Whitman School to Host First Graduate Student Stock Pitch Competition

The Whitman School will host its first graduate student stock pitch competition on Thursday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m. in Lender Auditorium. Organized by the finance department, the event features three graduate student teams pitching three different stocks.

Stock pitch competitions are popular at business schools.

The student teams are being advised by Joel Redmond, vice president at Key Private Bank (also a Whitman adjunct professor). The pitches will be judged by a panel made up of two faculty members: associate professor of finance and Harris Fellow David Weinbaum and Craig Dudczak, associate professor of communication and rhetorical studies in the College of Visual and Performing Arts; Ayesha Sheth, MBA student; and an investment professional, Matt Ramsey of Pico Wealth Management. The top team will win a prize of up to $500, funded by D’Aniello Fund.

Stock pitch challenges or competitions are popular within business schools because they provide a forum for students to showcase their stock-picking skills and learn from top professionals in the field. Typically, the students prepare and present buy/hold/sell recommendations and defend them in front of a panel of judges.

“Stock pitch competitions replicate the intense competition and fast pace of sellside and buyside analysts and asset managers,” says Ravi Shukla, associate professor finance and chair of the finance department. “It’s a way for our students to prepare themselves for what they will face as professional financial analysts.”

The event is free and open to all.

Whitman plans two more stock pitch competitions this semester on March 26 and April 23.