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KIRK KAZANJIAN<br />
shopping district, instead of on Wall Street. “Our location is great<br />
because analyst meetings are held nearby and we can walk back and<br />
forth to them throughout the day,” she says. “I often go to road shows<br />
across the street at the Plaza Hotel. It’s a misperception that all money<br />
managers are on Wall Street. They’ve been moving uptown for a long<br />
time. They started <strong>com</strong>ing here because they found it was easier to<br />
get in and out of the city. They didn’t like <strong>com</strong>muting out of Grand<br />
Central, getting on a subway, and going back and forth to downtown.<br />
Once the independent managers started relocating here some ten years<br />
ago, many of the major brokerage firms followed. Morgan Stanley is<br />
nearby and so is Smith Barney. It’s easy for people visiting the city<br />
to <strong>com</strong>e here, and you’re closer to your clients. It’s an upbeat part of<br />
town.” While you probably won’t get invited to a road show, unless<br />
you’ve got millions of dollars to invest, an increasing number of<br />
<strong>com</strong>panies now allow individual investors to listen in on analyst<br />
conference calls. Some will also send you a transcript of these events.<br />
DON’T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU HEAR<br />
Given that analyst meetings and conferences are such formally<br />
organized and orchestrated events, I asked Bramwell whether they<br />
were a reliable source of objective investment information. “There’s<br />
no question they are a great way to get up to speed on a <strong>com</strong>pany<br />
quickly,” she replied, “but I try to listen between the lines and pay<br />
close attention to what is not said. The question-and-answer sessions<br />
are also quite helpful.”<br />
In addition to holding meetings with <strong>com</strong>pany analysts in New<br />
York City, <strong>com</strong>pany managements frequently stop by Bramwell’s office<br />
during their trips to the East Coast. As a result, she rarely has to<br />
conduct on-site inspections these days. What’s more, with conference<br />
calls, fax machines, CNBC, and the Internet, the flow of information<br />
about virtually any business is continuous and easily accessible. Being<br />
away from the office might even cause her to miss some of this<br />
breaking news. Keep in mind that much of this information is also<br />
available online to individual investors at the exact same time the<br />
professionals get it.<br />
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