Steve Pierce

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.

Carlson Capital LP is an independent, SEC-registered investment advisor and alternative asset management firm headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The firm was founded by Clinton Carlson in 1993. Carlson Capital provides discretionary investment advisory services to privately-offered pooled investment vehicles and certain managed accounts.

Raymond James & Associates, Inc. (RJA) is a registered broker-dealer headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. The firm was founded in 1962 and is a subsidiary of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE: RJF), a diversified holding company. RJA offers a full array of capital markets services, strategic advice and planning for institutional investors.

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.

Westwood Management Corp. (Westwood) is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The firm was founded by Susan Byrne in 1983 and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Westwood Holdings Group, Inc. (NYSE: WHG). Westwood provides portfolio management services to individuals, investment companies, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, state and municipal government entities, and pooled investment vehicles.

The Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) is a state-owned pension fund manager headquartered in Austin, Texas. The firm was founded by the Texas Legislature in 1937 to provide service and disability retirement benefits to teachers and administrators of the public school systems of Texas, which include institutions of higher education. In 1949, legislation expanded membership eligibility to include all employees of public education institutions. In 1985, TRS was assigned responsibility to administer health insurance program for public school retirees. The firm invests funds under its stewardship and delivers benefits to members as authorized by the Texas Legislature.

Ernst & Young LLP engages in the provision of accounting, assurance, tax, transaction, and advisory services. It specializes in the actuarial, analytics and big data, cyber security, accounting compliance and reporting, center for board matters, international financial reporting standards, country tax advisory, global trade, tax accounting, and climate change and sustainability. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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.

Citadel Advisors LLC is a SEC-registered investment advisor and hedge fund manager headquartered in Miami, Florida. The firm was founded in 1990 by Kenneth Griffin and is wholly-owned by Citadel Advisors Holdings LP, ultimately held by GFH HFEVA LLC. Citadel Advisors manages private investment funds that are offered exclusively to sophisticated investors.

Cushing Asset Management LP is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The firm was founded by Jerry Swank in 2003 and they are a wholly-owned subsidiary of Swank Capital LLC. Cushing Asset Management provides investment management services on a discretionary basis to high net-worth individuals and institutional investors through Private Funds, Mutual Funds, ETFs, Closed-End Funds and Managed Accounts. They also offer discretionary investment management services as part of various wrap fee programs offered by investment advisers/broker-dealers.

University of Texas Investment Management Co. (UTIMCO) is a not-for-profit foundation headquartered in Austin, Texas. The Foundation was founded in 1996 to oversee investments for The University of Texas and Texas A&M University Systems. UTIMCO manages four major endowment funds under the fiduciary care of the UT System Board of Regents: the Permanent University Fund (PUF), the Permanent Health Fund (PHF), the Long Term Fund (LTF), and the Separately Invested Funds (SIF). The PHF and the LTF are pooled and invest in shares of the General Endowment Fund (GEF).

Blue Sage Service LP (Blue Sage Capital) is a venture capital firm founded in 2003 by Peter Huff and Jim McBride. The firm is headquartered in Austin. Texas.

Digi-Key Corp. distributes electronic components. It also distributes semiconductors, discrete, electromechanical parts. Its products include audio products, batteries, cable assemblies, capacitors, computer & video accessories, connectors, crystals & oscillators, discrete semiconductor products and many more. The company was founded by Ronald A. Stordahl in 1972 and is headquartered in Thief River Falls, MN.

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.

JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA (Investment Management) (JPMC-IM) is the investment management division of JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA, ultimately held by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), a global financial services firm. Headquartered in New York City, JPMC-IM provides asset management services for corporations, institutional investors, hedge funds, governments, healthcare organizations, educational institutions and affluent individuals.

Part of KPMG International Cooperative, KPMG, Inc. provides audit and accounting services. The company is based in Vancouver, Canada. The CEO of the Canadian company is Walter R. Pela.

McKinsey & Co., Inc. provides management consulting services. It specializes in design, marketing and sales, analytics, operations, transformation and restructuring, risk, strategy and corporate finance, and sustainability and resource productivity. The company was founded by James O. McKinsey in 1926 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Part of Energy Transfer LP, Penntex Midstream GP, LLC is a company that provides investment services. The company is based in Houston, TX.

Natural Gas Partners LLC (NGP) is a private equity firm, a subsidiary of NGP Energy Capital Management, LLC founded in 1988 by David Russell Albin and Kenneth Alfredo Hersh. The firm is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

Highland Capital Management LP (Highland) is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The firm was founded by James (Jim) Dondero and Mark Okada in 1993. They are owned by the Highland Claimant Trust. Highland acts as an investment adviser or sub-adviser to structured product vehicles (which include but not limited to CLOs and Collateralized Debt Obligations unregistered investment funds, and single Client accounts).

Community IT Innovators, Inc. provides business consulting services. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Washington, DC.

Sparsha Learning Technologies Pvt Ltd. provides learning technology services. The company’s flagship product iLearnmore for analogue electronics suite helps students understand the entire concept in a simple and organized manner. The company was founded by Kapil Kaushik and Debabrata Bagchi in 2010 and is headquartered in Kharagpur, India.

Avista Capital Holdings LP (Avista Capital Partners) is a private equity firm founded in 2005 by Steven Webster and Thompson Dean. The firm is headquartered in New York.

Ziften Technologies, Inc. provides endpoint threat detection solution. Its products include ziften zenith and ziften zflow. The firm’s solutions include IT operations and security operations. The company was founded by Michael Little and Mark Obrecht in 2010 and is headquartered in Austin, TX.

WholeSecurity, Inc. provides security software solutions and services. Its solutions help to protect computers from Trojan horses, malicious spyware, and phishing attacks. The company offers solutions to the information technology and other commercial industries. WholeSecurity was founded in 2000 and is located in Austin, TX

Berkshire Partners LLC (Berkshire Partners) is a private equity subsidiary of Berkshire Partners Holdings LLC founded in 1986 by Christopher Clifford, Carl Ferenbach, Russel L. Epker, Brad Bloom and Richard Lubin. The firm is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

Bain & Co., Inc. provides management consulting services. It offers advisory services to the companies on their critical issues and opportunities: strategy, marketing, organization, operations, technology and mergers and acquisitions, across all industries and geographies. The company was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Boston, MA.

Doctor's Choice Home Care, Inc. operates as a home health agency serving Southwest Florida. Its services include nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech language pathology, medical social work, home health aides, and patient education services. The company was founded by Timothy T. Beach and Stuart C. Christensen in 2007 and is headquartered in Sarasota, FL.

Power Design Holdings LLC engages in the provision of printed circuit board design, prototype, and production services. The company is headquartered in Dallas, TX.

Home Health Holdings, Inc. operates as a holding company with interests in providing home healthcare services. It provides nursing services in an at home environment to its patients. The company was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Dallas, TX.

Archpro Design Automation, Inc. develops software that measures voltage. The company also manufactures EDA products to meet low-power and multi-voltage design challenges. Its products support all major complementary IC or SoC design technologies. Archpro Design Automation was founded by Srikanth Jadcherla in 2004 and is headquartered in San Jose, CA.

Mission Critical Electronics, Inc. manufactures and supplies automatic battery chargers and electronic equipment. The firm serves the niche vehicle, marine, network, industrial, and portable power markets. The company is headquartered in Huntington Beach, CA.

Salient Capital Advisors LLC (Salient) is an asset management firm headquartered in Houston, Texas. The firm was founded when their direct parent, Salient Partners LP acquired RDG Capital LLC in December 2010. Salient provides real assets, tactical equity alternatives, and private solutions for institutional investors and investment advisors.

Denham Capital Management LP (Denham Capital) is a private equity firm founded by Stuart Denham Porter, Riaz Qamar Siddiqi and Carl John Tricoli. The firm is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.