John Leonardi is a Managing Director with Cogent Valuation and has been with the firm since 1993. He has participated in over 500 engagements that have included mergers and acquisitions (including fairness and solvency opinions), corporate restructuring, leveraged buyouts, equity investments in early stage companies, estate and tax planning, employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) transactions, financial reporting and compliance, and litigation support.

Mr. Leonardi has valued companies in virtually every major industry and has particular expertise in the aerospace, computer hardware and software, internet, food service, textile, medical device, entertainment, printing, retail, wholesale, professional services, financial services, real estate development, consumer products and various other manufacturing industries.

Mr. Leonardi has extensive experience in corporate transactions, including resolving highly complicated securities design and equity allocation issues. He has also dealt with the Internal Revenue Service on dozens of valuation matters for income, gift and estate tax purposes with overwhelmingly positive results.

Mr. Leonardi holds a Bachelor of Business Administration, with a Finance emphasis, from Loyola Marymount University and is a CFA charterholder and an Accredited Senior Appraiser with the American Society of Appraisers (Business Valuation Designation).

He is a member of the Los Angeles Society of Financial Analysts, the Association for Investment Management and Research, and the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Society of Appraisers. Prior to his joining Cogent, Mr. Leonardi was an investigator with the U.S. Department of Labor - Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration.