Wheeler appoints new COO and CFO
Virginia Beach, Va. -- Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust announced Wilkes Graham will join the company as its CFO, effective Jan. 19. Graham will oversee corporate finance, accounting, investor relations and capital and financing strategies for the Company and will report to CEO and chairman, Jon Wheeler. He will succeed Steven Belote, who will remain with the Company as its COO.
Graham has over 16 years of experience in the real estate and financial services industries. Since 2010 he has worked with Compass Point Research & Trading, an independent, full-service investment firm focused exclusively on the financial services sector, where he served as director of research and as a senior sell-side equity research analyst. As the firm’s real estate analyst, Graham’s primary responsibilities included performing proprietary financial analysis in which he forecasted earnings and predicted the stock performance of over 30 publicly traded REITs, real estate operating companies and homebuilders. As director of research, he managed and oversaw the strategic direction of the firm’s research department. Prior to joining Compass Point, Graham worked as a VP and a senior sell-side analyst focused on the real estate sector at FBR Capital Markets & Co.
“We are delighted that Wilkes has joined us as CFO. We have a long relationship with Wilkes, and he is familiar with our company, our assets, our business model and our target markets,” stated Jon S. Wheeler, chairman and CEO for Wheeler. “We believe his ability to generate value-added analyses and develop financial models will transfer well into his role as CFO. In addition, his experience and knowledge of the real estate and financial services industries will prove invaluable as we advance in our development and continue to execute our business plan and strategic initiatives. We believe that Wilkes is a proven leader in the REIT industry, and we welcome him to the team.”
Wheeler continued: “Furthermore, we are pleased Steven Belote has assumed the role of COO and believe he is the perfect candidate for this position. His solid understanding of our financials and experience in regulatory matters will assist greatly in managing our daily operations, and we are confident that he will continue to play a key role in the company’s growth. He has been integral to our success since joining the company prior to our IPO.”