John Calamos and his team are closing in on an acquisition in Wisconsin.

John P. Calamos, Sr. Calamos Investments Chairman, Global Chief Investment Officer

Naperville, Illinois-based Calamos Investments [profile] has agreed to acquire Milwaukee-based Timpani Capital Management, founder and global co-chief investment officer John Calamos confirmed on Friday. Timpani specializes in small and smid-cap growth investing.

The pricing, terms, and expected timing of the deal were not disclosed.

Brandon M. Nelson Timpani Capital Management Co-Founder, Chief Investment Officer, Portfolio Manager

BizTimes, CityWire, and Pensions & Investments reported on the deal.

Timpani had $612 million in AUM and ten employees as of its latest form ADV, filed with the SEC in March 2018. Growth Investment Managers (which in turn is between 50- and 75-percent owned by Brandon Nelson, co-founder, chief investment officer, and PM of Timpani) is listed as owning 75 percent or more of Timpani, while Frontier One (which in turn is between 50- and 75-percent owned by Frontier Partners president Bill Forsyth) is listed as owning between 25 percent and 50 percent of the company. The firm launched on April 1, 2008. And the firm's name comes from Nelson's love of drumming. (He even played snare drum in the University of Wisconsin Marching Band once upon a time.)

John S. Koudounis Calamos Investments CEO

According to Calamos' latest form ADV, filed last April with the SEC, the firm at the time had $20.166 billion in AUM. Calamos had 329 full-time employees as of June 30.

Timpani is a focused active manager that offers institutional SMAs and subadvises a Frontier mutual fund, the Frontier Timpani Small Cap Growth Fund, which comes in at least three share classes. According to an SEC filing today, thanks to the pending deal, this quarter the fund's board will consider letting Calamos adopt the mutual fund (i.e. merging the fund into a to-be-created Calamos fund), then in Q2 they'll put the question to the fund's shareholders.

William Forsyth Frontier Partners President

John Calamos describes the Timpani team as "a welcome addition" to Calamos. John Koudounis, CEO of Calamos, says that the deal adds "strong talent and innovative investment thinking" to Calamos.

"In joining forces with Calamos, I, along with my team, will be able to remain focused on our investment mandates while we benefit from the resources and synergies of a larger company that has been serving investors for more than 40 years," Nelson states. "Moreover, Calamos and Timpani hold similar investment philosophies, embracing active, high conviction growth investing while also sharing similar corporate cultures and values, assuring us of a smooth transition." 

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