas Holdings, Inc., which is ultimately owned by CITIC Securities Co., Ltd. (SHA: 600030) in China. CLSA Americas offers a full suite of execution services throughout North America and Latin America.

Kotak Securities Ltd. (KSL) is an equity brokerage firm headquartered in Mumbai, India. The firm was founded in 1994 and is a subsidiary of Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. (NSE: KOTAKBANK). KSL offers a full-service stock broking service to retail and institutional investors across all segments of the capital market. Through a tie-up with partner brokers, they also provide direct access to the US markets.

Deloitte LLP (New York) engages in the provision of audit, consulting, tax, and advisory solutions. It offers services relating to tax, consulting, audit and assurance, Deloitte private company services, mergers and acquisitions, risk and financial advisory, analytics, and cloud. The company was founded by William Welch Deloitte, George A. Touche, Charles Waldo Haskins, and Elijah Watt Sells in 1845 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Sidoti & Co. LLC (S&C) is a registered broker and equity research firm headquartered in New York City. The firm is a subsidiary of Sidoti Holding Co. LLC and was founded in 1999. S&C provides research exclusively to institutional investors. The firm covers the following sectors: housing, retail, basic industries, technology, business services, capital goods, automotive, computer software, regional banking, telecommunications, entertainment, healthcare and consumer products. Their analysts conduct their own due diligence which includes visiting companies and meeting with operating and financial management. In addition, the firm's analysts focus on fundamentals, particularly cash flow from operations and EPS.