Maldonado, W Investment Club take on Wall Street
Mississippi University for Women senior David Maldonado recently represented the university’s TVA Investment Club at the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Investment Challenge fall meeting, held virtually Nov. 6.
The TVA Investment Challenge began in 1998, when TVA allocated $100,000 to 19 universities in its coverage area for students to invest in the stock market with the goal of beating the market. The university with the best returns wins the challenge for that year. Gains are used to offset the cost of decommissioning TVA’s power generating assets.
The program has since expanded to include 26 schools with plans to add more in the future.
Maldonado serves as president of The W’s TVA Investment Club, which boasts a portfolio of 35 companies valued at over $500,000.
“The experience has been amazing. I get to learn about investing and the different ratios of what makes a potential good investment. We also get to go to an annual conference in Nashville, present in front of different universities and learn more about them and their different strategies,” Maldonado said.
At the fall meeting, he gave a presentation to peers from other universities as well as executives from TVA, about the club’s investment philosophy. That philosophy has evolved over time as well.
“Two years ago, we won the competition. The economy has changed a lot, so we decided to change our strategy from a very safe to a more aggressive strategy. We are currently in the middle of the challenge. We will know the results in April during our annual meeting in Nashville,” said Maldonado.
Dr. Andrew Luccasen, professor of finance and economics at The W and faculty sponsor of the club, is proud of the work and dedication the club has shown in the competition.
“There has been a lot of uncertainty in markets, so it has been challenging to outperform the S&P 500. Our club, and David in particular, have worked very hard on their investment decisions and I am very proud of their effort and performance this year!” said Luccasen.
Maldonado also is thankful for the experience gained during his time with the club.
He said, “I learned that having a well-diversified portfolio is always a good idea, and it has helped me better understand the economy in general. I have learned how difficult it is to have a good investment and that sometimes big companies are not the best investments. I would like to thank the TVA for this opportunity, and I would like to also thank Dr. Luccasen. He has been a great instructor and an amazing financial mentor throughout my career here at The W.”
To learn more about the TVA Investment Club at The W, please visit www.muw.edu/business/orgs/#tva.
About the Tennessee Valley Authority
Established in 1933, the Tennessee Valley Authority provides electricity for 153 local power companies serving 10 million people in Tennessee and parts of six surrounding states, as well as directly to about 60 large industrial customers and federal installations. TVA also provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and regional governments with their economic development efforts.