Carrie Lee Ford

Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC (Credit Suisse Securities USA) is the broker/dealer division of Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, an investment banking company headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1998 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Credit Suisse (USA), Inc., ultimately owned by Credit Suisse Group AG (SWX: CSGN) in Switzerland. Credit Suisse Securities USA offers a suite of equities, solutions and credit products and services which includes global securities sales, trading and execution, prime brokerage and comprehensive investment research. Their clients include financial institutions, corporations, governments, institutional investors, such as pension funds and hedge funds, and private individuals around the world.

Stephens, Inc. is a full-service investment bank and brokerage firm headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. The firm was founded in 1933 and is a subsidiary of Susi Holdings, Inc., which is owned by Stephens Financial Services LLC. Stephens provides comprehensive securities sales and trading services, including customized solutions for clients in North America and abroad.

Citigroup Global Markets, Inc. (Broker) (CGMI-Broker) is the broker/dealer division of Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., an investment bank headquartered in New York City with additional offices across the US. The firm was founded in 2004 and is a subsidiary of Citigroup Financial Products, Inc., ultimately held by Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE: C). CGMI-Broker covers all market capitalizations of the major global indices and provides macro and quantitative analysis of global markets and sector trends. Their core focus of the group is to help investing clients make informed decisions by providing value-added, independent, insightful analysis.

Deutsche Bank Securities, Inc. (DBSI) is a SEC-registered broker/dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1971 and is a wholly-owned investment banking and brokerage arm of DB U.S. Financial Markets Holding Corp., ultimately held by Deutsche Bank AG (NYSE: DB, FRA: DBK) in Germany. DBSI provides securities brokerage and investment advisory services to domestic and international private clients and institutions. They are also a primary dealer in US government securities as designated by the Federal Reserve.

Citizens JMP Securities LLC (Citizens JMP) is a full-service investment bank and broker/dealer headquartered in San Francisco, California. The firm was founded by Joseph Jolson in 2002 and was formerly JMP Securities LLC. The firm is a subsidiary of JMP Holding LLC, ultimately held by Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: CFG). Citizens JMP provides equity research, institutional brokerage, and investment banking services to public and private growth companies and their investors. They are a research-driven, growth-oriented firm that provides services to small- and mid-sized companies and the institutions that invest in them. The firm specializes in four high-growth sectors of the economy: technology, healthcare, financial services, and real estate.

UBS Securities LLC is an investment bank and registered broker/dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1998 as UBS Warburg LLC. They are a subsidiary of UBS Americas Holding LLC, ultimately held by UBS Group AG (SWX: UBSG, NYSE: UBS) in Switzerland. UBS Securities is a primary dealer in US Government securities and provides a full range of investment banking services which includes corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, trading and sales, fixed-income, equity research, private banking, underwriting and prime brokerage operations. The firm also provides advisory services and access to capital markets for corporate, institutional, intermediary and alternative asset management clients.

Piper Sandler & Co. (Broker) (PSC-Broker) is the full-service brokerage division of Piper Sandler & Co., a financial service firm headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They are a subsidiary of Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE: PIPR). The firm was founded in 1969 and previously known as Piper Jaffray & Co. They became Piper Sandler & Co. when Piper Jaffray Companies and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P. merged to become Piper Sandler Companies in 2020. PSC-Broker provides brokerage and investment banking services to financial institutions, corporations and other financial investors. Their core focus sectors are Agriculture, renewables & cannabis, Business services, Chemicals & Materials, Consumer, Diversified industrials & services, Energy, Financial services, financial sponsors, Healthcare, and Technology.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is a registered broker-dealer subsidiary of Morgan Stanley Domestic Holdings, Inc., ultimately owned by Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) in the US. Headquartered in New York City, the firm was founded in 1987 and provides debt and equity services including underwriting, M&A advice, securities dealing and brokerage and trade execution. Their client base ranges from large global institutional investors to hedge funds at the cutting edge of innovation in the industry.

Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. (Broker) (Oppenheimer-Broker) is the global full-service brokerage division of Oppenheimer & Co., Inc., an investment boutique headquartered in New York City with additional offices nationwide. Founded in 1975, the firm is owned directly by Viner Finance Inc., an indirect subsidiary of Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. (NYSE: OPY). Oppenheimer-Broker offers a full array of brokerage services to retail, institutional, and corporate clients.

Founded in 2001, Macquarie Capital (USA), Inc. is a registered broker/dealer located in New York City. The firm is a subsidiary of Macquarie Bank Ltd. (ASX: MBL). They provide coverage of the following industries: resources, healthcare, security/defense, transportation, financial services, retail/consumer products, TMET (telecommunications, media, entertainment and technology), oil & gas, diversified manufacturing/distribution and infrastructure/utilities. Macquarie Capital (USA), Inc. is a member of FINRA.

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC (GS&Co.) is a securities brokerage firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1927, the firm is a subsidiary of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE: GS). GS&Co. provides services to help hedge funds manage risk, monitor portfolios, maintain liquidity and build their businesses. They offer clients access to global equity and derivatives markets, as well as foreign exchange, commodities, European Lefts, rates and credit across the Americas, Europe and Asia. The firm proactively monitors capital markets, searching for pockets of liquidity and news that may require changes to those strategies. Integration with the Goldman Sachs network gives clients access to the firm's sectored block trades and their insights into price discovery. Their electronic trading program provides clients with tools to manage their trades from pre-trade analytics to post-trade analysis.

Barclays Capital, Inc. is a registered broker/dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1997 and is a subsidiary of Barclays Group US, Inc., ultimately owned by Barclays plc (LON: BARC) in Great Britain. Barclays Capital provides large corporate, government and institutional clients a full spectrum of prime brokerage services which includes equities and fixed income financing, OTC Clearing, Futures and Foreign Exchange Prime Brokerage and access to industry insights and analytics from their Strategic Consulting team.

Avondale Partners LLC is an independent broker/dealer headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee with additional offices across the US. The firm was founded by Robert Shepherd and Philip Krebs in 2001. Avondale Partners provides financial advisory services as well as equity and fixed income underwriting and private placement services to public and private companies throughout the US, Canada and Europe. They focus on middle-market companies in the healthcare sector.

Founded by Dana Telsey in 2008, Telsey Advisory Group LLC (TAG) is an independent equity research and consulting firm focused on the consumer sector, including retail and apparel companies and restaurants. They provide hedge funds, mutual funds, private equity firms and private and public consumer companies the detailed analysis and market context that is necessary to make strategic and investment decisions. TAG covers both US-based and international companies across the consumer landscape, including apparel manufacturers, children and teen retailers, consumer electronics, department stores, discounters, home furnishings, luxury goods, off-price retailers, quick service and specialty restaurants and specialty apparel retailers. Their consulting services include acquisition due diligence, benchmarking, competitive analyses, financial analysis, investor relations functions, market assessments, and valuation.

Leerink Partners LLC is a full-service brokerage and investment banking firm headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The firm was founded by Jeffrey Leerink in 1995 and formerly known as SVB Securities LLC. They rebranded as Leerink Partners in 2023. The firm is a subsidiary of SVB Securities LLC. Leerink Partners provides institutional sales, equity research, institutional trading, and corporate finance and asset management services to the healthcare and technology industries. They offer superior execution capabilities in common stock, convertibles and derivatives with a singular focus on healthcare and a knowledge-led approach.

Founded in 1958, Merrill Lynch Piece Fenner & Smith, Inc. is an SEC registered broker/dealer located in New York City. The firm is a subsidiary of BAC North America Holding Co. and their ultimate parent is Bank of America Corp. (NYSE BAC).

Credit Suisse (New York Securities Branch) is based in New York, NY. Part of UBS Group AG, Credit Suisse (New York Securities Branch) is a company that provides investment banking and financial services.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC provides assurance, tax and advisory services. Its services include audit and assurance, consulting, deals, human resources, legal, tax, and family business. The firm also offers accountability, risk management, structuring, mergers and acquisitions, and performance and process improvement. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Buffalo, NY.

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.

RBC Capital Markets LLC is a full-service brokerage and financial services firm headquartered in New York City. They are a direct subsidiary of RBC USA Holdco Corp. and a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada (TSE, NYSE: RY). Founded in 2010, the firm is comprised of 3 major business lines: the Private Client Group, the Fixed-Income Group and the Clearing and Execution Services Group. The Private Client Group serves individual investors, while the Fixed-Income Group provides services to institutions, municipalities and non-profit organizations. The Clearing and Execution Services Group is a provider of clearing and execution services to independent brokers/dealers throughout the US. RBC Capital Markets focuses on the following sectors: communications, media, consumer/retail, diversified industries, energy, financial institutions, forest products, healthcare, infrastructure finance, mining & metals, real estate, social infrastructure, technology and the US municipal markets.

BB&T Securities LLC, doing business as BB&T Capital Markets, is the broker/dealer subsidiary of BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT). The firm is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. They offer a full array of investment, trading and execution services to middle-market companies. BB&T Capital Markets' sales and trading arm is comprised of 2 groups: Debt Securities Sales & Trading and Equity Sales & Trading. The Debt Securities Sales & Trading group focuses on: (1) Government and agency securities (2) corporate bonds (3) municipal bonds (4) asset-backed securities (5) mortgage-backed securities (6) preferred securities and (7) money market desk (short-term securities including BB&T funding). The Equity Sales & Trading group focuses on: (1) institutional block execution services (2) institutional distribution of proprietary research (3) providing proprietary access to industry leading conferences and management teams (4) serving as a NASDAQ market maker for over 250 securities (5) stock buybacks including 10b-18 and 10b5-1 trading plans and (6) 144 stock sales, individual 10b5-1 trading plans (buy and sell) and employee cashless stock option programs. BB&T Capital Markets provides research coverage of the communications, defense and government services, energy, financial services, furnishings and consumer durables, healthcare, industrial services, retail/consumer durables and transportation services sectors.

Wells Fargo Securities LLC (WFS) is the broker/dealer subsidiary of EVEREN Capital Corp., ultimately owned by Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC). Headquartered in New York, WFS delivers a comprehensive suite of banking, capital markets and advisory solutions, such as a full complement of sales, trading and research capabilities, to corporate, government and institutional clients.

Wolfe Research LLC is a FINRA-registered sell-side research firm headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded by Edward Wolfe in 2008 and is a subsidiary of Wolfe Holdco LLC. Wolfe Research provides bespoke research of various stocks in every major GIC sector for institutional clients. The firm has established a reputation for macro research underpinning coverage in Industrials, Utilities/Energy, Consumer/Retail, Financials/REITS, Healthcare and TMT.