PITTSBURGH, Oct. 1, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Michael Santoli, financial columnist and editor for the Dow Jones financial and business weekly Barron's, will deliver the keynote address at the inaugural INVESTPennsylvania Equity Conference, an event that brings together executives from Pennsylvania public companies with professional investors and analysts.
The conference will take place on Dec. 6 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh.
"We are delighted and honored to have Michael Santoli address the first Pennsylvania equity conference," said Terry McWilliams, the chairman of INVESTPennsylvania. "Michael brings an extraordinary understanding of the economy, big picture trends and their effects on Wall Street and Main Street. The willingness to share his perspective represents a wonderful opportunity for CEOs, CFOs, analysts, portfolio managers and institutional investors to hear his take on the drivers influencing the markets."
A veteran financial journalist, Santoli writes the finance magazine's 'Streetwise' column, looking at the financial markets, illuminating market trends and themes and identifying investment opportunities. The New York native is a regular on-air contributor to several cable networks, talk radio and financial conferences, and he has won two Dow Jones business reporting awards for distinguished real-time journalism.
"The CFA Society of Pittsburgh is pleased to bring such a talented communicator to this inaugural event," said Todd Douds, CFA, Senior Vice President of Research and Operations at Fort Pitt Capital and Program Chair for the CFA Society of Pittsburgh. "Plus, it will be shortly after the Presidential elections, which should make for a timely discussion."
The CFA chapter is an organizing sponsor of INVESTPA, along with the Pittsburgh chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute and the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. The Title Sponsor is Crowe Horwath LLP, one of the largest accounting and consulting firms in the U.S.
"INVESTPennsylvania provides an excellent opportunity to hear from the executives of public companies that are such strong contributors to the state's economic growth," said Mark Baer, a partner with Crowe Horwath. "We are proud to be part of an event that supports and highlights these public companies. As a national firm that works with a wide variety of public companies, supporting an equity conference such as INVESTPennsylvania is a natural fit for Crowe."
NASDAQ OMX, Fort Pitt Capital and the University of Pittsburgh's Katz Graduate School of Business are also supporting the conference through corporate sponsorships.
Santoli's keynote speech complements the day-long series of investment presentations by corporate executives from a variety of public companies representing various market capitalizations and industry sectors. More than a dozen companies will participate in presentations and individually scheduled meetings, including U.S. Steel, The Hershey Company, Allegheny Technologies, Black Box Corporation, EQT Corporation, II-VI Incorporated, First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, S&T Bancorp, Inc., Mylan Inc., Matthews International Corporation, L.B. Foster Company, and Federated Investors, Inc.
Admission to the conference, breakfast and lunch are underwritten by the conference and its sponsors. Qualified investment professionals can attend by registering at http://www.invest-pa.com/registration.
In addition to McWilliams and Douds and representatives of the participating public companies, these investment and business executives are serving on the INVESTPA steering committee:
- Malcolm Polley, CFA Society of Pittsburgh; Executive Vice President & Managing Director, S&T Wealth Management, and President and Chief Investment Officer, Stewart Capital Advisors LLC
- Bill Flanagan, Executive Vice President – Corporate Relations, Allegheny Conference on Community Development
- Patrick Kane, President, Pittsburgh Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute, and Director, Investor Relations, EQT Corporation
- Mark Baer, Partner, and Elisabeth Hessler, Marketing Executive, Crowe Horwath LLP
- John Roppo, CFA, CFA Society of Pittsburgh; Chief Financial Officer, Select International
- Stuart B. Strasner, CFA Society of Pittsburgh; Senior Investment Advisor, Vice President, PNC Wealth Management
- Nicole Maselli, Brandis Kemp and Dorothea Cernera, NASDAQ OMX
- Manoharlal Sukhwani, PhD, CFA; Director, CFA Society of Pittsburgh; Assistant Professor, Katz Graduate School of Business and College of Business Administration, University of Pittsburgh
- Kelly S. Szejko, President, Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association and the National Association of Corporate Directors, and Executive Director, Association for Corporate Growth chapter, Pittsburgh.