Todd M. Wickwire
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
SHAREHOLDER
As Chief Executive Officer, Todd is responsible for leading the development and implementation of the firm's strategic and operational plans and for building and preserving the firm’s culture. Along with other members of the Management Committee, Todd is responsible for the day to day management of the firm.
Prior to joining WMS, Todd was a Managing Director and Head of Equity Research at Wells Fargo Securities, a position he held for 20 years. In that role, Todd led a team of 150 professionals, including 50 senior equity analysts advising institutional investors in the U.S. and Europe. Todd’s responsibilities included oversight of stock and sector coverage strategies and investment ratings, and several important administrative functions encompassing HR, finance, IT, legal, compliance, and media relations. Todd also served on several governance committees, including serving as Chairman of the firm’s Equity Transaction Screening Committee and as a voting member of the firm’s Equity Underwriting Commitment Committee. Todd’s career includes positions in both investment banking and institutional equity sales at Alex. Brown & Sons and J.P. Morgan Securities.
An Adjunct Professor at the Sellinger School of Business at Loyola University, Todd is an Advisory Board Member on the Catch a Lift Fund, a charity that sponsors programs benefitting post 9/11 combat-wounded veterans.
Todd earned an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a BA with honors from Franklin & Marshall College where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
AFTER ALMOST THREE DECADES ON WALL STREET WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO JOIN WMS PARTNERS?
I started my career at Alex. Brown & Sons shortly after the company changed from a partnership to a publicly-traded corporation. I was fortunate to be surrounded by senior leaders who had been with the firm for decades and, despite the new ownership structure, still behaved as partners. That concept of “partnership” behavior has stayed with me throughout my career and I try to bring that approach to the job every single day. As Wall Street has grown more complex and products seem to have become more important than people, I realized how much I missed that sense of partnership.I knew of WMS Partners and their excellent reputation in the market. But when I met the team, I immediately recognized their partnership approach, where an individual puts their clients, their firm, and their colleagues ahead of themselves. I joined WMS to get back to the sense of partnership I missed so much.
ON A PROFESSIONAL LEVEL, WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS?
In 1999, I left Alex. Brown & Sons and walked across the street with a few colleagues to jumpstart First Union’s (now Wells Fargo) equity capital markets effort. Over the following 20 years, in the face of many doubters, we grew the business substantially, putting our market share within the top ten on Wall Street.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO DO OUTSIDE OF WORK?
My wife Brenda and I are blessed with wonderful, healthy children. We try to spend as much time with them as their busy schedules permit. But with all the kids now out of the house, my wife and I are mostly occupied with three unruly Boxers. Anyone who is familiar with the breed knows that Boxers are a full time job! When not spending time with our children (both human and canine), we also enjoy boating and being out on the beautiful waters of the Chesapeake Bay.
WHAT IS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE TRAVEL EXPERIENCE?
Just after college, my family, along with my aunt and cousins, traveled on an extended trip throughout Europe. Experiencing so many new and varied cultures is such a wonderful thing. Doing it with the most important people in your life is beyond memorable. Although 30 years have passed since that trip, we still talk about it to this day!