Lundy-Fetterman School of Business students Taye Ghadiali, Charles Knowles, McKenzie Cannon and Raelynn Cox were named finalists for the Fall 2023 Stock Market Game after developing their investment portfolios throughout the semester.
Twenty students from ECON 202 Principles of Economics and ECON 420 Money and Banking competed against their peers for 13 weeks under the direction of Dr. Shahriar Mostashari, associate dean of external relations and professor of business.
โFinancial literacy and personal finance are added benefits for students taking these fall 2023 classes,โ Mostashari said. "In addition to mastering macroeconomics and money, banking and financial markets, students learn about the art and science of investing and the miracle of compounding."
Mostashari said he was proud of these students and the results we were able to produce.
"Given the current geopolitical atmosphere, the soft landing versus hard landing debate in the United States and the prospect of another budget impasse, the top two teams' average performance of 9.275 percent over 13 weeks is something to celebrate," he said.
Ghadiali, a senior at Trust and Wealth from Warren, Michigan, ranked first in the 2023 Stock Market Game. Ghadiali came in with a return of nearly 10 percent during the fall semester. Ghadiali invested in companies like Amazon, Microsoft and Tesla and made the most profits from them in those companies.
Ghadiali added: โI really loved the experience of playing the stock market. This was the first time I used money and invested in something. I had never seen a portfolio before playing this game nor had I even looked at the stock market. I understood what it was, but it was different than learning it and doing it firsthand. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to learn how to invest and get comfortable with stocks 100 percent. I learned a lot while playing and it made me want to start investing right now.โ
The other finalists included Knowles with a return of about 9 percent, Cannon with a return of 4 percent and Cox with a return of 3 percent.
โI tried to buy stocks that I knew would thrive with the arrival of the holiday season,โ said Cannon, a senior studying communication studies and graduating in December. โI bought Apple because they always release new products in the fall. I bought Lululemon and Amazon because I knew people would do a lot of Christmas shopping on those sites. I also bought Hilton because I knew people would travel during the holidays. Overall, I would recommend this game to others. โI really enjoyed it and feel like it taught me a lot about stocks.โ
Gambling and the stock market are not just for big businessmen. Everyone can learn to invest regardless of experience or specialization.
โComing into the stock market game, I didn't really know what I was doing,โ said Knowles, a senior history student from New Bern. โBeing able to play this game throughout class definitely inspired the idea of โโinvesting in the stock market once I have enough money to do so. I will begin to closely follow the companies I invest in and how they move. I would recommend this to others, especially non-business people like myself, who may have very little business education but still want to see growth in their money. The website provides many tools to educate yourself about personal finances and investments.โ
Participating in the Stock Market Game gives students a new perspective on investing. The Business School hopes some of them will join the Burt Family Student Managed Investment Fund and the Schaffernoth Family Student Investment Fund, where students have the opportunity to invest real money.
The Burt Family Student-Led Investment Fund was established in 2021 thanks to a generous contribution from the Burt Family. Gives students the opportunity to invest real money in real stocks. Students evaluate market trends and invest in companies where they see a potential return.
Last May, the University also created the Schaffernoth Family Student Investment Fund. This fund was made possible by a generous gift from 1987 School of Business alumnus Andrew Schaffernoth. The funds will be invested by the school's Finance Club under the direction of Dr. Patrick Larkin, associate professor of finance in the School of Business.
