Ali Ahmed
Friday, November 7, 2008
One final note, the UNC stock pitch competition is next week.
Alen, Kevin and Nicola will be representing Cornell. Best of luck guys!
We were back in the Ramin Parlor for the award ceremony. First the judges got a big thank you as well as the others who helped out with the event. Then the moment we had all been waiting for.
In second place: Wharton.
In first place: Tuck.
As I had not seen Tuck present in the morning, I'm not in a position to say if this was an expected or unexpected win. I hear that at least one of the ladies who presented from Tuck in the morning was PHENOMENAL. So it was great to see that a team with a majority of women actually won over what was mostly a male dominated cast.
I was surprised about Kellogg not placing as I personally thought that their pitches were pretty strong.
Pitching stocks is as much art as science. There was not much separating the content of most of the pitches, especially in the morning when everyone had to pitch Jet Blue. Delivery and style we the distinguishing factors. This, plus the way teams responded to the judges Q & A is what set the teams apart in my opinion.
Furthermore, I think that the judges also have certain in built preference (they are human after all) and those that pitch in line with their investment philosophy/style may well have done better.
Which is to say that even though some did not come away with a trophy in hand, the experience of learning and talking about the stocks was invaluable. Even for those of us that just watched from the sidelines.
Which is to say that even though some did not come away with a trophy in hand, the experience of learning and talking about the stocks was invaluable. Even for those of us that just watched from the sidelines.
The Results
In front of a crowd of about 200 students and 6 judges, the 4 finalist picked 1 stock from the following three: Apple, Motorola and Research in Motion.
MIT went first, recommending a buy on Motorola. Their thesis was based on the fact that if the handset unit was spun of/sold, the stock would be worth around $8 compared to the $4 its trading at.
Tuck went second, recommending a sell on Motorola. This made for an interesting comparison with MIT. Indeed, the very first question that the judges asked was, what if the handset unit was sold off?
Next, Wharton recommend a buy on RIM. This was based on the fact that they are locked into the enterprise market. The judges were concerned with future revenue growth projections (at a 100% even through the recession). I tended to agree with the judges. Furthermore, most of the presentation was just a reading off the slides. On the other hand, the Q & A was handled well.
Finally, Kellogg pitched Apple. This was a pleasant surprise. I had just pitched Apple to our Investment Management Club on Monday. I really liked the stock (maybe a little too much). Kellogg made a very compelling case, I thought. No prizes for guessing who I think should win.
On that note, got to run before the winners are announced. Stay tuned!
MIT went first, recommending a buy on Motorola. Their thesis was based on the fact that if the handset unit was spun of/sold, the stock would be worth around $8 compared to the $4 its trading at.
Tuck went second, recommending a sell on Motorola. This made for an interesting comparison with MIT. Indeed, the very first question that the judges asked was, what if the handset unit was sold off?
Next, Wharton recommend a buy on RIM. This was based on the fact that they are locked into the enterprise market. The judges were concerned with future revenue growth projections (at a 100% even through the recession). I tended to agree with the judges. Furthermore, most of the presentation was just a reading off the slides. On the other hand, the Q & A was handled well.
Finally, Kellogg pitched Apple. This was a pleasant surprise. I had just pitched Apple to our Investment Management Club on Monday. I really liked the stock (maybe a little too much). Kellogg made a very compelling case, I thought. No prizes for guessing who I think should win.
On that note, got to run before the winners are announced. Stay tuned!
Finals!!!
Lunch was scrumptious. Salmon at the Statler Hotel. Followed by the key note address by Harry Lang of Fidelity investing. Then the winners of the first round were announced. In no particular order, Wharton, Tuck, Kellogg and MIT.
Cornell is out. : -(
So is Michigan, Stern, Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, Duke and Maryland.
Cornell is out. : -(
So is Michigan, Stern, Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, Duke and Maryland.
Lunch time
The second half of the competition just finished. The last half teams could select any stock from the Education sector and go long or short. Corinthian (COCO) was a sell by 3 teams. Strayer had one buy and one sell recommendation. Devry had one buy as well. Again, I thought Cornell was one of the better teams. Disclaimer, I only sit in for one section of the pitches so have no idea what the other section pitches look like.
The judges are performing the unenviable job of coming up with the top four teams, I'm going to go and talk to the other teams during lunch right now.
This is going to be an amazing showdown between the top four teams as some of the candidate are REALLY strong. Cant wait for the finals!
The judges are performing the unenviable job of coming up with the top four teams, I'm going to go and talk to the other teams during lunch right now.
This is going to be an amazing showdown between the top four teams as some of the candidate are REALLY strong. Cant wait for the finals!
Sorry didn't get time to blog in the morning (but did snap a picture of Jeff Cho and Ryan Glen with my phone camera). Perhaps this was due to the fact that it was only 7 am when we met for nice hot breakfast in the Ramin Parlour and blogging was not on my mind.
Pitches started soon after. Teams were divided into two sections of 6 teams each. In the first half of the morning, each team had to pitch Jet Blue. The section where I was sitting, the first team to go was Kellogg. They set the bar pretty high, in my opinion, making a buy recommendation.
In total there were 5 buys on Jet Blue and 1 sell (I believe it was Columbia that recommended sell). The quality of the pitches over all: impressive! The teams presented anonymously- so the judges and most the audience did not know which school was presenting.
The Cornell pitch, I thought was one of the best, if not THE best! May be a little biased. The second half of the morning is about to begin, where teams can choose to pitch any firm from with a sector of education stocks. Gotta get back in there...
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Teams getting Ready
So the teams have been given the two industries and the stock they must long or short. For those unfamiliar with the rules, you can find them here: http://www.johnson.cornell.edu/parkercenter/stockpitch/overview.html
I happened to walk by the Johnson School's Parker Center for Investment Research and noticed that they had put up screen between the various terminals for privacy of the teams. I saw some of the Johnson Schools teams members hard at work.
One of the hardest parts is deciding when to stop your research and call it a night. I made the mistake (in one such competition) to have gone on with the research almost all night. When it came to making the pitch-- I was exhausted! Needless to say, it didn't go too well.
Tomorrow, I'll be helping out at the competition, recording the judges questions, keeping time, etc, and will post as often as I can.
Welcome!
Welcome to the 7th Annual MBA Stock Pitch Competition Blog!