Leah Zell

Leah Joy Zell (born 1949) is an American business executive and chartered financial analyst. She specializes in international investing in the international small-cap category.[1][2] She is the Founder and Lead Portfolio Manager of Lizard Investors LLC.

Early life and education

Zell was born in Poland to Rochelle and Berek Zielonka and fled with her parents just before the German invasion in 1939.[3][4][5] The family immigrated to the United States, living first in Seattle before settling in Chicago. Once in Chicago, Berek Zielonka (later known as Bernard) changed the family name to Zell. She has one brother, Samuel Zell, who is an American businessman.[5]

Zell attended Harvard University, graduating Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa in 1971.[6] She received her PhD in Modern European Social and Economic history from Harvard University in 1979, where she won Woodrow Wilson, Fulbright (DAAD), and Krupp Foundation fellowships.[7] Zell received her CFA designation in 1987.

Career

In 1979, Zell began her career at Lehman Brothers as a financial analyst.

From 1992 to 2005, Zell managed several investment portfolios at Wanger Asset Management, a firm she co‐founded with her then-husband, Ralph Wanger. While there, Zell acted as Head of International Equities and as Lead Portfolio Manager of Acorn International Fund.[8][9] She left her position with the Acorn Fund in 2003.[10]

Zell joined the executive committee of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs in 2004, and still serves as its treasurer.

Zell founded Lizard Investors LLC in 2008, with offices in the Tribune Tower in Chicago.[11] The firm has since moved to the Chicago Equitable Building.

She has made various media appearances to share her expertise.[8] These include CNBC's "Squawk Box" on August 28, 2013[12] to discuss emerging markets, and CNBC's "What’s Working" on May 13, 2013[13] to discuss international investing. Her advice also appeared in the book, A Woman's Guide to Savvy Investing by Marsha Bertrand.[14]

Zell has been featured and/or quoted as a financial analyst on Wall Street Week and Chicago Tonight, and in various newspapers and magazines, including Australian Financial Review,[15] Barron's,[8][16] The Financial Times, Money Magazine, Business Week, Pension Management, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal,[17] Working Women, Smart Money, U.S. News & World Report and Investment News.

Zell is a director of the Horton Trust Company. She is also a member of several advisory committees, including the Council on Foreign Relations, the Harvard Global Advisory Council, and the Radcliffe Institute Dean's Advisory Council.

References
  1. John H. Christy (October 30, 2000). "Queen of Small Caps". Forbes Magazine.
  2. Meredith A. Jones (April 28, 2015). Women of The Street: Why Female Money Managers Generate Higher Returns (and How You Can Too). Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 29–. ISBN 978-1-137-46291-6.
  3. Johnson, B. (2009). Money Talks, Bullsh*t Walks: Inside the Contrarian Mind of Billionaire Mogul Sam Zell. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-101-16320-7. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  4. Raphael, Marc (2008). The Columbia history of Jews and Judaism in America. Colombia. p. 237.
  5. Stewart, Janet Kidd (December 10, 2000). "Family History Helps Drive Leah Zell's Zeal For Success". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on July 1, 2018. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  6. John F. Wasik (May 13, 2014). The Bear-Proof Investor: Prospering Safely in Any Market. Henry Holt and Company. pp. 137–. ISBN 978-1-4668-7102-1.
  7. "Harvard Board of Overseers Announces Election Results". Harvard University Gazette.
  8. M. Jocelyn Armstrong; R. Warwick Armstrong; Kent Mulliner (October 12, 2012). Chinese Populations in Contemporary Southeast Asian Societies: Identities, Interdependence and International Influence. Routledge. pp. 245–. ISBN 978-1-136-12354-2.
  9. Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. (July 2003). "Kiplinger's Personal Finance". Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine. Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc.: 33–. ISSN 1528-9729. {{cite journal}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  10. "Two Wanger Stock-Pickers Join Crowd Leaving Industry". By Ian McDonald The Wall Street Journal Online, May 1, 2003
  11. "Zell sis takes ex-CEO digs in Trib Tower". Craine's, By: Eddie Baeb June 12, 2008
  12. "Bottom in Emerging Markets Near; Fund Manager". CNBC Squawk Box. August 28, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  13. "Searching For Overseas Investment Bargins". CNBC What's Working. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
  14. "A Woman's Guide to Savvy Investing". Publishers Weekly
  15. "Leah Zell says private equity exits can be profitable". Financial Review, April 28, 2015
  16. "The Long and Short of Sohn London". Barron's By Jonathan Buck November 22, 2014
  17. "The Overlooked Small Cap Sector Merits Attention From Investors". By Jo Wrighton Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal, November 17, 2000
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