This year, our team, Ronis (3B AFM), Michael (3B AFM), Charlene (2B AFM) & Josh (2B AFM) had the opportunity to compete in the 11th annual School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) Investment Research Challenge (IRC). We were assigned the publicly traded Canadian company Pet Valu to research, analyze, and value, culminating in a pitch to a panel of professors and industry professionals. Hard work, coupled with our extensive knowledge on the company and industry, propelled us to a first-place finish.
We prepared for the competition in three main ways:
Leaning on previous experience
During the competition, our team was able to identify and analyze key factors leading to our buy recommendation of Pet Valu, including the strength of their franchise model, their highly loyal customers and more. We leaned on prior experiences, both professional and extracurricular to most effectively dig into financial data and conduct external market analysis. Our prior professional experiences in investment banking, equity research and audit along with club involvement in Waterloo Private Capital, the Student Investment Fund and others gave us a strong foundation of technical skills we leveraged during the competition.
Practice makes perfect
Leading up to the day of the pitch, we spent hours rehearsing and refining our pitch to ensure we came across to the judges as prepared as possible. From rehearsing our individual parts to tying each section together, our presentation was polished by competition day. Additionally, we focused on getting feedback and considering external perspectives to further refine the presentation. Given the format of a five-minute pitch followed by a ten-minute Q&A period, we made sure to practice answering questions about the business on the spot, further re-enforcing our knowledge of the business and helping us significantly during the actual competition.
Learning from external sources and upper-years
One way our group was able to succeed was through our knowledge gained from industry professionals and management at Pet Valu. Reaching out to these people and being able to get on calls to learn more about their perspective better informed our pitch and brought in new perspectives. Additionally, throughout the duration of the competition, our upper year students (Ronis & Michael) were integral in providing guidance and support to our younger team members (Charlene & Josh). Their experiences both in work roles and similar competitions guided us to effectively put our pitch together.
Overall, the SAF IRC was a great experience. We learned a lot along the way and working with a fantastic team made it a competition we won’t forget!