Investors value channel checks as a critical component of their research process as they provide firsthand, real-world insights into a company’s operations, performance, and market position. One independent research firm that has made a name for itself as a valuable provider of channel research is Channel Dynamics. The following is a profile of the firm.
What Does Channel Dynamics Do?
By engaging with suppliers, customers, or distributors, investors can validate management’s claims, assess demand trends, and identify potential risks or opportunities not reflected in financial reports. Channel checks offer a ground-level perspective, revealing nuances like inventory levels, pricing power, or customer sentiment. This qualitative data complements quantitative analysis, enabling more informed investment decisions. A research firm like Channel Dynamics helps investors stay ahead of trends, ensuring a comprehensive evaluation of a company’s true health and growth potential.
Q1. Provide general background on your firm. When were you founded? How many staff does your firm currently employ? Where are you located? What was the main reason your founder started this firm?
Channel Dynamics is a Denver-based primary research firm specializing in differentiated and compliant channel work, powered by an extensive network of senior executives from private companies and healthcare professionals. Founded in 2019 by a former VP of Fundamental Research at a multi-manager firm, the company was established to meet the growing demand for rigorous channel research and low-risk investment insights. Since its inception, Channel Dynamics has built a strong reputation among institutional investors, consistently delivering objective, actionable research that generates long and short alpha-driving ideas.
Q2. What does your firm do? Outline the unique research service that a client can receive from you? What are the main deliverables that clients receive from you (research reports, models, access to experts, conferences, institutional sales support, other)? Explain your research process.
The research team at Channel Dynamics conducts thousands of interviews each year, engaging with rigorously vetted private-company executives across key industries. Insights from these conversations are distilled into concise, high-impact research reports that go beyond tracking KPIs—they also explore industry-wide themes and competitive dynamics shaping the investor narrative of public companies and their sectors. These reports are designed to support clients with investment idea generation and ongoing portfolio monitoring, while reducing the cost and effort of running their own expert network calls. Additionally, Channel Dynamics offers a robust data product featuring KPI and ticker sentiment scores, as well as proprietary text-based data.
Q3. Who are a few of your firm’s key management / analysts.
Jon Telgener: Founder and Head of Research. Formerly VP of Fundamental Research at a large multi-manager fund.
Susan Mathews: Senior Legal and Compliance Partner, former SEC Enforcement.
Adam Levy: COO and Head of Sales, 20 plus years in institutional sales.
Chris Zaires: Head of Healthcare Research and former analyst at a large multi-manager fund.
Q4. Describe at least one “case study” of where your firm’s research has enabled a client to profit or to save themselves from potential losses.
Channel Dynamics has a proven track record of identifying fundamental inflections that were differentiated from the street and generated alpha for its clients. For example, two recent healthcare calls highlighted negative inflections preceding DXCM’s 2Q24 40% stock price decline and UNH’s 1Q25 27% stock price decline.
Channel Dynamics called out the negative inflection and worse than expected results for DXCM within their DME (durable medical equipment) business segment, which was the primary catalyst for the stock dropping significantly during 2Q24 earnings.
Channel Dynamics’ Managed Care Report also identified accelerating Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) deterioration across a number of MCO’s commercial, Medicare Advantage, and Medicaid lines, extending worsening trends introduced in the 2H24. The firms’ 1Q25 analysis showed that early 2025 performance worsened further, tracking below expectations set entering the year and guidance previously put out by public MCOs. These developments led to the recent stock price drop for UNH.
Q5. Who is your firm’s target customers (hedge funds, mutual funds, pension funds, corporates, others)?
Channel Dynamics primarily serves Long/Short equity hedge funds, long only funds, and private equity funds.
Q6. Who are some of your firm’s chief competitors in the financial services market?
A few of Channel Dynamics’ principal competitors include Cleveland Research, Edgewater Research, BWG Global
Q7. What makes your firm different or unique from other firms in the same space?
Channel Dynamics is dedicated to sourcing the most relevant and insightful private company executive experts to interview, leveraging the team’s deep domain expertise across its coverage universe. Clients who prioritize thorough fundamental research value the depth and rigor of Channel Dynamics’ reports, confident that each insight is backed by carefully vetted, high-quality sources.
Channel Dynamics’ differentiation vs the competition:
- Publish more frequently per quarter than traditional primary research providers;
- Provide private insights in an uncertain public company disclosure period;
- Strict compliance measures;
- Maintain limited distribution for alpha generation.
Q8. What is your firm’s commercial model? What is the price range for your service?
The firm has various consumption-based and enterprise level subscription models, starting at $50,000 annually.
Q9. What are a few of your firm’s next major targets/milestones?
Channel Dynamics is actively enhancing its offerings by expanding both its research team and industry coverage. The firm is also investing in its data capabilities, leveraging generative AI technology to extract deeper insights from proprietary unstructured text data.
Q10. Contact information:
research@channel-dynamics.com or smathews@channel-dynamics.com