News Archive for 2008

December 30, 2008-William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Grand Canyon Education, Inc., a provider of postsecondary education degrees to both traditional college-age students and working adults at its ground campus and online, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

December 19, 2008-William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Natus Medical Incorporated, a pioneer in the newborn hearing screening market, with a Market Perform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

December 18, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, The J.M. Smucker Company, in connection with its $3.0 billion merger with the Folgers Coffee subsidiary of Procter & Gamble.

December 15, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Francisco Partners, in connection with its acquisition of API Software, Inc.

December 11, 2008 - Geoffrey Richards, Co-head of Special Situations and Restructuring at William Blair & Company, spoke at the 20th Annual American Bankruptcy Institute Winter Leadership Conference, held on December 4-6, 2008.

December 10, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Research In Motion Limited with a Market Perform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile in conjunction with the issuance of an Industry Report titled “The Rise of Smartphones.”

December 9, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Stainton Metal Company Limited, a portfolio company of the U.K.-based private-equity firm NVM Private Equity, in connection with its acquisition by Valmont Industries, Inc.

December 2, 2008 - On December 3, 2008, William Blair & Company’s Debt Capital Markets professionals will discuss the events that led to current opportunities in domestic municipal bond markets, including the deleveraging of municipal funds and the concurrent flight to safety in Treasury bonds.

December 2, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, TRE Financial Services Inc., in connection with the sale of its subsidiary, IntelliTax Software Solutions, Inc., to Wolters Kluwer.

December 1, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, TMG Health, Inc., in connection with its sale to Health Care Service Corporation.

November 25, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Genoptix, Inc., a specialty lab focused on the hematopathology (diagnosis of blood-based diseases) market, with a Market Perform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

November 21, 2008 - William Blair & Company issued an Industry Report on data networking and initiated research coverage of five companies in the space. Analyst Jason Ader initiated coverage of F5 Networks, Inc. and Juniper Networks, Inc. with Outperform ratings and Aggressive Growth company profiles; Cisco Systems, Inc. with a Market Perform rating and Core Growth company profile; and Polycom, Inc. and Riverbed Technology, Inc. with Market Perform ratings and Aggressive Growth company profiles.

November 19, 2008 - William Blair & Company hosted reporters for an update on several of the most prominent growth companies in the Chicago area.

November 17, 2008 - William Blair & Company is No. 34 in the Barron's (10-13-08 issue) exclusive ranking of "2008 Top Wealth Managers in the U.S."

November 17, 2008 - William Blair & Company served as Placement Agent for The J. M. Smucker Company on their recent issuance of $400,000,000 of senior unsecured notes.

November 14, 2008 - George Greig, William Blair & Company's Global Strategist for Investment Management, recently provided his Eighth Annual Market Outlook.

November 14, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Coria Laboratories, Ltd., a subsidiary of DFB Pharmaceuticals, in connection with its sale to Valeant Pharmaceuticals International for $95 million.

November 11, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Infosys Technologies Limited, the leading provider of offshore IT services, with an Outperform rating and a Core Growth company profile.

November 6, 2008 - William Blair & Company acted as exclusive financial advisor to A. M. Castle & Co. on the arrangement of two revolving lines of credit in China.

November 3, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, MicroCal, LLC, in connection with its sale to GE Healthcare Ltd.

October 27, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, MedVenture Technology Corporation, in connection with its sale to Ampersand Ventures.

October 23, 2008 - At the Partnerships in Clinical Trials 2008 Conference, today in Berlin, Germany, William Blair & Company will address the session on “Service Provider Value Chain: A Financial Outlook of the CRO Bull Market.”

October 22, 2008 - Rob Metzger, Principal and Group Head of Financial Services Investment Banking at William Blair & Company, will be at the 2008 Electronic Transactions Association’s Strategic Leadership and Networking Forum today at The Fairmont Chicago.

October 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Baidu.com, Inc., the largest Internet media company in China, with a Market Perform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

October 21, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of HMS Holdings Corp., a leading provider of coordination-of-benefit and program-integrity solutions for government-sponsored healthcare programs, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

October 15, 2007 - William Blair & Company, L.L.C. yesterday began its 11th Annual Private Equity Conference with roundtable discussions, including a session titled, "Special Situations & Restructuring – Section 363 Strategic Considerations for Buyers and Sellers of Distressed Assets."

October 14, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of The TJX Companies, Inc., the leading operator of off-price apparel and home goods retail stores in the United States, Canada, and Europe, with an Outperform rating and an Established Growth company profile.

October 7, 2008 - William Blair & Company today kicked off its Second Annual Small-Cap Growth Stock Conference in New York City, hosting 75 companies and hundreds of clients at the conference, which is devoted solely to small-capitilization stocks.

October 3, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Information Services Group, Inc. with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

September 26, 2008 - In the context of these difficult times for investors and the financial markets, we wanted to update and remind everyone about the strong financial position of William Blair & Company. We have communicated this same message for decades, but it holds its greatest meaning and significance in times like these.

September 23, 2008 - William Blair & Company recently initiated research coverage of Chipotle with a Market Perform rating. Click for more information and to register to receive a complimentary copy of the report.

September 17, 2008 - William Blair & Company hosted reporters for a discussion on the major trends affecting international, emerging markets, large-cap growth, and mid-cap growth investing.

September 16, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of GreenHunter Energy, Inc., which operates a biodiesel refinery and is developing two biomass power facilities and multiple wind energy projects, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

September 16, 2008 - William Blair & Company, L.L.C. announced the publication of two comprehensive reports on the energy industry—one covering alternative power generation, titled “Next-Generation Energy Technology,” and the other focusing on replacement fuels and alternative transportation, titled “Alternative Energy in the Transportation Sector: Fossil Fuels Going the Way of the Dinosaur?”

September 12, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., which specializes in treating orphan diseases with significant unmet medical need, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

September 11, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Air Methods Corporation, the largest provider of air medical transportation services in the world, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

September 9, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Penson Worldwide, Inc., a provider of clearing, execution and trade settlement, custody, and technology solutions, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

September 8, 2008 - William Blair & Company served as the Underwriter and Remarketing Agent and as advisor on related consents/amendments for Lake Forest College on their recent issuance of Variable Rate Demand Bonds.

September 4, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., one of the country’s fastest-growing restaurant concepts, with a Market Perform rating and Core Growth company profile.

September 2, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, NetSpend Corporation, in connection with its acquisition of Skylight Financial, Inc.

August 28, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. with a Market Perform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile and released its third annual report on the future of the digital media industry.

August 26, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Visa Inc. and MasterCard Incorporated with Outperform ratings and Core Growth company profiles.

August 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Dice Holdings, Inc., a leading global provider of online recruiting services, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

August 21, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of NeuStar, Inc., a leading provider of clearinghouse services for communications databases, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

August 19, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Skywire Software LLC, in connection with its acquisition by Oracle Corporation.

August 14, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Satyam Computer Services Limited, the fourth-largest Indian IT outsourcing provider and the leader among its peers in enterprise package implementation, with an Outperform rating and a Core Growth company profile.

August 12, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, 180 Connect Inc., in connection with its acquisition by an affiliate of DIRECTV, Inc. for total consideration of approximately $105 million.

August 7, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Skywire Holdings, in connection with the sale of Skywire’s business process outsourcing (BPO) operation to KUBRA.

August 1, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Signicast Corporation, in connection with its acquisition by The Pritzker Group.

July 28, 2008 - William Blair & Company recently initiated research coverage of FTI Consulting, Inc. Click for more information and to register to receive a complimentary copy of the report.

July 24, 2008 - William Blair & Company today commenced its annual Family Wealth Conference, featuring a variety of sessions geared toward preserving family wealth and legacy, from teaching children the basics of investing, to succession planning for the family business, to estate planning and retirement.

July 23, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Harbin Electric, Inc., in connection with the completion of its PIPE deal.

July 16, 2008 - William Blair & Company announced that its client, AIH Acquisition, LLC, has closed on its acquisition of American IronHorse Motorcycle Company, Inc.

July 10, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Rubicon Technology, Inc. with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

July 8, 2008 - At the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago’s annual Community Celebration, held on June 27, William Blair & Company was honored with a Top 25 Corporate Citizen Award and the Employee Support Pillar Award.

July 8, 2008 - William Blair & Company, in collaboration with the Chicago Interactive Marketing Association (CIMA), today published the fifth edition of a semiannual interactive marketing survey that the partnership uses to take the pulse of the industry and relay its practitioners’ expectations for future performance and trends.

July 7, 2008 - William Blair & Company served as the Co-Managing Underwriter for Rush University Medical Center on their recent issuance of Fixed Rate Revenue Refunding Bonds.

July 2, 2008 - William Blair International announces the success of its client, Premier Research Group plc., in connection with its sale to ECI Partners for a total consideration of £100 million.

June 30, 2008 – Sharon Zackfia, William Blair & Company consumer research analyst, will be a panelist in a discussion titled “Serving Up Shareholder Value: Discussing a right course of action during challenging times in the slowing economy” today at the NASDAQ OMX Food and Restaurant Industry Forum.

June 30, 2008 - William Blair & Company today announced that Mike Balkin is returning to the firm as co-manager of the Small-Cap Growth strategy rejoining Karl Brewer, CFA, and Colin Williams, CFA, both principals and co-managers.

June 26, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, Accuro Healthcare Solutions, Inc., a portfolio company of Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, in connection with its acquisition by MedAssets, Inc.

June 25, 2008 - William Blair & Company today announced that Steven M. Bernard, CFA, has joined the firm as director of M&A market analysis. In this new role, he will report to Mark Brady, Principal and Head of Mergers and Acquisitions.

June 25, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of The Knot, Inc., a leading life-stage media company providing relevant content and planning tools for to-be-weds, newlyweds, and expectant parents through its online and offline brands, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

June 23, 2008 - William Blair & Company announces the success of its client, The Hi-Tech Group, Inc., a portfolio company of Red Diamond Capital and Century Park Capital Partners, in connection with its sale to Parker-Hannifin.

June 19, 2008 - William Blair & Company served as the Qualified Independent Underwriter and a Co-Manager on Iron Mountain Incorporated’s recent public offering of $300 million in aggregate principal amount of its 8% Senior Subordinated Notes due 2020.

June 17, 2008 - William Blair & Company, L.L.C. today kicked off its 28th Annual Growth Stock Conference, a three-day event featuring nearly 200 companies and attracting investors from around the world.

June 13, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., a global provider of IT and business process outsourcing (BPO) services to commercial and government entities, with a Market Perform rating and a Core Growth company profile.

June 12, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of E-House (China) Holdings Limited, a leading real estate services company in China, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

June 11, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Intuitive Surgical, Inc., which manufactures and sells the da Vinci robotic surgical system, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

June 10, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Gen-Probe Incorporated, which develops, manufactures, and markets nucleic acid amplification and detection products, with an Outperform rating and Core Growth company profile.

June 6, 2008 - Five William Blair & Company equity research analysts were honored by the Financial Times/StarMine and The Wall Street Journal with a total of five awards for their stock picking or earnings estimates ability.

June 6, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of WMS Industries Inc. a leading manufacturer of gaming machines, with an Outperform rating and a Core Growth company profile.

June 2, 2008 - William Blair & Company acted as Underwriter for the Village of Hoffman Estates issuance of Series 2008A General Obligation Bonds.

May 30, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Bare Escentuals, Inc. a high-growth prestige beauty company and the market leader in sales of mineral cosmetics, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

May 28, 2008 - William Blair & Company acted as Underwriter for the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County issuance of Series 2008A Contract Revenue Bonds.

May 28, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Polaris Industries Inc., a leading manufacturer of power sports products, with a Market Perform rating and Core Growth company profile.

May 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Amazon.com, Inc., the world’s largest pure-play Internet retailer by sales, with a Market Perform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

May 21, 2008 - William Blair & Company acted as Underwriter for the Northwest Suburban Municipal Joint Action Water Agency issuance of Series 2008 Water Supply System Revenue Refunding Bonds.

May 16, 2008 - William Blair & Company is hosting a luncheon panel discussion today for women executives about effective board participation.

May 16, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, the largest manufacturer and marketer of do-it-yourself lawn and garden care products in the world, with an Outperform rating and company profile of Core Growth.

May 13, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of MSCI Inc., a leading provider of investment decision support tools to investment institutions worldwide, with a Market Perform rating and Core Growth company profile.

May 7, 2008 - William Blair & Company is pleased to announce the success of its client, Optimal Solutions Integration, Inc., in connection with an investment received from Tailwind Capital.

May 1, 2008 - William Blair & Company hosted reporters for an update on several of the most prominent growth companies in the Chicago area.

April 30, 2008 - William Blair & Company has been ranked #50 by Crain’s Chicago Business in its list of Chicago's largest privately held companies, ranked by revenues.

April 25, 2008 - A private art event has been designed exclusively for William Blair & Company clients and guests on April 26, 2008.

April 24, 2008 - Today, Jeff Urbina, CFA, Principal, William Blair & Company, will assess emerging markets’ place in the global economy and identify specific regional and industry trends and developments.

April 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Heritage-Crystal Clean, Inc. with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

April 18, 2008 - William Blair & Company is pleased to announce the success of its client, Ranir LLC, in connection with its acquisition by Kayak Holdings, LLC.

April 11, 2008 - William Blair & Company has been named one of the best companies to work for in the Chicago area by Crain's Chicago Business.

April 10, 2008 - Jonathan P. Skinner, principal in the Financial Sponsors Group of William Blair & Company’s Corporate Finance department, served as moderator at the 5th Annual MIT Sloan Private Equity Symposium held at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

April 3, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Invesco Ltd. with an Outperform rating and Core Growth company profile.

April 1, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Citrix Systems, Inc. with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

March 31, 2008 – William Blair & Company today announced that John L. Borovicka has joined the firm as a vice president in the investment banking group that serves the public and nonprofit sectors.

March 27, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of athenahealth, Inc., a provider of practice management and clinical HCIT solutions, with a Market Perform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

March 26, 2008 – William Blair & Company, L.L.C., distributor to the William Blair Funds, today announced the launch of the William Blair Emerging Leaders Growth Fund.

March 20, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Website Pros, Inc., the leading provider of do-it-for-me and do-it-yourself Web services for small and midsize businesses, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

March 7, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of SkillSoft PLC, a provider of e-learning courseware and performance support solutions for more than 3,000 business, government, and education clients worldwide, with an Outperform rating and Core Growth company profile.

March 4, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Shutterfly, Inc., an emerging leader in the social media and personal publishing markets, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

March 4, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of IPC The Hospitalist Company, Inc., a pioneer in the provision of hospitalist services, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

February 28, 2008 - On February 21, William Blair & Company held its Annual Institutional Investment Summit in Aspen, Colo., hosting more than 15 companies and about 40 clients at the meeting devoted to high-quality growth companies.

February 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company today announced that John Brennan will join the firm as head of Private Wealth Management, a new position.

February 21, 2008 - Geoffrey Richards, co-head of Special Situations and Restructuring in William Blair & Company’s Corporate Finance department, will be a panelist in the presentation titled, “Opportunities in Real Estate as part of Corporate Turnarounds” today at the Distressed Real Estate Investing Summit.

February 21, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Bio-Reference Laboratories, Inc., the largest independent regional clinical laboratory focused on the New York area, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

February 14, 2008 - William Blair & Company acted as financial advisor and placement agent to John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc. in the arrangement of a new senior asset-based revolving credit facility and a mortgage facility, which were used to refinance the Company’s existing senior debt.

February 7, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Array BioPharma Inc. with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

February 6, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Multi-Color Corporation with a Market Perform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

February 6, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Urban Outfitters, Inc., one of the fastest-growing publicly traded apparel retailers, with an Outperform rating and a Core Growth company profile.

February 1, 2008 - Kenton L. Brown, a Principal with William Blair & Company's Debt Capital Markets department, spoke as part of a panel of financial intermediaries to discuss the outlook for deal activity in 2008.

February 1, 2008 - Join us for a luncheon presentation on February 6th titled, "Consumer-Driven Health Care, Prospects for the Future in an Election Year."

January 25, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of FTI Consulting, Inc. with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

January 25, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of GFI Group Inc., the fourth-largest and arguably fastest-growing global interdealer broker (IDB) concentrating in OTC cash and derivative markets, with an Outperform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

January 25, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of VMware, Inc., a provider of virtualization software, with a Market Perform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

January 23, 2008 - William Blair & Company investment bankers provided their 2008 outlooks for the industry to a media-only audience.

January 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Cardtronics, Inc., the largest operator of ATMs both in the United States and globally, with an Outperform rating and Established Growth company profile.

January 22, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of MedAssets, Inc., which offers a suite of technology solutions that help hospitals combat chronic expense and revenue pressures, with a Market Perform rating and Aggressive Growth company profile.

January 18, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of NetSuite Inc., the leading software-as-a-service (SaaS) suite provider of ERP/accounting, customer relationship management, and e-commerce to small and midsize businesses, with an Outperform rating and company profile of Aggressive Growth.

January 16, 2008 - William Blair & Company acted as exclusive financial advisor to A. M. Castle & Co. both in its acquisition of Metals UK Group and the related debt financing.

January 11, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Bank of New York Mellon Corporation with an Outperform rating and a Core Growth company profile.

January 10, 2008 - William Blair & Company announced this week that it has named nine new principals to the firm.

January 4, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Power Medical Interventions, Inc. with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

January 4, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Hill International, Inc., a provider of project management and consulting services related to construction activity, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.

January 3, 2008 - William Blair & Company is pleased to announce the success of its client, PrivateBancorp, Inc., in connection with a $200 million private placement of equity securities.

January 2, 2008 - William Blair & Company initiated research coverage of Virtual Radiologic Corporation (Nasdaq: VRAD) ($20.72), a leading provider of U.S.-based teleradiology services, with an Outperform rating and an Aggressive Growth company profile.