Portfolio Management and Security Analysis – Finance 397.2
Instructors: Sandy Leeds and Laura Starks
Office: GSB 5.126C (Leeds); CBA 6.238 (Starks)
Office Hours: By Appointment – Just Send an Email
Email: Sandy.Leeds@mccombs.utexas.edu;
Laura.Starks@mccombs.utexas.edu
Objective:
The purpose of this course is to provide a conceptual and theoretical foundation for
the activities of student managers involved with the on-going operations of The
MBA Investment Fund, LLC. Using a blend of academic- and practitioner-oriented
readings, projects, and group analytical sessions, managers will be introduced to
both the conventional wisdom and state-of-the-art methods used in performing
many of the Fund's functional tasks, including security research, security trading,
and organizational coordination. It is assumed that students have completed (or
are concurrently enrolled in) the relevant prerequisite courses in finance,
accounting, and statistics.
Textbook:
Investment Analysis and Portfolio Management, 8e by F. Reilly and K. Brown
(Thomson-Southwestern, 2006)
Packet:
Investments / Portfolio Management and Security Selection (Sanford J Leeds,
2007)
Strongly Recommended:
Wall Street Journal, Barron's, Business Week
Grades:
50% -- written industry report
20% -- morning meeting presentation (10% each)
15% -- bond assignment
15% -- performance return assignment
Morning Meetings
Each team will conduct a morning meeting twice during the semester (one each
half of the semester). You will be graded on the quality of your preparation as well
as the effectiveness of your communication. We want to understand your
approach to each industry that you cover.
Other Assignments
The other assignments (industry report, bond assignment, and performance return
assignment) will be discussed in class at the appropriate time.
Daily Assignments and Readings:
You will always be told which section of the packet to read prior to class. In
addition, you will often be asked to read articles or chapters from our textbook.
Policies:
Enrollment in this course is restricted to the current set of student managers for
The MBA Investment Fund. While this exclusivity creates a more collegial
atmosphere than you will experience in most classes, it is important to keep in
mind that there is a serious academic purpose to this course that is distinct from
the day-to-day activities of the Fund. Accordingly, when evaluating the quality of
your work and effort at the end of the semester, we will curve together the scores
for the entire section to determine the final distribution. In each class, a full range
of grades will be considered. In borderline situations, both class participation and
your general effort throughout the semester will be determining factors.
You should treat this course as you would any of your other Fund responsibilities;
that is, missing a class session is comparable to missing a Fund business meeting.
Whether present or not, you will be held responsible for everything covered or
assigned in class. Further, your general conduct in class (including your
attendance and promptness) will be a part of your class participation grade.
Finally, unless we specifically use laptops for an in-class assignment, they should
not be open during class.
.
It will be assumed that all students in this course will act as if an Honor Code of
Conduct is fully operational in the McCombs School of Business. Specifically, for
those course projects that require you to work in a group, all members of the
group are expected to contribute equally. Failure to do so may result in failure on
the project. Finally, academic dishonesty (as defined by the Office of the Dean of
Students) will not be tolerated and will be dealt with in the most severe manner
possible.