Since joining Laidlaw & Company in 2010, James "Jimmy" Ahern has helped facilitate over $2 billion in transactions, primarily on behalf of companies in the healthcare sector. When he isn't leveraging his investment banking skills for Laidlaw & Company's clients, James "Jim" Ahern enjoys following his favorite Major League Baseball (MLB) team, the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox are already deep at the catcher position with Sandy Leon, Blake Swihart, and Christian Vazquez all slated to compete for the starting job in 2018, but competition will be even more intense during spring training as the team recently signed 24-year-old Oscar Hernandez. The native of Venezuela began his career in the Tampa Bay Rays minor league system but was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2014 Rule 5 Draft. Since joining the Diamondbacks, Hernandez has played in only 22 games and has a less-than-stellar .167 career batting average to go along with one home run and two runs batted in (RBI), but he's primarily known for his impressive defensive capabilities. Through eight seasons at the minor league level, he has 63 home runs, 258 RBI, and a career batting average of .256.
A managing partner with Laidlaw & Company, James (Jim or Jimmy) Ahern provides capital raising solutions to public and private firms in the health care sphere. An avid fisherman, Laidlaw executive James Ahern enjoys fishing trips in the Nantucket area as well as grilling steamers and lobsters. A recent Boston Globe article brought attention to a troubling situation in which, despite record lobster catches in the colder waters off Maine, the coastline south of Cape Cod has seen a devastating loss of its lobster population. With warming sea temperatures singled out as the major cause, lobster catches in Rhode Island and New York have been particularly impacted. The New York catch was only 218,000 pounds in 2016, a fraction of the 9.4 million pounds netted in 1999. Buzzards Bay south of Cape Cod has also been affected, with the 2016 catch only 60 percent of what it was two decades ago. The warming sea temperatures are reflected in almost 100 days in 2012 when readings in the Long Island Sound were above 68 degrees. The Atlantic lobster is best suited to temperatures within the 53 to 64 degree range. Reflecting a growing sense that maintaining a stable population may be futile, there have been no new regulations set in place by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to conserve dwindling lobster stocks.
James “Jim” Ahern joined Laidlaw & Company in 2010 and now serves as managing director and head of capital markets at the firm. Alongside his work with Laidlaw, James “Jimmy” Ahern supports his alma mater, Northfield Mount Hermon School, where he serves as chair of the Basketball Alumni Council for Excellence. In addition to top-notch academic programming, Northfield Mount Hermon (NMH) boasts one of the nation’s best preparatory level basketball programs. A member of the prestigious New England Prep School Athletic Conference, the NMH basketball team has maintained a top-10 national ranking for the past 12 years and a top-5 national ranking over the past seven years. During that same period, the team reached the National Championship Final Four the last four times and took home the National Championship in 2013. Due to its combination of solid academic and athletic programming, NMH produces many athletes who go on to play at the collegiate level. More than 50 NMH basketball players have gone on to play Division I ball for a variety of colleges and universities, including Yale University, Harvard University, Dartmouth College, Brown University, and Princeton University.
Since becoming managing partner of Laidlaw & Company in 2010, James Ahern has helped grow the firm into a nationally-recognized healthcare investment bank with multiple offices throughout the United States and one in London, England. Beyond his work with Laidlaw & Company, James Ahern is a passionate fan of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA).Through 23 games in the 2017-18 regular season, the Celtics sit atop the Eastern Conference with a win-loss record of 19-4. The team dropped its first two games of the season but proceeded to win its next 16, including an impressive come-from-behind win against the defending champion Golden State Warriors in which the Celtics trailed by 17 points on two separate occasions. Boston came within three wins of equaling its franchise record of 19 consecutive wins, which was set by the 2008-09 team. That team began the year with a remarkable 27-2 record and finished with a record of 62-20 before being upset by the Orlando Magic in the second round of the playoffs. The 2017-18 team's streak came to an end in a November 22 contest against the Miami Heat. Boston had overcome double-digit deficits in games against the Warriors, Oklahoma City Thunder, Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, and Dallas Mavericks, but suffered a 104-98 loss to the Heat. The 16-game streak tied for the fourth longest in franchise history.
Based in Boston, James (Jim) Ahern holds a leadership role with Laidlaw & Company as managing partner. His responsibilities with Laidlaw include raising capital for public and private firms working in the field of health care. James (Jimmy) Ahern enjoys boating in his free time and frequently visits Nantucket to sample favorite eateries such as Cru and Galley Beach.With a year-round population of 10,000, Nantucket offers regular ferry service that brings most summer visitors to the island’s compact harbor front. When navigating a small vessel into the area, the various shoals along the way make it imperative to keep a close eye on both government marks and detailed charts. The approach to the island is fairly shallow, which means that in rough conditions waves get churned up on the surrounding reefs and increase the risk of encountering rocks.A typical approach from the west across Nantucket Sound involves maintaining a position within channel markers passing along Cross Rip Channel and navigating past Tuckernuck Shoal on the starboard side. The next landmark to round on starboard is Brant Point Lighthouse, which leads into the main harbor channel and the Nantucket Boat Basin on the harbor's western side.
As Laidlaw & Company managing partner, James (Jim) Ahern is an established financial executive with a focus on arranging financing for expansion companies in the health care vertical. In addition to his work at Laidlaw, James (Jimmy) Ahern is a boating enthusiast who enjoys fishing for tuna off the coast of Cape Cod. Bluefin tuna can be caught in several spots in Massachusetts as they migrate from early June through September. One well-known area is the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, which encompasses 842 square miles between Cape Ann and Cape Cod at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay. An underwater plateau, it reflects the same geologic processes that created outer Cape Cod, with ice sheets retreating following the last Great Ice Age. Above water until 12,000 years ago, the bank today harbors myriad sea life, including haddock, flounder, and cod, and is listed as one of the top ten whale watching sites worldwide. The sanctuary designation does not affect fishing. Rather, it protects commercial and recreational fishing activities through regulations designed to prevent the transfer of petroleum products, gravel mining, and the harming of terrestrial species such as turtles, birds, and mammals. Fishing enthusiasts have been known to catch bluefin tuna as little as three miles from the shore, with the largest specimens landed in the Massachusetts Bay each year weighing over 1,000 pounds.
As a managing partner with Laidlaw & Company, James Ahern raises capital for and advises public and private companies in the health care sector. When he isn't working at Laidlaw, James Ahern enjoys taking boat trips to Nantucket, a small island off the coast of Massachusetts. Nantucket has a year-round population of roughly 10,000 people, but tens of thousands of tourists and part-time residents descend upon the island in the summer. One of Nantucket's main tourist attractions are its fine sand beaches. The island's north shore beaches, such as Children’s Beach and Jetties Beach, are best suited for families because the waves are frequently low. Jetties Beach, meanwhile, is located near tennis courts, a skateboard park, a playground, and other recreational venues. Those looking to surf are better off visiting the south shore beaches of Surfside, Miacomet, and Cisco. For a respite from the beaches, visitors to the island should check out the Nantucket Whaling Museum, which features ancient whaling artifacts, including a sperm whale skeleton that hangs from the ceiling. The island also offers sightseeing and tourist activities in the form of numerous lighthouses, museums, mills, and performing arts centers. Visitors can unwind at the end of the day by visiting Cisco Brewers, where they can sample world-class beers, wines, and spirits.
