Bokeh

Holy Cross Student Investment Fund’s Michigan Trip

On February 9th, twelve Holy Cross students jumped on a jet to the University of Michigan to attend the annual ENGAGE Undergraduate Investment Conference at Michigan’s Ross School of Business. This year was a particularly big deal as the conference experienced a post-COVID return to form: in-person networking, live-action presentations, and one-on-one engagement were all finally back. Having access to all of these opportunities provided invaluable insight and expertise to all attendees, arriving from prestigious universities across America and Canada.

Representing Mount Saint James was the Holy Cross Student Investment Fund (HCSIF), the college’s premier investment organization. The fund was created in 2017 and is structured around three verticals (industrials, TMT and consumer), through which each group works together to craft a stock pitch. Thomas Keane, a member of the consumer vertical within the SIF, spearheaded this year’s pitch, which saw Holy Cross Student’s arguing for the viability of Kellogg's stock. The Holy Cross Student Investment Fund could have attended the conference without competing, but thanks to the hard work of the students involved, Holy Cross was chosen among hundreds of applications to compete in Michigan.

The Holy Cross Student Investment Fund could have attended the conference without competing, but thanks to the hard work of the students involved, Holy Cross was chosen among hundreds of applications to compete in Michigan.

Over the two day conference, students were graced with impressive lectures from some of the country’s most prominent business leaders. Coined as “conversations'' by the conference planners, the speakers spent their time casually going over investment strategies, money management, recession defense, and networking advice. The students had the privilege of listening to Antony Ressler, an American billionaire, hedge fund manager, and owner of the Atlanta Hawks. Howard Marks, the co-founder and co-chairman of Oaktree Capital Management, also spoke to explain how he built his success and answer student questions. Following the networking, “conversations,” and two days of free lunch, students had the opportunity to watch the top three pitches compete against each other in the final round (of which, Holy Cross was unfortunately not included). Not only was this an enriching experience, but it provided great insight for next year’s pitches.

By McKenna Best