Hagerty, a specialty insurance provider focused on the global automotive enthusiast market, has announced the appointment of Jay Koval as vice president of investor relations.
In the newly created role, Koval will guide the development of Hagert’s investor relations (IR) function. He will report to Frederick J. Turcotte, chief financial officer, and collaborate with senior leaders across the company. Koval will focus on building relationships with the investment community and communicate the differentiated strategy that positions Hagerty to drive value creation in the coming years, the company said.
“We are very excited to welcome Jay into this strategic position at Hagerty,” Turcotte said. “He brings outstanding credentials and expertise to our investor relations efforts, has a fantastic perspective on the dynamics of a publicly traded company from an investor point of view, and he understands how to build and grow a highly effective investor relations program.”
Koval has more than two decades of capital markets experience and has served in lead IR roles before. In addition to helping newly listed public companies develop their IR functions, Koval created IR programs at Brown-Forman, a leading US spirits company, and Starwood Hotels and Resorts.
During his tenure at Brown-Forman, from 2012 to 2019, the company tripled its market capitalization. During his tenure at Starwood, from 2006 to 2012, Koval helped the company achieve a first-place ranking among gaming and lodging companies in Institutional Investor magazine.
Prior to his IR positions, Koval worked as a buy-side analyst at Invesco Funds Group and a sell-side analyst at Bank of America Securities. He began his career working in investment banking on JPMorgan’s consumer/retail team.
“I am excited to join Hagerty and help this exciting, forward-leaning company communicate its value proposition to investors,” Koval said. “There are roughly 43 million collectable vehicles in our US total addressable market, and even more globally, positioning us well to deliver high rates of sustained, profitable growth over the coming decade. As a car enthusiast, I’m looking forward to collaborating with industry leaders who are passionately focused on saving driving and car culture for future generations.”
