Belk College’s Student Managed Investment Fund substantially outperforms S&P 500

The Belk College of Business Student Managed Investment Fund (SMIF), led by a team of student investors who invest real money in the stock market, saw a 13.6 percent return during the 2005-06 academic year.

The Fund’s strategy is to outperform the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index, which the student investors easily accomplished. The S&P 500’s gainduring the same period (August 23, 2005 through March 31, 2006) was 6.4 percent.

Assets for the Student Managed Investment Fund are provided by the UNC Charlotte Foundation and are real funds from the university endowment. The Fund is managed by undergraduate and graduate students who enroll in a year-long course that meets once a week. Students receive course credit, but the real-world experience they gain in managing money is far more valuable.

At the students’ first meeting, the Fund was valued at $199,850. Through a process which focused on relative valuation of large- capitalization and mid- capitalization companies, the Fund grew over a period of just over seven months to a value of $226,976.

This year’s SMIF students are:

• Russell Brown of Charlotte, an undergraduate senior finance major;
• Justin Sommer of Lafayette, Ind., an undergraduate senior finance major with a minor in economics;
• Cade Yonce of Franklin, N.C., an undergraduate senior finance major;
• Zuzana Looszova Patton of Kosice, Slovakia, an undergraduate senior finance major;
• Richard Sterling, R.Ph., of Gastonia, an MBA student;
• John William Richard Harding IV of Charlotte, an MBA student;
• Peter Nostrum of Charlotte, an MBA student.

The faculty advisors for the SMIF are Chas Mansfield and Sam Kirkland.