Student Team from UA’s Culverhouse Wins Investment Competition

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Students from The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce recently placed first in the regional CFA Institute Research Challenge, an annual regional, national and global investment research competition.

The five-student team from the Culverhouse Investment Management Group, a student investment fund, won the competition designed to promote best practices in equity research among the next generation of analysts. They were awarded the Ridgeworth Cup trophy at the Feb. 22 competition in Atlanta.

The students are Zac Adams, of Birmingham; Forrest Hames, of Florence; Jeff Priester, of Houston, Texas; Kevin Whitney, of Atlanta, Ga.; and Daniel Smith, of Alpharetta, Ga.

“These students are representative of the quality of students we have in Culverhouse,” said Dr. J. Michael Hardin, dean of the Culverhouse College of Commerce. “They are top-notch,” he said. “I’m excited and proud of their phenomenal achievement and congratulate them on their success.”

The local-level win advances the Culverhouse team to the Americas regional competition March 18-19 in Denver, Colo. The winner from each regional competition will advance to the global final, where one team will emerge as global champion of the CFA Institute Research Challenge.

The competition starts with teams assuming the roles of research analysts, then they are assigned a company to research, and they produce a written report, followed by a 10-minute presentation to a panel of judges.

It is only the second year The University of Alabama has competed in the event as they won out over Georgia, Georgia State and UAB in the final round.

CT Fitzpatrick, CEO of Vulcan Value Partners in Birmingham, is on the CIMG advisory board and has been instrumental in helping to create the student group and value investment curriculum at Culverhouse.

“CIMG provides hands-on, real-world investment experience for these students, and I am glad to see an investment program at Culverhouse. I hope that we can continue to add classes and implement a full value investment curriculum,” Fitzpatrick said. “I am very proud of these students in winning the Ridgeworth Trophy.”

The Chartered Financial Analyst Institute is a global association of investment professionals that provides continuing education, publications and seminars on the investment industry, and it oversees the CFA Institute Research Challenge for university students.

For more information about the research challenge, visit the website: http://cfainstitute.org/community/challenge/Pages/index.aspx.