Ativo Research was an award winning securities research firm that produced independent equity research from 1971 to 2013. Ativo Research was an industry leader in the practical application of quantitative finance theory to real-world analysis of securities. Ativo's approach began with the principles originally developed by Merton Miller, Franco Modigliani, James Tobin and others at the University of Chicago. Ativo's unique contribution was the empirical validation that made these theoretical principles useful in making investment decisions. The Ativo Research model is now exclusively utilized by Ativo Capital Management, a Chicago-based registered investment advisor managing equity portfolios for institutional clients.