For the fourth consecutive year, a team of students from Appalachian State University competed at the University of Georgia's Student Managed Investment Fund Stock Pitch Competition on February 1, 2019.
The four students, Alia Dahlan, Cooper Haynes, Amanda Kurland and Carson Walsh, are finance majors in the Walker College of Business and members of the Bowden Investment Group. They were accompanied by Dr. Brandy Hadley, an assistant professor of finance at Appalachian.
Collegiate teams from across the Southeast attended to compete for prizes totalling $10,000. The team arrived on Thursday, January 31st where they connected with finance professionals at a panel discussion.
On the day of the competition, the team took the stage first among the other eight universities in attendance. The team pitched FedEx as a buy, having built a financial model, developed an equity report, and presented their findings to a panel of judges who possessed a wealth of experience in the finance industry. "The judges threw some difficult technical questions at us," Dahlan said.
Unfortunately, the students did not place in the competition. However, with this being their first stock pitch competition experience, they all saw it as an important learning opportunity. Dahlan stated that her and her fellow cohorts "watched the top three teams do their pitches, which were very data-heavy".
The University of Virginia won the overall Stock Pitch Competition. Nevertheless, our Appalachian team conducted numerous hours of research and preparation that led them to give their best effort.
If interested in the Bowden Investment Group, the selection process begins in the spring semester. Students accepted into the group will enroll in FIN 4620 (Investment Management I) the following fall semester.
Applications are due March 1st and interviews will take place during the last two weeks of March or the first week of April.
About the Bowden Investment Group
The Elbert V. Bowden Student Managed Investment Fund was established in January 2000 with the purpose of providing students with an opportunity to obtain hands-on investment experience and to provide funds to benefit the students and faculty in the Finance, Banking and Insurance department.
About Appalachian State University's Department of Finance
The primary objective of the Department of Finance, Banking and Insurance is to develop leaders for the business, government, and educational communities and to assist them in making contributions to society.The primary objective of the Department of Finance, Banking and Insurance is to develop leaders for the business, government, and educational communities and to assist them in making contributions to society.
Feb. 6, 2019
Javon Nathaniel
BOONE, N.C.