Baylor Student Investment Team Beats Out Texas Competitors
Three Baylor business students earned the spotlight after clinching the Portfolio Management Finals Competition award at the Fourth Annual Texas Investment Portfolio Symposium (TIPS) held Saturday, March 24. Investment professionals from all over the country traveled to interact with more than 130 faculty and students from 12 regional universities. The award winning students were: Trent Agnew, Aimee Clement and Joshua Lynn.
"TIPS provided a place where business students and investment professionals could dialogue about the roles and methods of investment in a global economy. It also allowed students the opportunity to experience the diversity of investment styles and practices shared by student-run endowment programs at universities in the region." Lynn said.
TIPS was founded by a steering committee including two Baylor professors: Brian Bruce, visiting professor of Finance at Baylor and chief investment officer of Equity Investments at Panagora Investments and Bill Reichenstein, Professor of Finance and the Pat and Thomas R. Powers Chair in Investment Management.
This symposium inspires faculty and students to learn about the industry trends and issues through interaction with investment industry professionals.
"Perhaps the major lesson is just the opportunity to meet and interact with the top students at other universities. They see that there are numerous quality candidates competing for the limited openings in the profession. In addition, they had a chance to interact with professionals in the field," Reichenstein said.
When competing for business, Investment firms make a ‘final presentation.' The Portfolio Management Finals Competition mirrored that process. The students gave a ten-minute presentation of their investment portfolio and answered questions from the judges, who are practicing investment professionals.
The judging guidelines reflected the criteria of a professional money manager. First place went to the students from Baylor, second place went to Rice University, and University of Houston placed third.
"By participating in the conference and doing well, I gained a greater appreciation for the presentation skills that are developed in the business school. While some schools may be stronger in some areas, I truly believe Baylor students are the most prepared to make pitches and presentations," Agnew said.
Clements also noted the significant role of the professors who educate the future business professionals.
"Participating in the competition gave me a new appreciation for the professionals and academicians who instruct and mentor the students in Baylor's Portfolio Practicum course," Clement said.
Bruce described the knowledge students gain from participating in TIPS.
"This year they learned about cutting edge investments – frontier markets along with being able to see how the best programs in the state present both research and their investment process," Bruce said.
This year, the speakers at TIPS addressed issues on "Frontier Market Investing" and "Stock Prices: Only Two Things Matter." The keynote speakers were Larry Speidell, CFA, a Co-Portfolio Manager with Ondine Asset Management and John W. Peavy III, Chief Investment Officer, RPR Equity Advisors, and Professor of Finance, Texas Christian University.
The award recipients plan to take their skills to the next level. Agnew and Lynn will complete their undergraduate degrees in May. Agnew will begin his career as an Investment Sales Analyst/Broker for Holliday Fenoglio Fowler Commercial Real Estate in Houston. Lynn will start his career working as an Intellectual Property Analyst for CRA International in Houston. Both Agnew and Lynn plan to pursue an MBA degree after a few years of employment. Clement will finish the final semester of her MBA program in May and transport to Houston to work as a Senior Financial Analyst at Continental Airlines.
