Karl M. Schmidt

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Mr. Schmidt is a Managing Director at KippsDeSanto & Co. and co-heads the Aerospace / Defense Group.

Prior to joining KippsDeSanto & Co., Mr. Schmidt was a Senior Vice President in Houlihan Lokey’s Washington, DC office and a member of its Aerospace·Defense·Government Services industry investment banking group, where he focused on sellside and buyside M&A advisory engagements, sourcing growth capital, and conducting strategic alternatives assessments.  Prior to joining Houlihan Lokey’s ADG practice, Mr. Schmidt was a cavalry officer in the U.S. Army, serving in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States in various combat arms assignments.  He also served in the Pentagon on the staff of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, working on classified intelligence assessments and transformation efforts, and he served on the U.S. Army Staff, working on equipment modernization and weapons testing.

Mr. Schmidt earned a B.S. in engineering (aeronautical) from the United States Military Academy at West Point, an M.S. in operations research from the Naval Post Graduate School, and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.  He is registered with FINRA as a General Securities Registered Representative (Series 7, 63).

The following are representative companies to which Mr.Schmidt has provided transaction advice:

  • Aegis Defense Services
  • Athena Technologies
  • BEI Precision Systems & Space Company
  • Blue Air Training
  • CamelBak
  • Catapult Technology
  • Chemring Energetic Devices
  • Chemring Military Products
  • Chemring Ordnance
  • Cornerstone Capital
  • Dataline
  • Diversified Optical Products
  • ForceX
  • General Dynamics
  • GeoEye
  • Global Microwave Systems
  • Hornet
  • ISP Optics Corporation
  • J.F. Lehman & Co.
  • LifePort
  • McNally Industries
  • Mecar SA & USA
  • Metalmark Capital
  • NIITEK
  • O’Gara Sensor Systems Division
  • Orbital Sciences
  • QuickSet International
  • Physical Optics Corporation
  • Sippican
  • Southern Aeroparts
  • Specialty Defense Systems
  • Systron Donner Inertial
  • Tactical Micro
  • The Allied Defense Group
  • Titan Dynamics Systems
  • Transportation Management Systems
  • UEC Electronics