FNAN 488: Applied Equity Research Master Syllabus
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Catalog Course Description
Students develop and apply equity research skills in a companion class to the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute Research Challenge, a competition between university-sponsored teams that assume the role of research analysts by researching a designated publicly traded company, preparing a written report on that selected company, and then presenting their findings to a panel of judges. Enrollment is limited and requires permission from the instructor.
Course Description
Applied Equity Research is intended to be an opportunity for highly motivated students to develop and apply equity research skills in a companion class to the local level of the CFA Institute Research Challenge. According to the official rules, the CFA Institute Research Challenge is a competition between university-sponsored teams that research a designated publicly traded company, prepare a written report on that selected company, and then present their findings to a panel of judges. The competition has four levels: local, sub-regional, regional, and global. Winners at each level advance to compete in the next level.
The class will be offered during the first 7.5-week session of the Spring semester (Session I), which corresponds with key dates for the local round of the competition. Although the competition begins in late October, this course will focus on helping students prepare their written reports and team presentations for the local level, which takes place in February.
If a student is on a team that wins the local competition, they will spend the remainder of the course preparing for the next round. If a student is on a team that does not win the local competition, they will spend the remainder of the course documenting their experience, doing some independent research or other activity, and/or attending sessions with guests from the investment community.
Mason Impact Plus (MI+) Course
This course is designated a Mason Impact Plus (MI +) course that specializes in research and scholarship (RS). As such, students have access to funding resources and travel grants, receive a notation on their transcripts containing the project title, and can display their research in the University’s Virtual Celebration of Student Scholarship.
A research or creative activities (RS) experience provides the opportunity for students to engage in the process of generating and sharing undergraduate research and creative inquiry. Students engaged in these types of activities make a genuine intellectual or creative contribution to their field and take ownership of their project and process regardless of field of study.
Mason Impact courses provide the skills for the students to tackle global questions and challenges by facilitating the development of knowledge, tools, and skills to lead the pack, not follow it. In this course, students will develop and strengthen the skills used to for the type of financial research that results in more optimal investment decisions and therefore, a more productive allocation of limited resources, as well as better stewardship of those resources.
Learning Goals and Objectives
All 5 of the School of Business undergraduate program learning goals and the single learning goal for the finance major are relevant for this course.
School of Business Undergraduate Program Learning Goals
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Our students will demonstrate an understanding of the social, global, ethical, and legal contexts of business and will be able to reflect on the role of the individual in business.
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Our students will demonstrate an understanding of and the ability to apply knowledge of professional skills necessary for success in business including effective business writing.
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Our students will demonstrate technical and analytic skills appropriate for success in business.
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Our students will demonstrate an understanding of and the ability to apply knowledge of core business disciplines including accounting, finance, information systems, management, marketing, and operations management.
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Our students will demonstrate knowledge and skills appropriate for specialization in their majors.
Finance Major Learning Goals
Finance majors will be able to demonstrate, evaluate, and explain the risk-return tradeoffs in finance, to conduct and effectively present financial analysis and research valuing complex projects, assets, securities, and firms, and will understand the relationships among investors, firms, financial institutions, financial markets, and regulators.
Course Learning Objectives
The specific course objectives are for students to
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Apply various valuation techniques to determine the value of a firm and its equity.
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Synthesize a large amount of information and research in order to make and support a persuasive investment recommendation.
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Apply various analysis and valuation techniques using Excel.
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Strengthen their ability to communicate complex concepts and analysis orally, graphically, and in writing in a clear and meaningful way.
Mason Impact + (RS/CECL/ENTR) Learning Outcomes
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Understand knowledge creation: Students will understand how knowledge is generated and communicated, and how it can be used to address questions or problems in disciplines and in society.
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Engage multiple perspectives: Students will be able to identify and negotiate multiple perspectives, work collaboratively within and across multiple social and environmental contexts, and engage ethically with their subject and with others.
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Investigate a meaningful question: Students will use inquiry skills to articulate a question; engage in an inquiry process; and situate the concepts, practices, or results within a broader context.
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Complete a project: Students will design and carry out an individual or collaborative project that explores an original question, seeks a creative solution to a problem, applies knowledge to a professional challenge, or offers a unique perspective. Students engage deeply in this original work.
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Communicate and share outcomes: Students will communicate knowledge from their project through presentation, publication, or performance to an audience beyond the classroom.
Approach to Learning
This will be a highly collaborative course in which students are expected to work together to produce high-quality work. Much of the work will be conducted independently. Students will attend class sessions after completing required readings and exercises related to financial research, investment analysis, report writing, slide deck creation, presentations, etc. Students will also attend class for pre-competition practice presentations.
Representative Text and Learning Materials
Investment Valuation: Tools and Techniques for Determining the Value of Any Asset by Damodaran, Aswath.
Mason Library databases including NetAdvantage, Mergent, IBIS, etc.
Bloomberg
Course Grading
A student’s grade will be based on the quality of their team’s deliverables and presentation for the competition, as well as peer evaluations and completion/quality of additional requirements such as status updates, reflections, and assignments required for class meetings.
This is a class for highly-motivated students who have chosen to participate in the CFA Research Challenge. It is quite possible that all students will earn high grades.
| Course Average | Course Grade |
|---|---|
| 97.0 – 100.0 | A+ |
| 93.0 – 96.9 | A |
| 90.0 – 92.9 | A- |
| 87.0 – 90.0 | B+ |
| 83.0 – 86.9 | B |
| 80.0 – 82.9 | B- |
| 77.0 – 80.0 | C+ |
| 70.0 – 76.9 | C |
| 60.0 – 69.9 | D |
| 0.0 – 59.9 | F |
More Details on Course Grading
The CFA Challenge
Three-quarters of the course grade (75%) will be based on work completed for the competition. Specifically, the student’s report, slides, and presentation will be evaluated for this part of the grade. A large share of the grade will be based on timely completion, which can be achieved by meeting the deadlines established by the CFA.
A relatively small share of the grade will be based on the quality of the deliverables and presentation for the competition. However, professor observations and peer evaluations conducted after the presentations will be used to assess the relative contributions of individual members.
Post-Challenge Work
One-fourth of the course grade (25%) will be based on work done after the competition. If a team advances in the Challenge beyond the local level, the members of the team will earn scores of 100 for the post-competition work (potentially adjusted based on peer evaluations) and the following items will be optional for them.
Students must create 2 documents:
- Each student will create a manual for future Mason teams with suggestions, guidance, advice, schedules, etc. based on their experiences in the Challenge. Each person will write their own manual, which will be due March 2 (just under 3 weeks after the presentations).
After these are submitted by emailing them to me, students may be asked to combine individual guides into a single manual for future students. This task may be assigned to everyone or a subset of the class for the opportunity to earn additional points.
- Each student will produce a brief write-up (1 page or less) in which they discuss their experience with the Challenge. Specifically, what did you enjoy? What did you dislike? What did you learn? Are you happy you chose to participate? What would you say to a future student considering the CFA Research Challenge. These write-ups are due March 9 (just under 4 weeks after the presentations) and should be emailed to me.
Although completed after the Challenge, I consider the peer reviews to be part of the CFA Challenge portion of the course. The evaluation form will be relatively short.
Honor Code and Ethics Statement
Students are expected to know and adhere to the George Mason University Honor Code, which deals with actual and attempted acts of cheating, plagiarism, lying, and stealing. Suspected, possible, or potential violations of the Honor Code will be reported to the Honor Committee. More detail on the Honor Code, academic integrity expectations, and classroom behavior standards can be found at the Academic Standards website.
Students are also expected to adhere to the CFA Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct. This code has been established to serve as the ethical benchmark for investment professionals.
Office of Disability Services
If a student has a disability or situation for which the professor needs to be made aware, they should schedule a time to discuss this with me in a timely manner. All academic accommodations must be arranged through the Office of Disability Services (ODS), which implements and coordinates reasonable accommodations and disability-related services that afford equal access to university programs and activities. ODS is in the Student Union Building 1, Room 222. Its phone number is (703) 993-2474.
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