Rice Hall James & Associates LLC

What Rice Hall James & Associates LLC does

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC is an independent, privately-held investment management firm founded in 1974 and headquartered in San Diego, California, with a secondary office in Pasadena. The firm specializes exclusively in constructing equity portfolios of micro- to SMID-capitalization companies, employing a bottom-up, fundamental research process designed to identify undervalued or undiscovered growth stories across market capitalizations from $50 million to $24 billion. Investment management is its sole line of business.

The firm offers six differentiated equity strategies: three value-tilted strategies (Micro Cap Equity, Small Cap Equity, SMID Cap Equity) and three growth/quality-tilted Opportunities variants (Micro Cap, Small Cap, SMID Cap Opportunities), each with defined market-cap ranges and target portfolio counts. Distribution spans institutional separate accounts (open for institutional investors and qualified clients) and the RHJ Funds mutual fund family, which includes the RHJ Small Cap Portfolio and RHJ Micro Cap Portfolio wrappers distributed via rhjfunds.com. Customer segments include public and corporate pension funds, Taft-Hartley pension plans, foundations and endowments, financial institutions, and high-net-worth individuals.

Revenue is generated through asset-based investment management fees on separate accounts and mutual fund AUM; specific fee schedules are disclosed only in the firm's ADV Part 2A brochure and are not publicly posted on the website. The firm maintains a sales-led, relationship-driven go-to-market: dedicated client service and institutional marketing personnel, led by a Vice President of Client Solutions and a Vice President of Business Development, source and service mandates through pension consultants, financial advisors, and direct institutional relationships. Operating geographies are United States only, and no M&A, fundraising, or public-market events are present in the record.

Name

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC

Legal name

Rice Hall James & Associates, LLC

Website

https://ricehalljames.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rice Hall James & Associates is an independent, privately-held investment manager founded in 1974 in San Diego. The firm specializes in bottom-up fundamental investing across micro, small, and SMID-cap equities, serving institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals through six equity strategies and two mutual funds.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Equity Investment Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Open-End Investment Funds (525910)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Institutional Separate Accounts & SMAs (Mandates) (FSAAAGAL)

Keywords

• Equity investment management
• Micro cap investing
• Small cap strategies
• SMID cap portfolios
• Institutional asset management

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Investment Management Fees: Asset-based management fees charged to institutional and private clients for portfolio management services. Fees are described in ADV Part 2A disclosure document.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Rice Hall James & Associates is an independent, privately held investment management firm that constructs portfolios of micro to SMID-capitalization stocks using a bottom-up, fundamental research process. The firm offers six equity investment strategies across market cap ranges, separate account management for institutional and private clients, and two mutual funds (RHJ Small Cap Portfolio and RHJ Micro Cap Portfolio). Investment management is its sole line of business, serving pension funds, foundations, endowments, financial institutions, and high-net-worth individuals.

Product overview

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC is an independent, privately held investment management firm offering a suite of equity investment strategies targeting micro to SMID capitalization companies. The firm provides separate account management services for institutional investors and private clients, along with two mutual funds (RHJ Small Cap Portfolio and RHJ Micro Cap Portfolio). The core product offering consists of six distinct investment strategies: Micro Cap Equity, Small Cap Equity, SMID Cap Equity, Micro Cap Opportunities, Small Cap Opportunities, and SMID Cap Opportunities. Strategies range from fundamental value-oriented approaches (Micro Cap, Small Cap, and SMID Cap Equity strategies) to growth-focused opportunities strategies (Micro Cap, Small Cap, and SMID Cap Opportunities). All strategies employ bottom-up, fundamental research to identify undervalued or undiscovered growth companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RHJ Funds: Mutual fund family offered by Rice Hall James including RHJ Small Cap Portfolio and RHJ Micro Cap Portfolio.

Products and services

• Micro Cap Equity Strategy An investment strategy that seeks to uncover and capitalize on smaller, growing, undervalued companies with market capitalizations between $50 million to $2 billion, employing a bottom-up, fundamental stock selection process with 65-80 stocks on average. Designed for institutional investors and qualified private clients seeking micro-capitalization U.S. equity exposure.
• Small Cap Equity Strategy An investment strategy that seeks to capitalize on smaller, growing, undervalued companies with market capitalizations between $250 million to $10 billion, using a bottom-up, fundamental stock selection process with 40-55 stocks on average. Designed for institutional investors and qualified private clients seeking small-capitalization U.S. equity exposure.
• SMID Cap Equity Strategy An investment strategy that seeks to uncover growing, undervalued companies in the SMID-cap universe with market capitalizations between $1.5 billion to $12 billion, using a bottom-up, fundamental stock selection process with 35-45 stocks on average. Designed for institutional investors and qualified private clients seeking small/mid-capitalization U.S. equity exposure.
• Micro Cap Opportunities Strategy A growth-oriented investment strategy that employs a fundamental, bottom-up analytical process focusing on companies with high earnings growth, high or improving return-on-invested capital, and sustainable competitive advantages. Investment universe consists of companies with market capitalizations of $2.5 billion and below. Designed for institutional and qualified private clients seeking growth exposure in micro-cap U.S. equities.
• Small Cap Opportunities Strategy A growth-oriented investment strategy that employs a fundamental, bottom-up analytical process to find companies with high earnings growth, high or improving return-on-invested capital, and sustainable competitive advantages. Investment universe consists of companies with market capitalizations between $100 million to $12 billion. Designed for institutional and qualified private clients seeking growth exposure in small-cap U.S. equities.
• SMID Cap Opportunities Strategy A growth-oriented investment strategy that employs a fundamental, bottom-up analytical process targeting companies with high earnings growth, high or improving return-on-invested capital, and sustainable competitive advantages. Investment universe consists of companies with market capitalizations between $250 million to $24 billion. Designed for institutional and qualified private clients seeking growth exposure in SMID-cap U.S. equities.
• RHJ Small Cap Portfolio (Mutual Fund) A mutual fund offering exposure to small-capitalization U.S. equity investments, part of the RHJ Funds family. Designed for individual and institutional investors seeking access to small-cap equities through a pooled fund vehicle.
• RHJ Micro Cap Portfolio (Mutual Fund) A mutual fund offering exposure to micro-capitalization U.S. equity investments, part of the RHJ Funds family. Designed for individual and institutional investors seeking access to micro-cap equities through a pooled fund vehicle.
• Separate Account Management Provides separately managed account services for institutional investors and private clients, allowing customized portfolio management aligned with client-specific investment objectives and risk parameters. All strategies offer open separate accounts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple strategies with varying market capitalization ranges from $50 million to $24 billion

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Cambiar Investors: Boutique asset manager focused on U.S. small- and mid-cap equities for institutional and private clients. Comparable in size, product scope, and emphasis on fundamental bottom-up investing.
• Wasatch Advisors: Boutique asset manager specializing in U.S. small- and micro-cap equities using a bottom-up fundamental research approach. Direct competitor in the micro/SMID cap space; Rice Hall James' CIO Daniel Sargen joined RHJ from Wasatch.
• Royce Investment Partners: Long-standing specialist in U.S. small-cap and micro-cap equity investing, offering both mutual funds and institutional separate accounts. Directly comparable in product offering, target market capitalization, and distribution model.
• Ariel Investments: Independent, employee-owned asset manager focused on U.S. small- and mid-cap value equities for institutional and individual investors. Highly comparable in size, ownership structure, and product specialization.
• Driehaus Capital Management: Independent boutique manager specializing in U.S. small- and mid-cap growth equities using fundamental research. Closely comparable in strategy orientation (growth-tilted micro/SMID) and client mix.
• Ranger Investment Management: Independent boutique specializing in U.S. small-cap equities for institutional clients, using fundamental research. Directly comparable product offering and institutional client focus.
• Wall Street Associates: San Diego-based boutique manager focused on U.S. small-cap equities. Directly comparable in geography, size, and product specialization; cited as a prior employer of Rice Hall James' Head of Trading.
• Kennedy Capital Management: Independent, employee-owned boutique specializing in U.S. small- and mid-cap equities for institutional clients. Closely comparable in ownership structure, product range, and target market capitalization.

Broad incumbents

• Northern Trust Asset Management: Large multi-affiliate asset manager offering equities including small/mid-cap strategies. While much larger and broader, it competes for similar institutional small/mid-cap mandates and was a prior employer of Rice Hall James' Senior Analyst Alec Harrell.
• BlackRock: World's largest asset manager with extensive small- and mid-cap equity offerings across multiple vehicles. Competes with RHJ for institutional small/SMID cap mandates at scale; cited as a prior employer of CIO Daniel Sargen.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rice Hall James & Associates LLC