Experienced Investment Executive Joins Davidson Investment Advisors as Chief Investment Officer,...

GREAT FALLS, Mont. -- Davidson Investment Advisors, a money management firm based in Montana, today announced that Edward P. Crotty, CFA([R]), has joined as Senior Vice President, Chief Investment Officer and Portfolio Manager for the company's Equity Income investment strategy.

Crotty

will oversee Davidson Investment Advisors' investment process, working closely with the firm's portfolio managers and analysts. In addition, he will co-manage the Equity Income investment strategy alongside Brad Houle, CFA([R]), Senior Vice President, Senior Portfolio Manager, who has been with the firm for more than 11 years. Both work from the company's headquarters in Montana.

"We are proud to continue to attract highly experienced individuals to our firm," said Andrew Davidson, President of Davidson Investment Advisors. "Ed's experience and exceptional background will complement our existing investment team and help us continue to provide the expertise our clients expect."

Davidson Investment Advisors has successfully managed portfolios for individuals, corporations, employee benefit plans, foundations and trusts for more than 30 years, and operates from offices in Great Falls, Seattle and San Francisco.

Crotty joins Davidson Investment Advisors with a strong background, serving most recently as a managing director for Spectrum Advisory Services Inc., a registered investment adviser based in Atlanta. Previously, he worked for seven years with the global investment firm Goldman Sachs, where he served as vice president and a senior member of a team managing a large-cap core investment style for clients and partners of the firm. Crotty earned an MBA in finance and accounting from Columbia Business School in New York, as well as a master's degree in control systems and bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, both from the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign. He has earned the Chartered Financial Analyst([R]) designation and is a member of the New York Society of Financial Analysts.

Davidson Investment Advisors is a subsidiary of Davidson Companies, an independently owned financial services holding company based in Great Falls, Montana. Also part of the Davidson Companies family are D.A. Davidson & Co, the largest full-service brokerage based in the Northwest; Davidson Trust Co., a trust and wealth management company; Davidson Fixed Income Management, a registered investment adviser providing wealth management and other fixed income services; and Davidson Travel, a full-service travel agency.