OSU Team 3, pictured from left: Carson Confer, Connor Mackey, Dr. Eric Sisneros (professor), Anna Taylor, Wyatt Blackstock and Jordan Flinton, placed second at the competition and took home a $5,000 cash prize

OSU students make finals of investment portfolio competition

Wednesday, May 1, 2024

Media Contact: Jeff Hopper | Communications Coordinator | 405-744-1050 | jeff.hopper@okstate.edu

Two teams of students from the Spears School of Business’ student-managed investment fund (SMIF) class made the final competition round at the University of Tulsa’s Investment Portfolio Challenge on April 17.

The team of Carson Confer, Connor Mackey, Anna Taylor, Wyatt Blackstock and Jordan Flinton placed second and took home a $5,000 cash prize, while the Dino and the Fellas team, consisting of Tyler Thomason, Trent Adams, Constantino Borrelli, Holden Cobb, Carson Horsburgh and Dean Bigler was also a finalist.

dino and the fellas — Dino and the Fellas team pictured from left: Tyler Thomason, Trent Adams, Constantino Borrelli, Holden Cobb, Carson Horsburgh and Dean Bigler.

“I am very proud of both teams that participated in the competition,” said Dr. Eric Sisneros, assistant instructional professor in the Department of Finance and SMIF instructor. “The second-place finish shows that we have great students at OSU that are going to be successful in the future.”

The challenge tasks teams with preparing and presenting ways to improve an existing equity portfolio considering risk tolerance, sector composition, economic conditions and fundamental analysis for a hypothetical $6 million investment portfolio.

Teams virtually submit a 30-minute presentation prior to the live event, which is scored and used to determine teams that make it to the final round of the competition. Finalists participate in a 20-minute live Q&A session during which industry representatives and the general audience, including faculty advisors will ask questions concerning the submitted virtual presentation. The scores from the presentation and Q&A sessions are combined to determine first-, second- and third-place teams.

“These competitions are incredibly impactful for the students,” Sisneros said. “It gives them an opportunity to apply skills and knowledge to a real-world situation, network with industry professionals, and have fun preparing for and competing with their fellow classmates.”