Matching Items (23)
Description
This paper intends to inform the reader about the current state of crowdfunding, also known as crowdsourced funding, as of early May 2014. Crowdfunding has proven to be an interesting alternate to other more common financing vehicles with its ability to unite people over common ideas and projects without requiring the contribution of large amounts of capital. Further, the changing legal landscape invites a new era of deregulation that makes crowdfunding easier than ever before. This paper contains explanations of the different types of crowdfunding, platforms (websites), and the international landscape particularly of the US and Europe as well as statistics regarding the predicted future growth of the industry.
ContributorsMurphy, Kevin Edward (Author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Schein, Stephen (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
This paper explores the rationale and analysis of a global financial institution and the methodologies used to underwrite a deal between the commercial bank and a middle market client looking to renew existing commercial loans; particularly a real estate term loan, long-term revolving line of credit, guidance line of credit (GLOC), equipment line of credit, and an interest rate swap contract. Typical analysis in the form of risk allowance, collateral due diligence, industry observation, and company-specific financial and operational strength has been performed and the deal has been approved by JPMorgan Chase & Co. Additionally, the frequency of covenant default has been determined by a pro forma income statement simulation based on a combination of both normal and uniform distributions to determine various outcomes for sales and cost of goods sold growth in future years. The results of the simulation are used to determine probability of default on specific financial covenants in the deal to gain a better understanding of the risks associated with the proposed exposure amount and the client's future financial situation.
ContributorsHebert, Troy Thomas (Author) / Boguth, Oliver (Thesis director) / Budolfson, Arthur (Committee member) / Hoyt, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
The goal of this thesis is to motivate college students to be financially aware and drive them toward attainable financial goals and freedom through budgeting. By providing a foundation of financial knowledge, they can begin to make intelligent decisions about their purchases. After they learn about their current spending habits, students can soundly determine what they have monetarily and then how to allocate that money appropriately. The paper outlines different categories these students should focus on fiscally, like rent and housing as the largest expenses and entertainment expenses as a common pitfall in a college student's budget. Constant financial awareness is reiterated throughout, indicating this is a day-to-day skill to develop. The thesis finally ties up with discussing financing options for college and life in general, with student loans, credit cards, and savings.
ContributorsSchachte, Jessica Linn (Author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Hoffman, David (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2013-12
Description
It is evident that this generation of young people are buried in debt, both during college and the years after graduating. There is lots of talk about the problem, but not much talk about the solution. I created a video blog (vlog) that is about personal finances targeted at college students and recent college graduates. The videos cover different topics in each video, on things from saving to investing to budgeting and others. I tried to make it both funny and informative, so that it would not be boring to watch and each video would be easy to learn from. I made 10 videos in total, putting out one video per week. The blog can be found at : wherethisdoughgo.blogspot.com
ContributorsStaley, Matthew Michael Gallagher (Author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Simonson, Mark (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
With many recent events, such as the 2008 Financial Crisis, still under heavy scrutiny from the public, the payment received by executives at some of the major US banking institutions has been at the center of a major debate: are bank executives overpaid? While many people have attempted to answer this question, it is important to look at historical data and determine whether banks tie executive pay to the performance of the firm. The authors gathered historical 10-K data on firm performance at five major banks (Bank of America, Citigroup, JP Morgan, US Bancorp, and Wells Fargo), as well as Proxy Statement data on how top-5 executives were being paid at these banks. Correlations between how the firm performed during a given year and what the executive officers of the bank were paid were calculated, to see whether the two subjects correlated with one another. Results were mixed-certain banks drew large correlations between the pay of executives and firm performance, while other banks did not. Interpretation of such data leads to a belief that some banks rely on overall firm performance when setting pay packages for executives, while other banks do not, perhaps using internal measures of performance unknown to the public. Extensive further research could be conducted on this issue to determine what other measures might play a more prominent role when it comes to deciding pay for executives at big banks.
ContributorsScheven, Tyler (Co-author) / Mayer, Robert (Co-author) / LePine, Marcie (Thesis director) / Budolfson, Arthur (Committee member) / Sampedro, Louie (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / Department of Management (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
This paper investigates whether measures of investor sentiment can be used to predict future total returns of the S&P 500 index. Rolling regressions and other statistical techniques are used to determine which indicators contain the most predictive information and which time horizons' returns are "easiest" to predict in a three year data set. The five "most predictive" indicators are used to predict 180 calendar day future returns of the market and simulated investment of hypothetical accounts is conducted in an independent six year data set based on the rolling regression future return predictions. Some indicators, most notably the VIX index, appear to contain predictive information which led to out-performance of the accounts that invested based on the rolling regression model's predictions.
ContributorsDundas, Matthew William (Author) / Boggess, May (Thesis director) / Budolfson, Arthur (Committee member) / Hedegaard, Esben (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2013-12
Description
The Confessions of a College Entrepreneur is an honors project with the goal of revealing the business and marketing strategies that Charles Crawford used to create multiple successful companies. It's a collection of personal stories, book notes, millionaire interviews, and experiences that Charles had over the past 4 years of intense business experience and research across multiple industries. Charles wants college students and business owners to succeed in business ventures and life in general. This creative thesis project is the map for how to do just that.
ContributorsCrawford, Charles Joseph (Author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Giles, Charles (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2014-12
Description
The intent of this paper is inform and educate people on micro-investing, so they can better understand this new and growing category of investing. Given that micro-investing is a relatively new phenomenon, people naturally have many questions about it. What is micro-investing, and what makes it different from traditional investing? What are the origins of this growing segment of financial technology? What features and characteristics do micro-investing platforms have in common and what differentiates them from each other? Is micro-investing viable and cost effective, and if so, is it right for you? What is the future of micro-investing, and is it here to stay? This paper seeks to answer these questions and additional questions that the reader may have.
Contributorsde la Vara, Nicholas (Author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Hoffman, David (Committee member) / Department of Finance (Contributor, Contributor) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Axon Enterprise, Inc. is a publicly traded company founded in Scottsdale, Arizona in 1993. The company went public on June 7th, 2001. The inspiration for this topic is our interest in equity research. We believe that understanding how to fundamentally research a company is not only beneficial for our careers, but for our own personal financial learning. One thing that stood out about Axon was its dominant control of the stun gun market. Axon captures around 90%.. Because of this, we wanted to dive deeper. Surely, this has to be a good investment. What company owns almost all of the market share but isn’t a good investment? In our heads, none. But that wasn’t enough. We wanted to dive deeper and examine the fundamental business mechanisms of the firm to determine for ourselves why this is, and why we believe the company really does have tremendous growth potential. By connecting with Axon executives, developing an investment thesis, and understanding the fundamental business drivers behind Axon, we will develop a thorough understanding of Axon’s financial standing. Our goals; fundamental analysis of Axon, determine a one year price target, convince readers that Axon is a rewarding and appealing investment opportunity.
ContributorsGreife, Torsten Markus (Co-author) / Bailey, Eric (Co-author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Licon, Lawrence (Committee member) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Every year, major companies buy Super Bowl advertisements (‘ads’) to fuel growth through the creation of brand awareness among a large, diverse audience. Although measuring the effectiveness of these marketing tactics is difficult, evaluating the abnormal returns (‘alpha’) of company stocks in the five days following the Super Bowl is effective because it provides insight into how actual returns compare to expected returns (calculated using data from the preceding 250 days). Analysis of a comprehensive sample, which includes all Super Bowl ads for public companies between the years 2015 and 2019, accurately demonstrates the relationship between these returns, illustrating the effectiveness of this type of marketing. To account for variation resulting from different inputs in different financial models, it is important to evaluate alpha based on several, reputable models of expected return to best capture the result. In this study, alpha will be analyzed using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (‘CAPM’) and the Fama and French 3 and 5 factor models. Although the ideology that increased marketing improves stock returns through brand awareness suggests a positive alpha, these models all indicate a statistically significant negative alpha for large, public companies who bought Super Bowl ads over the past five years. Therefore, actual returns, on average, are lower than projected returns for the evaluated five-day window following the Super Bowl. In examining alpha and statistical significance according to these financial models, this thesis will explore different market factors that may explain this counterintuitive result, primarily focusing on the investors’ opinions about this type of marketing. Therefore, in researching various discrepancies contributing to the negative alpha result, this study will accurately assess the effectiveness of Super Bowl advertising in terms of stock performance.
ContributorsWynne, Shannon Elizabeth (Author) / Budolfson, Arthur (Thesis director) / Smith, Geoffrey (Committee member) / Department of Finance (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-12