Goodner Project is a Good Challenge

20 May 2013 11:02AM

The Goodner Equity Research Project just completed its second Spring semester as an economics and finance elective, and continues to be a successful way to engage and prepare students for careers on Wall Street.

“The goal of the Goodner Project is to provide Duke students with a real world investing experience, building upon their pre-existing academic foundation,” said Blake Goodner, a founding member of New York hedge fund Bridger Capital and co-teacher of the course. And, according to students, it’s doing just that.

“I certainly feel better prepared to enter into an investing profession after taking this class.  Not only do I feel more prepared technically but I also feel more prepared socially for what to expect from business relationships with co-workers, managers and bosses,” says Duke senior, Callie Simpkins.

During the semester, students pair up and each team chooses one of a selection of companies on which to carry out deep dive analysis for an investment thesis. Over the course of the semester, Professor Emma Rasiel and Blake Goodner guide the students through the quantitative research required for an equity research report and ultimately their buy or sell recommendation (in this class, a hold recommendation is not permitted). The students present their investment thesis to the class at the end of the semester, after which the students vote for the most compelling thesis.

The Goodner Project class challenges students to dive deeply into their chosen companies, and to find a unique “edge” that will separate their analysis from that of mainstream sell-side reports. In analyzing Under Armour (UA), for example, seniors Brad Ezratty and Tom Dadon surveyed Duke Varsity and Club athletes for their views on UA versus Nike, the current Duke Athletics sponsor. Outcomes from the analysis of the 110 responses were a significant factor in their buy recommendation. 

Duke senior, Andy Margius believes, “the best topic focused on in [the] class was the development of an edge in individual equity reports. While the hedge fund world has consultants [who] perform this work, learning about ways to find this advantage was an insightful process.” Margius and his teammate Clayton Boggs combed through 20 different parenting blogs and other social media in their deep dive analysis of Leapfrog, a maker of children’s education gaming systems.

The ten Goodner Project students met weekly with Professor Rasiel, with Blake Goodner joining the students twice monthly via video conference. Both Rasiel and Goodner answer questions and provide ongoing feedback on the students’ written reports throughout the semester.

Callie Simpkins notes: “If you want a class that will bridge the gap between studying finance in college and the “real world” of working in finance, this is your class.”

Good luck to all our 2013 graduating seniors!