Carol Starr

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.

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.

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.

Rice, Voelker LLC is a broker/dealer headquartered in Covington, Louisiana. The firm serves customers such as hedge funds. They specialize in private placements. The firm was funded in 1995.

Truist Securities, Inc. is a registered broker-dealer headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The firm was founded in 1894 as SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. In 2020, the firm was renamed following the integration of SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and BB&T Capital Markets. The firm is a subsidiary of Truist Financial Corp. (NYSE: TFC) and is an active market maker in equity and fixed-income products. Truist Securities delivers a comprehensive range of strategic advisory, capital raising, risk management, and financing solutions, as well as a dynamic suite of sales, trading, and research services in both fixed-income and equity. Their strategies are carefully tailored to meet the needs and vision of their clients.

Founded in 1984, Noble Financial Capital Markets is a broker/dealer headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. The firm is a subsidiary of Noble Financial Group, Inc. Noble Financial Capital Markets' sales & trading team provides strategic insight and reliable solutions to nearly 500 of the dominant small-cap money managers in North America. They are members FINRA, SIPC and MSRB. Noble Financial Capital Markets offers a full array of investment services with a particular focus on under-followed, undervalued, out-of-favor small-cap emerging growth companies. Their research coverage universe includes healthcare, business services & software, defense/defense technology, energy, enterprise hardware, and media & entertainment.

Founded in 1988 by Richard Messina, the Benchmark Co. LLC is a full-service broker/dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm provides equity research, sales and trading services for institutional and private clients. They focus on the media, energy, enterprise software, infrastructure software, biotechnology, specialty pharmaceuticals, REITs, Internet and communications sectors. The Benchmark Co.'s clearing agent is JP Morgan Clearing Corp.

Variant Trading Institutional Group, Inc. operates as a brokerage firm. It specializes in the business of buying and selling securities such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other investment products. The company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Boca Raton, FL.

Southern Methodist University is a private university near the center of Dallas, SMU offers undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs through seven schools in the humanities and sciences, business, the performing, visual, and communication arts, engineering, education and human development, law, and theology.

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.

Stifel, Nicolaus & Co., Inc. (Stifel) is a dual-registered broker-dealer and investment adviser headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm is a subsidiary of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF), a financial service holding company. Stifel provides full-service brokerage and investment advisory services to individuals and their families, institutions and businesses, and financial advisors.

Coker & Palmer, Inc. is an independent registered broker/dealer and financial advisor headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi. The firm was founded by James D. Coker and James Y. Palmer in 1991. Coker & Palmer offers professional services in traditional securities brokerage to individuals and institutions as well as fee based asset management services.

Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Securities LLC (TPH) is a broker/dealer headquartered in Houston, Texas. The firm was founded in 2007 by Robert Tudor III. They are a subsidiary of Perella Weinberg Partners Group LP, which is ultimately owned by Perella Weinberg Partners (NASDAQ: PWP). TPH provides a full array of trading and execution services for their institutional and corporate clients in the energy sector. They focus on the upstream, midstream and oilfield service sectors.

Founded in 1987, Johnson Rice & Co. LLC is an institutional research and brokerage firm located in New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1991, the firm began offering investment banking services. Johnson Rice & Co. focuses primarily on the energy and specialty retail sectors

Northland Securities, Inc. (NSI) is a dually registered, full-service broker dealer and investment advisor headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The firm was founded in 2002 and is owned by Northland Capital Holdings, Inc., which was acquired by First National of Nebraska, Inc. (OTCMKTS: FINN) in 2023. NSI is actively engaged in buying and selling securities for its own account as well as for clients.

BTIG LLC is an institutional brokerage and fund services firm headquartered in San Francisco, California. The firm was founded in 2002 through the merger of Baypoint Trading LLC and Bass Trading LLC. They are a subsidiary of Condor Trading LP. BTIG offers institutional and corporate clients with personalized multi-asset class execution, expertise and insights worldwide across equities, equity derivatives, ETFs, fixed income, futures, commodities, foreign exchange, interest rates, credit, and convertible and preferred securities. The firm’s core capabilities include global sales, portfolio, electronic and outsource trading, transition management, investment banking, prime brokerage, capital introduction, corporate access, research and strategy, commission management and more.

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. engages in the provision of securities regulation, complementary compliance, and technology-based services. Its services include writing and enforcing rules governing the activities of securities firms with brokers, examining firms for compliance with those rules, fostering market transparency, and educating investors. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Washington, DC.

Founded in 2009, IBERIA Financial Services LLC is a broker/dealer located in Lafayette, Louisiana. The firm is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IBERIABANK Corp. (NasdaqGS: IBKC). The firm offers securities and other financial products to IBERIABANK Corp.'s clients' needs. Through their own subsidiary, Finesco LLC, IBERIA Financial Services offers insurance premium financing to retailers and other commercial customers.

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.

Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc. (Broker) (Baird-Broker) is the broker-dealer division of Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc., an investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The firm was founded in 1919 and is ultimately owned by Baird Financial Group, Inc. Baird-Broker offers a full suite of comprehensive trading services for institutional clients.

Solomon Group Ventures LLC provides audiovisual production services. The firm's services encompass, concepts and creative direction, schematic design, exhibit design, design development, rendering development, story development, and scripting. It provides ideas and technology solutions to industries including events, museums and theme parks, broadcasting, stadiums and arenas, theatres and brand activations. The company was founded by Gary Solomon Jr., Jonathan Foucheaux, and Stephen Fink in 2009 and is headquartered in New Orleans, LA.

Chicago Board of Trade provides trade derivative facilities. It allows speculators throughout the world to interpret economic data, news, and other information. The company was founded on April 3, 1848 and is headquartered in Chicago, IL.

Markit Group Ltd. provides trade processing and financial data software services. The firm offers consulting, current event analysis, cross-industry directories, market insight, forecasts and company analysis, market intelligence platforms, software and design tools, standards and regulations, technical and specialized data, and training services. The company was founded by Rony Grushka, Lance Uggla, Tom McNerney, Kevin Gould in 2001 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

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.

Morgan Keegan & Co. LLC is a broker/dealer headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. The firm was founded in 1969 and is a subsidiary of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE: RJF). Morgan Keegan & Co. provides securities brokerage services to various types of clients.

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).

Founded by Len Zacks in 1978, Zacks Investment Research, Inc. is an SEC-registered broker/dealer and investment research firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois with an office in Irvine, California. The firm is principally owned by The Greenwood Trust. Zacks makes both short-term and long-term investment recommendations using the following investment styles: aggressive growth, growth/income, momentum, value, technicals and options. Zack Investment Research employs the Zacks Rank, a 100% a peerless stock rating system that is based on a quantitative model that includes the use of four factors including as earnings estimate revisions and earnings surprises. Stocks are classified into five groups, ranging from 'Strong Buy' to 'Strong Sell.' Zacks Rank is completely mathematical and focuses only on the math and whether the math predicts that a stock's price will rise. It is a short-term indicator of stock performance that is effective for 1 to 3 months. The Zacks Recommendation process begins with a new quantitative model that employs the Zacks Rank. The firm then utilizes qualitative insights to develop a unique recommendation based on a 6 month time horizon. Zacks Investment Research provides coverage primarily on the following sectors: (1) manufacturers of electrical components (2) photo optics/lasers (3) HPC computing platforms (4) manufacturers and distributors of textiles (5) information technology (6) independent oil and gas companies involved in the exploration, development and acquisition of crude oil and natural gas (6) providers of docking, manipulator and wafer probing interface products for semiconductor and ATE manufacturers (7) companies that design and manufacture oscilloscopes, serial data analyzers and protocol analyzers to test, measure and analyze electronic signals (8) manufacturers of branded toys, collectibles, hobby or infant products and (9) financial services companies.