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| Bill Walker, Jim Stark and Eoghan Bahnson |
Another set of experienced equity managers visited the students
in the AIM program on Friday, November 20, 2015. Jim Stark, CFA, and Eoghan
Bahnson (AIM ’14) talked about the CastleArk Small Cap Growth fund.
Mr. Stark is a Vice President, Portfolio Manager, and Principal
of the CastleArk Fund (http://castleark.com). He joined the firm in 2007 and has worked
within the industry since 1987. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin
with a BBA – Finance in 1983 and from Northwestern University with an MBA in
Finance & Marketing in1987. He began
his career as an equity analyst at Investment & Capital Management and then
joined Kemper Financial Services as a research analyst supporting the portfolio
managers, two of whom were Jerry Castellini and Bob Takazawa.
In 1993, Jim joined American Century as a small cap growth
portfolio manager. After 12 years managing small cap growth portfolios, Jim
teamed with Greg Baxter at M&I Investment Management. In 2007, Jim and Greg
reunited with Jerry and Bob to manage the small company growth portfolios for
CastleArk.
Eoghan Bahnson joined CastleArk in 2014. He graduated from Marquette
University with a BSBA in Economics and Finance. He covered the health care
sector as a member of the AIM program.
Mr. Stark and Eoghan talked about their team’s philosophy
which is based on the belief that earnings growth is the primary driver of
stock prices over the long term, and that excess return can be achieved by
investing in those companies with improving business fundamentals. They
discussed their investment process which included how they screen for stocks,
which fundamental drivers they seek, and how they value common stock. They
discussed their portfolio constructions process and talked with the students
about their sell discipline.
This is the 11th portfolio team to visit the AIM program this
semester and discuss their investment philosophy, strategy, and process behind
their fund. These presentations provide valuable investment valuation and fundamental
analysis insights. The students learn from experts and attempt to apply the
same discipline as their management the AIM Small Cap and International Equity
Funds.
