Oppenheimer Analyst Bios

John Parks is Managing Director and Director of Research and oversees Oppenheimer's overall research strategy and product. John first joined the firm in 1989 as a senior institutional salesman covering the New York City territory. In 1995, he became Head of Domestic Institutional Sales, and two years later became Head of Global Institutional Sales. In 1999, John was named Head of Equity Research, a position he continues to hold today. John began his Wall Street career at the First Boston Corporation as an investment banker and later as an institutional salesman. John holds a B.A. in economics from Princeton University and an M.B.A. in finance from Columbia University.

Erica Moffett is Managing Director and Associate Director of Research and works with John Parks in overseeing the firm's overall research strategy and product. Erica joined the firm in 2000 as an associate analyst in the Travel and Leisure space and subsequently covered e-Commerce companies before moving into her current position. Prior to coming to Wall Street, Erica worked at Yale University, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and Barnes & Noble in various corporate roles. She holds a B.A. in music from Rhodes College and an M.B.A. from Yale University.

Brian Bittner is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering Restaurants and in 2012 was voted Best Up and Coming Restaurant Analyst from Institutional Investor's All-America's Research Team. Brian has been with Oppenheimer since 2007, originally working with Ian Zaffino on our Special Situations team. Prior to Oppenheimer, Brian worked at A.G. Edwards & Sons on the Media & Entertainment team. Brian graduated from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business with a B.S. in Finance.

Bryan Blair is Director and Senior Analyst covering the Industrial Machinery and Flow Control sector. Bryan joined Oppenheimer in 2014 following positions with EVA Dimensions, Paradigm Capital, and Lehman Brothers. He has over ten years of experience in equity research, consulting, and investment banking. Bryan received a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University and is also a CFA charterholder.

Mark Breidenbach is an Executive Director and Senior Analyst covering Emerging Biotechnology.  Mark was most recently at Roth Capital Partners as a lead Analyst covering Biotechnology and prior to that was a Managing Director and Senior Biotechnology Analyst at H.C. Wainwright & Co..  Prior to his Wall Street career, Mark was a Locum Scientist at Nature Publishing Group, and an Associate Specialist in Glycoproteomics and Metabolic Engineering at the Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley. Mark holds a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Physiology from Stanford University, a M. Phil. from the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale University, and a dual B.A. in Biology and Chemistry from Cornell University.

Leah Cann is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering Biotechnology. Leah returns to the firm after an extremely productive period covering biotechnology on both the sell and buyside. She originally joined Oppenheimer inn 1992 covering Biotechnology. Following Oppenheimer, she worked at Cadence Capital Management and First Union/Wachovia Securities as Senior Biotechnology Analyst and developed a specialty in oncology. Most recently, she founded her own research and consulting firm catering to Life Sciences companies focusing in and around oncology. She is also Founder and Trustee of the Board of Hope Funds for Cancer Research, a Board Member of the Women & Science Council at the The Whitehead Institute at MIT, and a Board Member of the Institute for RNA Medicine at Harvard University. Leah holds a B.A. in Chemistry and Art History and an M.B.A. in Finance and Marketing from Stetson University.

Dominick Gabriele is a Director and Senior Analyst covering the Specialty Finance Sector. Dominick has been with the firm since 2014, originally working with Ben Chittenden covering Specialty Finance and Regional Banks. Prior to Oppenheimer, Dominick worked at Jennison Associates.  Dominick graduated from Roger Williams University with a B.A. in Finance and holds the designation of Chartered Financial Analyst.

Shaul Eyal is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the Communications, Security, and Infrastructure Software sectors and is one of Wall Street's leading experts in those spaces. He started his equity research career covering Israeli technology related equities for the firm. Shaul holds an M.B.A. from Fordham University and an LL.B with honors from Oxford Brookes University. He served for five years in the Special Forces of the Israeli Defense Forces, where he held the rank of lieutenant.

Leland Gershell is a Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering BioPharmaceuticals.  Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Leland was Chief Financial Officer of Capricor Therapeutics and Tonix Pharmaceuticals.  Leland also has both sell-side and buy-side experience and began his career on Cowen's biotechnology research team, where he provided sole coverage focused in the small and mid-cap segment.  Leland has also authored numerous editorial and review articles and is an inventor on patents for Merck's Zolinza®.  He earned his M.D. and Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Columbia University and his B.A. magna cum laude in Chemistry and Asian Studies from Dartmouth College.

Christopher Glynn is Managing Director and Senior Analyst at Oppenheimer covering the Industrial Multi-Industry sector. Prior to joining the firm, Chris attended Columbia Business School and started his Wall Street career on the buy-side as an analyst. Chris holds an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School, and a B.A. in English from Georgetown University. Prior to attending Columbia Business School, he taught high school science in the Boston Public Schools for seven years.

Glenn Greene is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the - Financial Technology & IT Services sector. Before joining Oppenheimer, Glenn was a Principal and Senior Analyst with ThinkEquity Partners covering Business Services since 2002. Prior to ThinkEquity, he was a Senior Analyst for ABN AMRO covering the IT and Business Services sector. Before arriving on Wall Street, Glenn was Director of Business Planning & Analysis at MasterCard International. He was honored as the top ranked Earnings Estimator in the IT Services industry by Starmine for the years ended March 31, 2007 and March 31, 2009. Glenn holds a B.A. in Accounting from Emory University and an M.B.A. from New York University's Stern School of Business. He also is a Chartered Financial Analyst and was a C.P.A. earlier in his career.

Jason Helfstein is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the Internet sector. He oversees all aspects of the firm's Internet strategy and his coverage includes Consumer Internet, eCommerce, Online Advertising and Digital Media. Jason has been with the firm since 2002, previously covering Media and Advertising, before shifting his focus to the Internet. Prior to Oppenheimer, Jason worked at Salomon Smith Barney on the Institutional Investor ranked broadcasting and cable research group. He is a top analyst according to the Wall Street Journal's annual 2010 poll, and received similar recognition from Forbes Magazine in 2009 and 2010. Jason began his career in equity research at Schroder Wertheim. He holds Finance and Communications degrees from Syracuse University.

Tim Horan is Managing Director and Senior Analyst heading the Communication and Cloud Services research team. He joined the firm in 1998, and has been covering the sector since 1994. Tim researches a broad range of communications and cloud companies with a focus on emerging services and applications.

Prior to 1998, Tim was a research analyst at Smith Barney, a group that was ranked number two among wireline services teams. He has been a award receipent of both the Greenwich Associates Institutional Survey and Wall Street Journal All Star Analysts. Prior to becoming an equity analyst, Tim worked as a civil engineer on various construction projects in the New York area. Tim received a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Rutgers University and an M.B.A. degree in Finance, with Beta Gamma Sigma Honors, from Columbia Business School in 1994.

Koji Ikeda is a Director and Senior Analyst covering the SaaS/Applications Software space with Brian Schwartz. Koji has been working on the SaaS/Applications Software team with Brian since joining Oppenheimer in 2012. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, he was on the equity research team at Roth Capital Partners covering the eCommerce, Internet, and Media sectors. Koji holds a B.S.B.A from the University from Southern California and an M.B.A from California State University, Long Beach. He also is a CFA charterholder.

Noah Kaye is Executive Director and Senior Analyst covering Sustainable Growth & Resource Optimization with Colin Rusch. Noah has been working with Colin since 2009 when he joined ThinkEquity. Prior to ThinkEquity, Noah was Director of Public Affairs at the U.S. Solar Energy Industries Association for 5 years. He holds a B.A. in History from Yale University; a M.A. in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University; and a M.B.A. from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Jed Kelly is an Executive Director and Senior Analyst covering Online Travel and Internet. Jed has been a member of Jason Helfstein’s Internet team at the firm since 2012. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Jed covered the U.S. and Canadian infrastructure sector at Cannacord Genuity He began his career at KPMG in their Audit and Assurance practice auditing consumer and financial services companies. Jed received a B.B.A. from Loyola College in Maryland and a M.A. in Accounting from Loyola University in Chicago.

Ittai Kidron is Managing Director covering Data Infrastructure, Management, and Virtualization which includes the Networking and Storage Infrastructure, and the Data Management and Virtualization layers. Prior to Oppenheimer, Ittai was an investment banker at Bear Stearns covering the Telecommunication industry. Prior to Bear Stearns, he worked at KPMG as an auditor. Ittai holds an M.B.A. with Highest Honors from the University of Chicago and a B.A. in accounting and economics with Honors from the Tel Aviv University in Israel. He served for three years in the Israeli Defense Forces as a senior investigator in the Military Police.

Chris Kotowski is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the Large Cap Banks & Brokers, Private Equity companies, and the Business Development Corporations. Chris originally joined Oppenheimer in 1985 as a research associate in the banks franchise and was promoted to Senior Bank Analyst two years later. Over the next nine years, he led a team of four in covering over 45 stocks supporting both large cap institutional efforts and the firm's small cap franchise. During this time, he was often represented in Institutional Investor's annual rankings and was consistently ranked among the firm's top analysts. He served as Associate Director of Research and then as Director of Research at Oppenheimer and CIBC World Markets. In 2004, Chris joined Leerink Swann & Co. where he served as Director of Research and Head of Institutional Equities. In 2009, he returned to his roots, re-joining Oppenheimer as Senior Analyst covering the Large Cap Banks & Brokers, and has subsequently expanded his coverage into the PE and BDC sectors.

Steven Lichtman is Managing Director and Senior Analyst for Medical Devices. Steve brings extensive experience in the Medical Devices sector, having previously held that role at JMP Securities and also Banc of America Securities where he focused on several medical device sectors, most notably orthopedics/spine. In 2007, he ranked in the top five for his orthopedics coverage in the Greenwich analyst survey. Prior to Banc of America, Steve was the Senior Associate on leading Medical Devices teams at Credit Suisse First Boston and Schroder & Company, Inc. Steve received a B.A. from Duke University in Economics & Public Policy Studies and an M.B.A. from New York University's Stern School of Business.

Brian W. Nagel is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the Consumer Growth & eCommerce sectors. Brian has worked as a sell side equity research analyst covering various areas of the retail and consumer economies for more than 20 years. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Brian worked as an analyst at UBS and, before that, at Credit Suisse. Clients value the market and stock specific insights of Brian and leverage his strong relationships with senior managements. Brian is quoted often in the financial press and serves frequently as a quest expert on various financial news channels, such as CNBC and Bloomberg. Brian graduated from Creighton University with a B.S.B.A and is a CFA charterholder.

Mohan Naidu is a Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the Healthcare Information Technology (HCIT) sector. Mohan joined us from Stephens, Inc. where he had been a Senior Analyst covering HCIT since 2013. Prior to Stephens, Mohan spent five years as a member of the highly ranked HCIT equity research team at Piper Jaffray & Co. Before his career as a research analyst, Mohan worked at GE Healthcare IT for seven years, first as a Senior Lead System Designer and later as a Product Development Manager. Mohan holds a Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering from the University of Madras in India; a Master of Science in Computer Engineering from Syracuse University; and a M.B.A .from the Kellogg School of Management. He also holds the CFA designation.

Jay Olson is Executive Director and Senior Analyst covering Biotechnology. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Jay covered SMID-cap names and worked on the Large Cap Pharmaceuticals team at Goldman Sachs for 4 years after 4 years on the #1 II-ranked Large Cap Pharmaceuticals team at Sanford Bernstein. Prior to Wall Street, Jay spent 18 years in the pharmaceutical industry, working mostly for Pfizer in finance, marketing and business development. Jay received an M.B.A. in Finance and an M.S. in Chemical Engineering both from MIT, and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Tufts University. He also holds the CFA designation.

Rupesh D. Parikh is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the Food, Grocery & Consumer Products sectors. He has been with Oppenheimer since 2009, first working with Brian Nagel on the Hardlines and Broadlines retail team. Prior to joining the firm, Rupesh was an equity research analyst at UBS Securities covering the U.S. Hardlines Retail sector. He began his career as an Associate in PwC’s Assurance and Business Advisory practice auditing publicly traded healthcare and retail companies. In 2015 and 2016, Rupesh was voted Rising Star in the Food Retailing Category from Institutional Investor’s All-America Research Team. Rupesh is quoted often in the financial press and serves frequently as a guest expert on various financial news channels. Rupesh holds a B.S.B.A from Boston University.

Esther Rajavelu is an Executive Director and Senior Analyst covering Biotech & Specialty Pharmaceuticals. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, she was part of the Major and Specialty Pharmaceuticals equities research team at Deutsche Bank, where she launched as lead analyst on small and mid-cap companies. Esther has over 10 years of advisory experience in the life sciences sector including her time as an investment banker focused on Biotechnology transactions, and as a business strategy consultant to Major Pharmaceutical companies. She received a B.A. from Wesleyan University and an M.B.A from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Tim Rezvan is Managing Director and Senior Analyst for Exploration & Production Energy. Before joining Oppenheimer, Tim was Managing Director and Senior Analyst at Mizuho Securities covering mid- to large cap E&Ps and related Energy securities. Prior to Mizuho Securities, he was at Sterne Agee as Senior Analyst for mid- to large cap E&P companies. He began his sell-side career at Oppenheimer, working on the team covering E&Ps, integrated companies, and refiners. Prior to Oppenheimer, Tim worked on the buy-side in an investment capacity at BlackRock. Tim has been frequently quoted in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and Bloomberg, and has been a repeat guest on CNBC, Bloomberg TV, BNN and other media outlets. He holds a B.B.A. in Finance from the College of William & Mary and an M.B.A from New York University’s Stern School of Business. He has been a CFA charterholder since 2001. 

Allison Rudary is a Director and Senior Analyst covering asset managers and business development companies. She has been with the firm since 2011, originally working on the banks and brokers team alongside Chris Kotowski. Allison has worked on the buy and sell side and has experience in fixed income portfolio management. She began her career at SAC Capital in equity and fixed income financing trading.  Allison holds an A.B. in United States History from Barnard College and an M.B.A. from New York University’s Stern School of Business. 

Colin Rusch is Managing Director and Senior Analyst and leads the firm's Sustainable Growth & Resource Optimization franchise. Colin has extensive experience in the Industrial Efficiency and CleanTech space. He started his equity research career at Piper Jaffrey and has worked at Northland, ThinkEquity and Broadpoint Capital prior to joining Oppenheimer. Colin holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University.

Rick Schafer is Managing Director and Senior Analyst and leads the firm's Semiconductor franchise. Prior to joining the firm, he worked as a financial analyst and market researcher for Eurofon, Inc. & Co. KG Germany, a subsidiary of wireless test and measurement equipment manufacturer LCC, L.L.C. Rick received an international M.B.A. from the University of South Carolina and holds B.S. degrees in Finance and Multinational Business from Florida State University.

Scott Schneeberger is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering Industrial & Business Services. He joined the firm in 2006 and covers four diverse services sub-sectors: Rental Services, Logistics Services, Route Services, and Tax Services. In 2010 he was ranked #2 "Best on the Street" by The Wall Street Journal in Business Services. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Scott was a Vice President and Senior Analyst at Lehman Brothers, where he covered Business and Industrial Services from 2001-2006. Scott received a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from Syracuse University, and an M.B.A in Finance from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College.

Brian Schwartz is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering the SaaS/Applications Software space. Brian has extensive experience in the SaaS/Applications software space, having covered the sector for over 20 years. He was recognized by the Wall Street Journal’s “Best on the Street” annual survey for the software sector; and in 2017 as a top stock picker for software and services by Thomson Reuters, and as a top 5 financial analyst by TipRanks. In 2013, he was awarded the #1 stock picker in the Financial Times|StarMine Analyst Awards. His research is focused on finding disruptive macro and micro software trends. His research methodology is based on proprietary survey-driven micro research on covered companies and framed by in depth macro research on the technology sector. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, he was a senior analyst at ThinkEquity covering SaaS/Applications software, and he has also held the same positions at Piper Jaffray, Montgomery and Co., and RBC Capital Markets. Brian also brings several years of general industry experience as President and Founder of event-based marketing company Pyramid Sports and also as Business Development Manager at RCM Technologies. Brian holds a B.A. from the University of Michigan and a M.B.A. from Michigan State University.

Hartaj Singh is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering Biotechnology. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Hartaj was Managing Director and Senior Biotechnology Analyst at BTIG Securities. Hartaj began his sell-side career at Lehman Brothers and subsequently moved to the buyside covering Biotechnology at Visium Asset Management and Tecumseh Partners. He began his career as a Clinical Trial Project Manager for ClinTrials Research and also worked as a Strategic Analysis Manager for Johnson & Johnson, both of which give him critical experience in clinical trial design. Hartaj has a B.A. in Biology from Case Western Reserve University and also did extensive graduate work in Computational Neurobiology. He also holds an M.B.A. from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

John Stoltzfus is Managing Director and Chief Investment Strategist. Prior to joining the firm, John was Senior Market Strategist at Ticonderoga Securities where he provided all macro, market outlook, and strategy ideas to the firm and its clients. John came to Ticonderoga from Bank of America, where he worked in their Global Wealth & Investment Management Division as Senior Market Strategist in the Investment Strategies Group. Before Bank of America, John was at Morgan Stanley in a variety of roles, including Vice President of Marketing and Equity Sales, Vice President of Capital Market Solutions, and Vice President of U.S. and International Equity Marketing. In the early 1990s, John worked at Chase Manhattan Bank as Vice President of Investments, CMIS and GNA securities. He holds a B.A. from Colgate University.

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Andrew is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering Emerging Services and Technology companies. He initially focused on the emerging Israeli technology companies before broadening his coverage to Emerging Technology and Service companies. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Andrew worked in equity research at Ardour Capital and also in investment banking at Deutsche Bank. He started his career in various finance and accounting positions at Lannett Company and Lordi Consulting. Andrew holds a B.S. in Management and Accounting from the University of Massachusetts in Boston and a M.B.A. from the NYU Stern School of Business.

Ari Wald is Managing Director and Senior Analyst providing Technical Analysis for the firm. Ari joined the firm from Wolfe Research where he was Vice President and Head of Technical Analysis. Prior to that, he was a member of the Institutional Portfolio Strategy team at Brown Brothers Harriman. Ari graduated from Rutgers University with a B.S. in Statistics and Mathematics. He holds the CFA, the CMT, and he is actively involved with the Market Technicians Association.

Michael Wiederhorn is Managing Director and Senior Analyst covering Healthcare Providers and Services. His coverage focuses on managed care, hospitals, nursing homes, home health, hospice, emergency services, and related healthcare services. He has over fifteen years of experience in healthcare consulting and research and in 2013, he was honored as a top ranked Earnings Estimator in Health Care Providers & Services 2013 by Financial Times/Starmine. In addition, in 2009 and 2010, Michael was ranked the #1 brokerage analyst for Medical Care by Forbes Magazine. Prior to entering equity research, Michael was a management consultant at Ernst and Young, serving the healthcare industry. He has a Masters in Health Policy and Management from Harvard University and B.A. in American History from the University of Pennsylvania.

Ian Zaffino is Managing Director and is the Senior Analyst responsible for the coverage of event-driven special situations, including restructurings, post-bankruptcy equities and spinoffs. Ian came to Oppenheimer from Israel Englander Research where, as a special situations/generalist, he focused heavily on technology, telecom and consumer products. Prior to that, he worked at Credit Suisse First Boston where he had primary coverage of the wireless infrastructure and outsourcing industry and provided secondary coverage of traditional broadcasters. Ian also spent some time on the buy side with Drake Capital Advisors. Prior to Wall Street, Ian was a climate control engineer for Ford Motor Company. Ian graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He has an M.S. in Industrial and Financial Engineering from Columbia and an M.B.A. from New York University's Stern School of Business.