Grant Hopkins

Part of G Fried Flooring America, Maxim Group, Inc. is a company that provides floor covering products. The company is based in Kennesaw, GA. The company was founded by Richard A. Kaplan.

NGAS Resources, Inc. explores and drills for natural gas properties. It specializes in generating its own geological prospects. The company was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Lexington, KY.

Socrates Technologies Corp. is an information technology solutions company whose business is focused on Application Service Providing to small and medium sized enterprises, e-commerce solutions and web design, customized software solutions, network integration & services and reselling of computer hardware and peripherals. The company's plan is to develop its ASP services to SME's through acquisitions and strategic alliances. It delivers these services through three wholly owned subsidiaries, Socrates Solutions, Corp., Technet Computer Services, Inc. and Networkland, Inc. Socrates was founded on April 14, 1994 and is headquartered in Gainesville, VA.

Wedbush Securities, Inc. is a full-service investment bank and brokerage firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The firm was founded in 1955 as Wedbush Morgan Securities, Inc. They are a subsidiary of Wedbush Financial Services LLC, which is owned by Wedbush, Inc. Wedbush Securities provides a wide range of securities brokerage, wealth management, and investment banking services to private and institutional clients. Their research focuses on providing coverage of small and mid-sized companies in the following industries: (1) consumer products and services (2) technology (3) entertainment and media (4) life sciences and (5) industrial growth and clean technology.

Avondale Partners LLC is an independent broker/dealer headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee with additional offices across the US. The firm was founded by Robert Shepherd and Philip Krebs in 2001. Avondale Partners provides financial advisory services as well as equity and fixed income underwriting and private placement services to public and private companies throughout the US, Canada and Europe. They focus on middle-market companies in the healthcare sector.

Vestmark, Inc. operates technology platform for integrating portfolio management, trading and back office functions. Its services include business process outsourcing, implementations, support, and education services. The company was founded by Charles D. Johnson and David B. Blundin in February 2001 and is headquartered in Wakefield, MA.

Ladenburg Thalmann & Co., Inc. (Broker) is the broker/dealer division of Ladenburg Thalmann & Co., Inc., ultimately held by Advisor Group Holdings, Inc. Headquartered in New York City, the firm was founded in 1876 and offers a full suite of capital markets products and services, including proprietary equity research and a fixed-income trading desk. For institutional asset management clients, the firm provides liquidity, execution, high-quality idea-generating research, and access to corporate management teams. Their institutional coverage includes relationships with over asset management companies all over the world. To corporate clients, they bring access to investor capital, broad distribution capabilities and financial markets advisory. Ladenburg Thalmann is a leader in financing growing middle-market public companies across various industry verticals, including Healthcare & Life Sciences, Yield-Oriented Securities (BDCs, REITs, MLPs), Energy, Power & Infrastructure, and Telecom, Media & Technology.

Stifel, Nicolaus & Co., Inc. (Stifel) is a dual-registered broker-dealer and investment adviser headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm is a subsidiary of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF), a financial service holding company. Stifel provides full-service brokerage and investment advisory services to individuals and their families, institutions and businesses, and financial advisors.

B. Riley Wealth Management, Inc. (B. Riley), formerly Wunderlich Securities, Inc., is a full-service brokerage firm headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, founded in 1996. The firm is a subsidiary of Wunderlich Investment Co., Inc. B. Riley provides comprehensive wealth management and brokerage services to individuals and families, corporations and non-profit organizations, including qualified retirement plans, trusts, foundations and endowments. In 2001, they expanded their business to include investment advisory services. The firm is duly registered with the SEC.

RBC Capital Markets LLC is a full-service brokerage and financial services firm headquartered in New York City. They are a direct subsidiary of RBC USA Holdco Corp. and a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada (TSE, NYSE: RY). Founded in 2010, the firm is comprised of 3 major business lines: the Private Client Group, the Fixed-Income Group and the Clearing and Execution Services Group. The Private Client Group serves individual investors, while the Fixed-Income Group provides services to institutions, municipalities and non-profit organizations. The Clearing and Execution Services Group is a provider of clearing and execution services to independent brokers/dealers throughout the US. RBC Capital Markets focuses on the following sectors: communications, media, consumer/retail, diversified industries, energy, financial institutions, forest products, healthcare, infrastructure finance, mining & metals, real estate, social infrastructure, technology and the US municipal markets.

Cornell University is an educational institution that offers undergraduate and post graduate programs. It was founded in 1865 and is based in Ithaca, NY.

MRI Software LLC engages in the provision of real estate investment software for commercial and residential property managers. Its products are used for property management, financials and accounting, and investment management. The company was founded by Fred Goodman and Sid Goodman in 1971 and is headquartered in Solon, OH.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission engages in protecting market users and the public from fraud, manipulation related to the sale of commodity and financial futures, and options market. The company was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Washington, DC.

The Maryland Chamber of Commerce is a chamber of commerce organization. The non-profit company is based in Annapolis, MD.

Ladenburg Thalmann & Co., Inc. provides investment baking and brokerage services. The firm also provides asset and wealth management, underwriting, alternative investments and advisory services. It serves emerging growth companies and high net worth individuals. The company was founded in 1876 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Founded in 1999 by the late Thomas Watson, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC (JMS) is a full-service financial services firm and registered broker/dealer headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The firm is a subsidiary of Independence Square Properties LLC, itself a subsidiary of Penn Mutual Insurance Co. Their ultimate parent is Harleysville Mutual Insurance Co. JMS is a member of the NYSE, the SIPC and FINRA. The firm provides comprehensive financial advice and services to individual, corporate and institutional investors. Their primary coverage verticals include the consumer, technology, financials and infrastructure sectors.