LOS ANGELES, Dec. 18, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wedbush Securities, one of the nation's leading financial services providers with an award-winning small and mid-cap equity research department, announced the expansion of its equity research team with the addition of senior analysts James Hardiman and Phil Terpolilli. Mr. Hardiman will cover a range of companies in the consumer sector including power sports, cruise lines and amusement parks. Mr. Terpolilli will cover healthy living stocks including organic foods, growth beverage companies, green grocers and vitamin retailers. The arrival of Mr. Hardiman and Mr. Terpolilli complements the recent hiring of senior analysts Heather Behanna (emerging pharma) and Scott Thompson (communications and cloud infrastructure), as well as Lupine Skelly who has taken over management of the firm's extremely successful retail and consumer channel checking group. These important hires further strengthen Wedbush's noteworthy equity research team.
Mr. Hardiman joins Wedbush as a Managing Director, Equity Research with an extensive background in the consumer sector having covered stocks across this sector for more than 12 years. Mr. Hardiman holds a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Virginia, in addition to being a Certified Public Accountant and a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Mr. Terpolilli joins Wedbush as a Vice President, Equity Research having covered stocks in the healthy living sector for six years. Mr. Terpolilli holds a Bachelor of Science in Management from Carroll University.
"James and Phil bring deep research experience with differentiated investment theses in each of the subsectors of stocks they cover, all supported by intensive survey work", said Mark Benson, Director of Research, Wedbush Securities. "The five talented Senior Analyst hires who have joined the firm in the past few months will make important contributions that will continue to drive the overall quality of the Wedbush Securities research platform."
Wedbush Equity Research offers in-depth and differentiated research coverage across the consumer, life sciences, technology/media and industrial growth sectors. The team, comprised of 20 publishing analysts, generates timely, insightful analyses and the firm's award-winning Wedbush Best Ideas List. Wedbush Equity Research consistently ranks among the industry's leading performance surveys including Barron's and Zacks Investment Research's "Top Stock Picking Firm," Financial Times' "Top Analysts," Institutional Investor's "Rising Stars of Wall Street Research," Wall Street Journal's "Best of the Street," and StarMine's "Analyst Awards for Excellence.
About Wedbush Securities
Founded in 1955, Wedbush Securities is a leading financial services firm that provides brokerage, clearing, investment banking, equity research, public finance, fixed income sales and trading, and asset management to individual, institutional and issuing clients. Headquartered in Los Angeles, with over 100 registered offices, the firm focuses on relentless service, client financial safety, continuity, and advanced technology. Wedbush Securities is the largest subsidiary of holding company WEDBUSH, Inc., which also includes affiliated firms Wedbush Asset Management, Wedbush Capital Partners, Wedbush Opportunity Partners, and Lime Brokerage LLC. Follow us on Twitter @Wedbush.