Robert W. Baird & Co. yesterday announced its continued expansion in the Northeast, hiring six bankers from the former Ferris, Baker Watts Inc. to join new offices in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Managing director Leslie Bear, director Daniel Fox, director James Shelby, assistant vice president Audrey S. Bear, and financial analyst Barbara Patragnoni will work from Baird's new Exton, Pa., office, the company announced yesterday. Baird Public Investment Advisors also hired John Kinnerman as vice president and portfolio manager, based out of its new Laurel Springs, N.J., office.
"We're always looking for opportunities to add great people that fit our culture," said Keith Kolb, managing director of Baird's public finance group. "And we will continue to look for good people that fit our strategy of trying to be the best middle-market public finance team in the country. Whether it's expanding geographically or getting deeper into products, we're just looking for people that fit in with us."
Kolb praised the group's reputation and experience with Baird's "bread-and-butter businesses," such as schools and municipalities. Leslie Bear, Fox, Shelby, and Patragnoni have each worked in public finance for more than 20 years, according to a press release.
The additions also support Baird's growing Northeast presence. Baird opened its first New York City-area office in December and has acted as senior manager on $415 million in Northeast region deals this year, according to Thomson Reuters data. In 2007, Baird underwrote just one issue, worth $22.3 million, in the region.
Nationally, Baird is the 15th-ranked senior manager in 2008, with $2.372 billion in deals through June 20. In 2007, it ranked 28th, with $1.9 billion in deals for the entire year.
Although nothing is "imminent," Baird is in continued discussions to add fixed-income sales and trading operations and public finance specialists in the region, Kolb said. Like other regional banks, Baird could benefit from the recent turmoil on Wall Street, which has led some investment banks to trim their public finance operations.
"As a privately held, regionally focused firm, this creates great opportunity for us to talk to a number of great people whose firms have changed or made decisions that had nothing to do with the individual," Kolb said. "And so it's creating a great opportunity to talk to a lot new of bankers."
