Industry & Services >> Analyst Interviews >> April 26, 1999
Robert L. Craig is Managing Director in Education and e-Learning at Stifel,
Nicolaus & Company, Inc. He joined the Stifel Nicolaus Research Team in
connection with Stifel's acquisition of Legg Mason's Capital Markets Group in
December 2005. He joined Legg Mason in January 2001. He and his partner, Jerry
R. Herman, cover education/e-learning companies. He has over 25 years'
experience in the investment industry. His years with Legg Mason were preceded
by 15 years with First Union Securities and its predecessor companies, and two
years with Kidder Peabody. At First Union Securities and EVEREN Securities, he
and Mr. Herman focused on both educational services and business services, which
included expertise in marketing services and information management services. At
Kidder Peabody, he evaluated medium-size regional investment opportunities. He
researched similar regional companies for Kemper Securities, from 1990 to 1992.
Before then, he was an analyst and Director of Equity Research marketing for
Prescott, Ball & Turben, which he joined in 1983. Both he and Mr. Herman have
provided industry joint research coverage of the education sector since 1995.
They have served as featured speakers at many independent conferences, produced
comprehensive industry publications, and been regularly featured and quoted
widely in national publications and media. Since the inception of the StarMine
ranking system in 2001, they have been rated in the top three for earnings
accuracy in the consumer services industry every year. Forbes.com in conjunction
with StarMine ranked them number one for earnings estimate accuracy in the
commercial services and supplies category in 2004 and 2005, and number two in
2006 and 2007, respectively. In 2005 they also ranked number six overall in the
US out of all analysts surveyed for earnings accuracy. They were named by The
Wall Street Journal "Best on the Street," ranking number two in the specialty
retailing category for stock picking in both 2005 and 2008. Also in 2008 they
were included in the Financial Times "World's Top Analysts," ranking number one
in the US for earnings accuracy in the diversified consumer services category
and in the top 10 for earnings estimate accuracy out of over 1,900 estimators
surveyed. Mr. Craig has a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from
Cleveland State University and has served as a member of the Career Colleges
Association Financial Advisory Council. Profile
Jerry R. Herman is Managing Director in Education and e-Learning at Stifel,
Nicolaus & Company, Inc. He joined the Stifel Nicolaus Research Team in
connection with Stifel's acquisition of Legg Mason's Capital Markets Group in
December 2005. He joined Legg Mason in January 2001. He and his partner, Bob
Craig, cover education/e-learning companies. He has over 24 years' experience as
a sellside equity analyst, covering a variety of industries including consumer
durables, specialty chemicals, and business and marketing services. Prior to
Legg Mason he was at First Union/Wachovia Securities and its predecessor
companies for 10 years, and prior to that at Roulston & Company, an
institutional equity research boutique. Earlier in his career, he was with Gulf
Oil Corporation. He and Mr. Craig have provided industry joint research coverage
of the education sector since 1995. They have served as featured speakers at
many independent conferences, produced comprehensive industry publications, and
been regularly featured and quoted widely in national publications and media.
Since the inception of the StarMine ranking system in 2001, they have been rated
in the top three for earnings accuracy in the consumer services industry every
year. Forbes.com in conjunction with StarMine ranked them number one for
earnings estimate accuracy in the commercial services and supplies category in
2004 and 2005, and number two in 2006 and 2007, respectively. In 2005 they also
ranked number six overall in the US out of all analysts surveyed for earnings
accuracy. They were named by The Wall Street Journal "Best on the Street,"
ranking number two in the specialty retailing category for stock picking in both
2005 and 2008. Also in 2008 they were included in the Financial Times "World's
Top Analysts," ranking number one in the US for earnings accuracy in the
diversified consumer services category and in the top 10 for earnings estimate
accuracy out of over 1,900 estimators surveyed. He has a BA degree in
Management from Bowling Green University, from which he graduated magna cum
laude, and an MBA degree from Cleveland State University. He also has served as
a member of the Career Colleges Association Financial Advisory Council. He is a
CFA charte Profile
investors should be taking a very close look at the education stocks
today?
Mr. Herman: We believe the education market
