Director of Institutional Equity Research

George L. Ball is the Interim Director of Institutional Equity Research. Mr. Ball, currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sanders Morris Harris Group and its operating entities. Distinguished career highlights include: Senior Executive Vice President of Smith Barney Shearson Inc., President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Prudential-Bache Securities, Inc. and President of E.F. Hutton Group, Inc. Mr. Ball holds a degree from Brown University.

Energy

Oilfield Services

William C. Conroy, CFA (Managing Director) covers oilfield service companies. Bill analyzes these companies as technology plays as much as in the traditional energy coverage model.  His background following technology makes him particularly well suited for this.  From 1992 to 2000, and again from 2001 to mid-2007, Bill covered semiconductors and other high tech firms for Sanders Morris Harris and two predecessor firms. During this time, he was twice ranked as an All-Star analyst in The Wall St Journal’s stock picking survey.  He also managed the research department of SMH from 2002 until mid-2007.  Before this, he was an analyst at Value Line and was a strategic planner in industry. Bill received an MBA in Finance and Accounting and a BS degree in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University.

Consumer Related

Restaurants/Special Situations

William W. Hamilton, CFA (Vice President) focuses on restaurants.  His coverage also includes specialty finance and SMH investment banking clients. He previously worked as an analyst at Pershing LLC where he followed restaurants and aerospace/defense. Will graduated with a BA degree from Duke University and earned his CFA charter in 2005.

Industrials

David Yuschak, CFA (Managing Director) focuses on industrial companies and especially those in engineering and construction. David has more than 25 years of investment experience, including Director of Research for The Ohio Company.  Prior to that, he was a Senior Equity Analyst for Hoak, Breedlove and Wesneski, an investment banking firm.  He also worked as a Senior Portfolio Manager with Huntington Investment Counsel and Hester Capital Management. David earned his MBA from the University of Detroit and BS degree in Economics from Purdue University.

Craig Bell, CFA (Assistant Vice President) assists in the coverage of industrial companies.  He also follows environmental firms and SMH investment banking clients. Craig joined Sanders Morris Harris in 2006. Previously he spent two and one-half years with Southwest Securities/Sterne Agee & Leach. From 2000 to 2003, Craig was an equity/credit analyst at Van Kampen Funds. Craig graduated from Texas A&M University with a BBA in Finance.

Technology

Semiconductor and Related

Kin Ngai Chan (Senior Vice President) joined the firm’s technology group after more than nine years of industry experience in the PC and Semiconductor industry.  Just prior to joining Sanders Morris Harris Research, he was with U.S Robotics Corp. as a Business Development Manager. Prior to that, Chan was an OEM Customer Product Manager with 3COM Corp. Chan provides SMH clients with unique insights based on his work in the planning, purchasing, and marketing of PC systems, components, and integrated circuits. He has interacted with leading technology companies such as Intel, AMD, Micron Technology, NVIDIA, and Western Digital. Chan received his MBA from the University of Arizona and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BS from California State University, Chico.

Telecom Equipment

Natarajan ‘Subu’ Subrahmanyan, CFA (Managing Director) follows communication technology companies at Sanders Morris Harris.With over 10 years of experience, Subu was listed in the Wall Street Journal’s Best on the Street Analyst Survey in 2007.  He was named best “up-and-comer” in telecom equipment in the 2001 Institutional Investor poll. He joined SMH from Goldman Sachs, where he was the lead data and optical networking analyst.  Previously Subu was at Sutro & Co. where he followed optical components stocks and at First Union Securities prior to that. Subu holds an MBA from the Owen School at Vanderbilt University and a BS in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Madras University, where he graduated with a University rank.

Editorial/Compliance