Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s University students Ayush Neupane \u201913, Semiray Kasoolu \u201913 and Alfred Johnson \u201914 recently participated in the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute Research Challenge, a competition between university-sponsored teams that research a designated publicly traded company, prepare a written report on that select company and then present their findings to a panel of judges.<\/p>\n
According to its website, the CFA Institute Research Challenge gathers together university students, investment industry professionals, publicly traded companies and corporate sponsors for local, regional and global competition. This annual educational initiative promotes best practices in equity research through hands-on mentoring and intensive training in company analysis and presentation skills.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat motivated me to get involved in the Research Challenge was competing with schools that are high caliber,\u201d said Kasoolu. \u201cAmong our competitors were Rutgers, Columbia, [Seton Hall and Fordham universities], so it was the challenge \u2013 as it states in the name of the competition \u2013 that really drove me to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s students participated in the local competition, where they researched and analyzed the publicly traded company Microsoft. Utilizing the knowledge they learned from business, finance, accounting and economics classes at the University, the team constructed a five-year projection for cash flow, balance sheet assumptions and income statements through intensive research of the company\u2019s annual reports, quarterly reports, news releases and more. The team also researched Microsoft\u2019s competitors, its market position, size, strengths, weaknesses, stock price evaluation and future growth opportunities to investigate whether it would be a good financial investment to buy, sell or hold Microsoft\u2019s stock.<\/p>\n
Their financial professional mentor, Tim Parker, a financial advisor at Regency Wealth Management, and university faculty mentors Edwin Dickens, Ph.D., professor of economics, and Mary Kate Naatus, Ph.D., assistant professor of business administration, worked with the students during the research process and guided them through the company\u2019s analysis.<\/p>\n
\u201cTim would see where we were with the research and how we could incorporate the research findings into the evaluation and financial projections,\u201d Kasoolu said. \u201cSo that was very helpful. He also gave us tips on how to present.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 41-page research paper, which took three months to complete, was then critiqued and evaluated by experts from top financial institutions. The Challenge also included a 10-minute presentation to a high-profile panel of judges, followed by a 10-minute question and answer session.<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s research found that despite a number of changes taking place within Microsoft, many divisions of the company have remained stagnant in the same areas. \u201cThe challenge itself was to go up to a panel of investors or Wall Street professionals and then pitch them the stock on our recommendation,\u201d said Johnson. \u201cOur recommendation ended up being a hold, so we had to convince them why it was a hold and why they should hold it instead of buying or selling it.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cThe presentation went smoothly overall. When you\u2019re preparing for it, it\u2019s nerve-racking because you expect to walk into a room full of judges just staring at you. But once we got in there, we were pretty calm.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s team did not advance to the regional competition, they did exceptionally well nonetheless.<\/p>\n
In addition to what the students learned from the Research Challenge, they also learned some valuable life lessons as well. Neupane, who was the team\u2019s leader, enhanced his leadership skills. \u201cLeading the team was a very interesting experience,\u201d he said. \u201cI also learned to apply myself because the project was a lot of work. I got used to working for 10 to 12 hours a day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Neupane, Kasoolu and Johnson also have the added opportunity to utilize the project for their professional portfolio, which they have been using to gain internships and employment opportunities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s University students Ayush Neupane \u201913, Semiray Kasoolu \u201913 and Alfred Johnson \u201914 recently participated in the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute Research Challenge, a competition between university-sponsored teams that research a designated publicly traded company, prepare a written report on that select company and then present their findings to a panel of judges. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3,5,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-alumni","category-current-students","category-faculty-staff","category-future-students"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n