Oppenheimer Appoints William Bird Director of Equity Research
Bird Has More Than 30 Years of Experience as a Top-Performing Analyst, Portfolio Manager and Management Strategy Consultant
NEW YORK, April 3, 2024 — Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. (Oppenheimer) — a leading investment bank, wealth manager, and a subsidiary of Oppenheimer Holdings (NYSE: OPY) — announced today the appointment of William Bird as Director of Equity Research. Bird, who previously served as Managing Director, Head of Thematic Research, succeeds John Parks, who is retiring from Oppenheimer after 35 years of service.
“I am thrilled for Bill Bird to assume leadership of Equity Research, and I have every confidence that he will do an excellent job of building on the resilient and successful culture that John Parks cultivated over the past 25 years,” said John Hellier, Senior Managing Director, Head of Equities for Oppenheimer. “Bill’s vision, expertise and management style will enable him to harness our Equity Research team’s quality and breadth of talent as we look to the future.”
Bird has approximately 33 years of experience as a top-performing analyst, portfolio manager and management strategy consultant. Since joining Oppenheimer in October 2023, Bird has enhanced the company’s Thematic Research platform, which focuses on spotting risks and opportunities for clients by identifying mega-trends that cut across sectors horizontally.
Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Bird served as Managing Director, Head of Thematic Content, Research Management at TD Cowen, where he partnered with the firm’s analysts to develop high-impact, cross-sector industry research for clients and other stakeholders. Previously, he was a Managing Director at the strategic consulting firms Magid and Activate.
Earlier in his career, Bird was Managing Director, U.S. Equity Research at Citi-Smith Barney, and held similar roles with Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Lazard Capital Markets. At Lazard, he was a member of the firm’s stock selection and investment committees. Bird was also a Managing Director at Steinberg Asset Management, where he developed and actively managed an equity portfolio that consistently outperformed its benchmarks.
His distinguished career in research on Wall Street includes being recognized 12 times by the Institutional Investor poll as an All-America analyst covering Marketing Services, Professional Information and Media, and awards from The Wall Street Journal as “Master Stock Picker” and “Best on Street.” Bird received his B.A. from Harvard University and his MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.
“I am honored to begin my new role as Director of Equity Research at Oppenheimer,” Bird said. “Our relationships, insights and capabilities are second to none, in large part due to the disciplined and inspired longtime stewardship of John Parks. I am dedicated to ensuring a smooth and careful transition for the team, as well as developing innovative strategies for enhancing the platform in the years to come.”
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. (Oppenheimer), a principal subsidiary of Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. (OPY on the New York Stock Exchange), and its affiliates provide a full range of wealth management, securities brokerage and investment banking services to high net-worth individuals, families, corporate executives, local governments, businesses and institutions.