CQA INVESTMENT CHALLENGE: APPLIED KNOWLEDGE

Abstract

The CQA Investment Challenge primarily explored the realm of portfolio management, offering a chance to learn and apply equity analysis and selection in a simulated hedge fund experience. This endeavor drove me to apply the knowledge I have gained about finance and the financial markets throughout my time at the University, serving as an ideal culmination of my experiences from the past four years. In a group of four other Honors students, we were responsible for managing money, describing our investment process, and reviewing the performance of our portfolio, while competing against approximately fifty other teams from various colleges across the country. We placed in the top thirty, realizing nearly flat returns, while employing a factor-based strategy based on our predication of an imminent flat-to-down market. The range of returns between all teams ranged from -9.49% to +9.25%. Ultimately, we prevented significant losses in a market that did not perform according to our forecast.