The GW Investment Institute hosted the 2023 Annual Conference on Friday, March 24th in Ric and Dawn Duquès Hall, connecting 60+ students, faculty, and alumni with industry practitioners and professionals to discuss the latest developments and advancements in quantitative investing. The conference brought together invaluable perspectives and insight into the rapidly developing space and offered students an opportunity to hear first-hand how to prepare to enter this emerging career opportunity. To learn more about the conference and our featured guests, please access the GWII 2023 Annual Conference Summary and Booklet.
Industry Panel: Prof. Christine Song and Ethan BaronGW studentsDr. Randy Graves and studentsGW StudentsProf. Wilson with studentsProf. Lake and Aron KershnerTrevor HaenProf. Arthur WilsonHilal Uyanik Opening remarks by Dean MehrotraRhys ChambersKeynote by Aron Kershner
GW graduate student advocate Hilal Uyanik reflected on her experience in the GW Ramsey Student Investment Fund class. Hilal is graduating in May 2023 form GWSB with MS in Management with a concentration in portfolio & investment management.
Hilal Uyanik
“My time at The GW Investment Institute has provided me with invaluable experience and knowledge I can apply in future full-time roles. The institute presents students with many opportunities such as panel discussions with alumni in the field, real-time market exposure, and the opportunity to learn software essential to the industry, such as FactSet. FactSet provides students useful analytics including global market and individual stock data to further aid in decision-making while analyzing the portfolio. With the use of FactSet, I was successfully able to analyze risks associated with the energy & utilities sector of the GW Ramsey portfolio and eventually manage the risk by constructing a buy-sell pitch to present to fellow analysts within the fund. This Giving Day I invite you to support GWII so that students like me can continue to have access to FactSet.”
Tomorrow is an exciting day at George Washington University – it’s Giving Day (April 4-5, 2023), and I’m reaching out to ask for your support for the GW Investment Institute.
The GW Investment Institute (GWII) teaches GW students how to invest by managing real endowment capital (currently managing over $6.5 million). Our team at GWII is dedicated to providing students with tangible skills and tools that they can leverage to advance their careers.
This Giving Day, your support will enable GW Investment Institute students to have FactSet, an industry tool for financial research. FactSet enables our students to become real-world practitioners of finance, but we need your help. Our current subscription expires at the end of the fiscal year and we ask for your help in securing $30,000 for this excellent investment in our curriculum. Every dollar counts.
How is FactSet used in our classes and what are the benefits of using FactSet?
– Our teaching assistant Trevor Haen shared more about how we currently use FactSet to enhance learning opportunities in finance classes. Please read Trevor’s blog post to learn more.
-Sophomore Will Ahrens reflected on his experience in Phillips Student Investment Fund class in a blog post.
We’re counting on our dedicated alumni and supporters to help us reach our goal and continue to provide our students with resources to help them succeed in their careers. Thank you for your continued commitment to support experiential learning through the GW Investment Institute.
There was always a buzz in the Wellde Capital Markets Trading Room (Duquès Hall 155) each time I walked by during my freshman year at GW: small cohorts of students seemingly the most engaged I had ever seen, the tops of heads poking above the Bloomberg Terminal monitors, and the ticker tape infinitely scrolling. I knew I wanted to be in that environment the second I walked by.
With the start of the fall 2022 semester, I found myself sitting in the Wellde Capital Markets Trading Room room taking the GW Phillips Student Investment Fund course. The semester quickly picked up pace as I began scouring the Consumer Discretionary & Staples sector for interesting long-term investment recommendations. Armed with FactSet, my peers and I were equipped with an industry tool to evaluate comparable companies, perform transaction analyses, conduct detailed stock screenings, and read Wall Street equity research reports. FactSet was an invaluable tool in forming my investment recommendation to buy Kellogg Co., (K) and sell General Mills, Inc., (GIS). My investment thesis was to add value to the portfolio through Kellogg’s proposed spin-off transaction.
Similarly, the incorporation of FactSet enabled me to seamlessly integrate its tools into how I began to think about investing and capital markets. When I hear of an interesting opportunity, the first thing I do is check FactSet, giving me a general overview and understanding in order to develop an informed opinion. The vast amount of information has enhanced my comprehension of financial markets and analysis furthering my interest in a career in investment management.
My experience in the GW Phillips Student Investment Fund course was one of the most memorable and truly engaging courses I have taken at GW. Having access to tools used by investment professionals in an academic environment is an enriching experience.
On GW’s Giving Day (April 4th and 5th), the GW Investment Institute needs your help continuing to provide students like me an experiential learning experience. Please support the GW Investment Institute in reaching its goal of $30,000 to provide students FactSet for the year.
Best regards,
William Ahrens, BS ‘25, Finance
In the fall of 2022, Will was enrolled in the GW Phillips Student Investment Fund course and this spring he is enrolled in Venture Capital course with the GWII.
This upcoming GW Giving Day (April 4 and 5, 2023) we are raising funds for a FactSet subscription! Access to FactSet is instrumental for the research that our students perform in our classes and ultimately helps to improve the probability for higher performance for our GW Student Investment Funds. Our alumni advocate and Teaching Assistant Trevor Haen shared how FacSet is incorporated into weekly assignments and class overall.
Additionally, the FactSet platform is available to all students, faculty and staff at GW.
Trevor Haen, BS ’23
“FactSet is a comprehensive financial information system that provides accurate and timely data on financial statements, real-time market tracking, industry analysis, and more. The GWII has quickly and fully incorporated the resource into the curriculum, aiding students in fundamental and quantitative stock research. Through conducting company research, forecasting financial statements, and creating valuation models, students generate high-quality analyses of portfolio holdings and investment recommendations. The industry standard software has facilitated a unique hands-on learning experience for students and prepares them for careers in the financial services industry.”
During the upcoming GW Giving Day please consider making a gift to support students’ access to FactSet! Click to donate: go.gwu.edu/givetogwii
GW Giving Day is next week (April 4 and 5, 2023). Check out a message from one of our former students and alumni advocates, Josh Luberda, BS ‘22.
Josh was enrolled in the Phillips Student Investment Fund class, the Quant Student Investment Fund class, and the Venture Capital class with the GW Investment Institute during his time at GW. Mr. Luberda is an Investment Analyst at Cambridge Associates.
“The most valuable experience I had at GW was in Rodney Lake’s Applied Financial Securities Analysis class. The class encouraged independent thinking, demanded rigorous analysis, and improved my presentation skills. These have been invaluable to me in my role as an investment analyst.”
– Josh Luberda, BS ’22
Consider supporting the institute by donating during the upcoming GW Giving Day. Click to support experiential investment education at GW: go.gwu.edu/givetogwii
GW Giving Day is around the corner. Check out this message from one of our amazing alumni advocates, Skye Kussmann, MBA ‘20 to learn more about student experience in our classes and the impact they make.
Skye was enrolled in Venture Capital class and Ramsey Student Investment Fund class with the GW Investment Institute during her Global MBA program. Ms. Kussmann is a Director at Liberty Mutual Insurance in Boston.
Skye Kussmann, MBA ’20
“By participating in GWII’s Venture Capital class, I gained the skills necessary to think critically about launching a business – and won first place at GW’s New Venture Competition as a result! The hands-on learning opportunities in my GWII courses set me up for career success, and I encourage alumni to donate to continue this programming!”
Consider supporting the institute by donating during the upcoming GW Giving Day. Click to donate: go.gwu.edu/givetogwii
GW Giving Day is less than a month away! Our alumni advocate Austin Lai, BBA ‘22 shared some highlights from our classes.
Austin was enrolled in the Phillips Student Investment Fund class and the Venture Capital class with the GW Investment Institute during his time at GW. Mr. Lai is a Business Technology Solutions Analyst at Deloitte.
Austin Lai, BBA ’22
“The classes I took with the GW Investment Institute were invaluable for my personal and professional growth. Through encouraging critical thinking, providing ample opportunities for public speaking, and facilitating hands-on, experiential learning, they helped me grow as a student and prepared me for my career. Of all the classes, Foundations of Venture Capital was particularly unique. In this class, I was able to develop a start-up idea with my peers and participate in the GW New Venture Competition without taking on any risk, sparking my interest in fintech-related engagements at Deloitte. I urge you to donate to and support the GWII on GW Giving Day so that current students can benefit from these exceptional classes and experiential learning opportunities.”
Consider supporting the institute by donating during the upcoming GW Giving Day. Click to donate: go.gwu.edu/givetogwii
Next month, GW Giving Day is coming up and we’re excited to showcase one of our outstanding alumni advocates, Kayla Albano.
During her time at GWSB, Ms. Kayla Albano BS’ 22 was enrolled in Quantitative Investing and Venture Capital classes. Kayla is a 2022 GW Ramsey Scholar and an Associate at KPMG.
Kayla Albano, GWSB ’22
“One of the most rewarding classes that I took during my time at The George Washington University School of Business was the GW Quant Student Investment Fund. Each class was challenging and exciting and was an experience I never thought I would have the opportunity to engage in at the undergraduate level. I learned about the world of quantitative investing through complex research, in-class panel sessions by professionals in the field, and hands-on modeling experience. This class pushed students to stay up-to-date with current market news, adopt a problem-solving mindset, and to always be thinking about how certain decisions in model building could help attain the best results – This was ultimately the most influential aspect of the class that I brought forward with me to my current role at KPMG. I encourage all students in the GWSB to take a class with the GW Investment Institute and I also encourage alumni to give back, as this is an incredible GW commitment to experiential learning.”
Consider supporting the institute by donating during the upcoming GW Giving Day. Click to donate: go.gwu.edu/givetogwii
Following a bearish Q3, the fourth quarter closed the year with a better economic environment despite recession fears. Some major highlights are a better-than-expected GDP growth of 2.9%, the Federal Reserve slowing down its interest rate hikes from 75-basis points in November to 50-basis points in December to tame inflation, China relaxing its stringent COVID policies to ease supply chain challenges and a slight decline in the unemployment rate from 3.7% in October to 3.5% in December showing a resilient labor market. The consumer price index also declined by 0.1% in December, after rising by 0.4% in October. This brought inflation to its lowest rate of 6.5% in December since October 2021. The S&P 500 closed the fourth quarter with a growth of 7.6% and was the only quarter in 2022 with a positive return. The index however closed the year with a decline of 18.1%. All sectors except the Communication and Consumer Discretionary showed positive returns. The top three winners were Energy 22.8%, Industrials 19.2% and Materials 15.1%. The Real Estate sector closed the quarter with a positive return of 3.8% as mortgage rates cooled off.
For the quarter ended December 31, 2022 the GWII’s Student Investment Funds in aggregate underperformed the benchmark with a return of 5.7% vs. 7.6% for the S&P 500. The funds also underperformed the benchmark in the calendar year -19.2% vs. -18.1% for the S&P 500.
