Marquette will again be sponsoring two teams from the AIM program
in the 2016-2017 CFA Institute Research Challenge
Dr. David Krause, AIM program director announced that Marquette
will again be sponsoring two team in the CFA
Investment Research Challenge. The kickoff meeting for the CFA Challenge is
scheduled for November 2nd and will be held at the Olympia Resort in
Oconomowoc. The Milwaukee and Madison
CFA Societies again will be hosting the CFA Investment Research Challenge. In a
separate email this week we will announce the names of the two CFA Challenge
teams.
According to Dr. Krause, “This marks the 9th year of AIM’s
participation in the CFA Investment Research Challenge. Our past teams have
enjoyed great success, and each former team member echoes the value of the
experience. Marquette has won the local Wisconsin CFA society competition 7 of
8 years, while advancing three times to the semi-final rounds – and once to the
final round - of the Americas competition.” More information about the CFA
Challenge can be found at this web site: http://www.cfainstitute.org/community/challenge/.
Objective: Provide a solid learning experience and exposure to the
real world of investments through an investment research “competition” managed
by investment professionals (Milwaukee and Madison CFA Societies). Preparation
for this competition will introduce the students to the multiple steps that
comprise the investment process, such as investment thesis development, company
valuation, competitive analysis, and “selling” of investment thesis to a
demanding audience.
Program for 2016-2017: Teams of undergraduate students from as
many as ten universities will compete in the Madison and Milwaukee sections.
For the 2015-2016 CFA Challenge: approximately 4000 students participated from
nearly 1000 universities worldwide (over 60 countries were represented). The
global winner was University of Waterloo in 2016 and Canisius College (a
Buffalo, NY Jesuit college) in 2015.
Structure/Timeframe: The structure of the competition will be
similar to that used by the New York Society of Financial Analysts in their competitions.
Teams at the local competitions will evaluate a company selected by the local
CFA society; meet with management of that company for questions and discussion;
and prepare a written analysis (initiation report) of 10 pages maximum plus
exhibits and appendix. The papers will be evaluated and scored by a group of
investment professionals as judges. The teams will then present their analysis
to another panel of judges, who will then select the winning team at the local
level. The proposed time line is as follows:
a. October 11, 2016: Two
teams of 5 students are selected. Dr. Krause is the faculty adviser and a CFA
industry mentor will be appointed to each of the teams.
b. November 2, 2016:
Teams meet with the company’s executives and the company makes a presentation
similar to a typical “road show” for its investors.
c. December 2016:
Teams submit a first draft of their paper to their mentor and faculty advisor
for critique.
d. January 2017: Teams
incorporate end of year data into their analysis, continue their financial
modeling and write their final paper. Each team submits their final research
paper to the local CFA society for judging.
e. Mid-February 2017:
Local competitions are held with each team making a 10 minute oral presentation
to a panel of judges followed by 10 minutes of Q&A. The panel selects the
winning team, who represents the local CFA society at the next level of
competition.
f. April 6-7: The
winning team competes at the Americas (North and South American teams)
competition in Seattle. (Expenses covered).
g. April 28: Global
Finals will be held in Prague, Czech Republic (Expenses covered). The Global
Finals consist of the winners of the three regional finals - Asia-Pacific,
EMEA, and the Americas.
The CFA Institute Research Challenge offers students the
unique opportunity to learn from leading industry experts and compete with
peers from the world’s top finance programs. This annual educational
initiative promotes best practices in equity research among the next generation
of analysts through hands-on mentoring and intensive training in company
analysis and presentation skills.
The first ever CFA Institute Research Challenge competition was
hosted by the New York Society of Security Analysts in 2002 and involved just
five teams from the New York area. Since then, the competition has grown to
involve thousands of students from over 800 universities in more than 55
countries.
The Challenge gathers students, investment industry professionals,
executives from publicly traded companies, and corporate sponsors together
locally, regionally, and globally for a real world competition.
Participation in the Challenge promotes best practices in equity research and
company analysis, as students research, analyze, and report on a company as if
they are practicing analysts. Additionally, all participants are
introduced to and held to the standard of the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and
Standards of Professional Conduct.
How the Challenge Works: Local
CFA Societies, CFA Institute, and other organizations host and launch a local
Research Challenge in conjunction with their participating universities.
The universities assemble teams of 3-5 business and finance students who work
directly with a company in researching and preparing a company analysis.
The team’s final presentations are locally evaluated by high-profile panels of
heads of research, portfolio managers, and chief investment officers from the
world’s top firms. The local champions advance to regional competitions
in the Americas, Asia, and Europe and then to the Global Finale.
Dr. David Krause, who serves as the faculty advisor of the two Marquette CFA teams stated, "I'm very proud of the students who are participating in the Challenge. Like past teams, I know they will work hard and deliver a quality product. This experience and the friendships established will stay with them throughout their careers. I can't say enough good things about the CFA Challenge - it is one of the very best experiential programs in academia. Best of luck to all of the teams in the Challenge."
