Our History
The IR Group markets our clients’ stocks to Wall Street and provides investor relations counsel to companies throughout the United States. We help establish and maintain corporate reputations with the financial community. Our clients build strong relations with shareholders and potential investors, thereby establishing their credibility with Wall Street.
Our team has decades of experience providing pragmatic and timely advice to public companies. Established in 1992, The Cereghino Group quickly developed a broad foundation of corporate clients and is now one of the largest investor relations firms in the Pacific Northwest.
Our Team
Our experience totals more than 100 years collectively, working as senior investor relations practitioners, investment bankers, financial advisors and retail bankers.This mix of finance and investor relations expertise is unique.
Diane Fitzgibbons
President
Diane Fitzgibbons has provided strategic investor relations counsel since 2004, serving more than 50 small and micro-cap firms. She specializes in financial communications programs for our community banking clients, and has an extensive background in capital markets, including IPOs. In addition to managing IR activities for clients, she writes, edits and produces many marketing materials. She is responsible for the production of the Bank Performance Report that analyzes key ratios of our financial institution clients and is distributed to 300 analysts, money managers, and brokers nationwide. Formerly an investment advisor with Morgan Stanley, she worked largely with small business owners and their company’s retirement plans. Fitzgibbons holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from the University of Washington.
dianef@theIRgroup.com Phone. 206.388.5789 Cell. 425.283.8335
Kevin McAuliffe
Managing Director
Kevin McAuliffe has three decades of experience advising and representing banks and has unique experience in understanding the relationships between banks and other service providers. His banking experience includes strategic planning, equity valuations, equity offerings, M&A advisory, fairness opinions, de novo organizations, loan portfolio valuations, mutual to stock conversion underwritings, managing a financial sector hedge fund, managing a financial sector broker/dealer and managing financial sector research, trading and brokering operations. His broad experience in the banking sector provides insight into ways for banks to maximize profitability. Additionally, he has a clear understanding of how bank operations are interpreted by the external interests of shareholders, members and/or regulators. McAuliffe was previously employed as a Senior Vice President of Capital Resources Group, Inc. in Washington, DC from 1985 to 2001. In 2001, McAuliffe was President of Capital Resources, Inc, a broker/dealer servicing the banking sector. In 2004, McAuliffe joined FIG Partners, LLC as Sr. Vice President to establish their investment banking division.
kevinM@theIRgroup.com Phone. 971.244.2555
Margaret Kuhn
Managing Director
Margaret Kuhn has extensive experience developing and executing strategic, cost-effective, investor relations programs. She is able to balance critical disciplines of marketing, finance, and communications to provide existing and potential investors with an accurate portrayal of a company’s performance and prospects. Prior to joining The Cereghino Group, Kuhn spent 12 years with San Diego-based Bank of Commerce and served as their First Vice President and Director of Investor Relations before the bank was acquired by U.S. Bancorp. In addition, Kuhn served as the Director of Corporate Communications for Quidel Corporation, a biotech company, and held a similar position with Copper Mountain Networks, a San Diego-based telecommunications company. Kuhn holds a Business Administration degree from Sheffield, England, and is also a LEAD San Diego Graduate.
margaretk@theIRgroup.com Phone. 206.388.5790 Cell. 858.688.0358
Sally Villaluz Ghormley
Operations Manager
Sally Villaluz Ghormley, Operations Manager, has three decades of expertise in finance and accounting. She has a diversified background from working with small local businesses to large corporations and recently owning her own mortgage business. A Seattle native having attended North Seattle CC and the University of Washington, Ghormley is very active in the community. Her memberships include being on the board of her condo HOA, president of the Queen High School Alumni Association, past president of the Board of Directors for the American Society of Women Accountants-Bellevue Chapter & past president/chair of the North Seattle College Accounting Technical Advisory Board.
sallyg@theIRgroup.com Phone. 206.388.5791
