Northern Illinois University wins CFA Institute Research Challenge Local Level Competition

CHICAGO - Feb. 25, 2022 - PRLog -- The Northern Illinois University (NIU) team was selected as the winner of the CFA Institute Research Challenge Local Level, hosted virtually by CFA Society Chicago on February 25, 2022. The NIU team had the highest overall score, defeating nine other teams from local universities.

NIU team members Nolan O'Rear, Nicholas Stone, and Paula Veyhle worked with NIU faculty advisor Gina Nicolosi, and industry mentor Ian Long on their winning project.

The NIU team will advance to compete in the CFA Institute Sub-Regional Semifinals being held March 21, 2022. The winner of this round will then compete in the Regional Semifinals being held April 7-8, 2022, with the winner advancing to the Americas Regional Final on April 28, 2022. The winner of the Americas Regional Final will go on to compete for the global title on May 16, 2022.

This year's competition kicked off on November 19, 2021, with the announcement of Motorola Solutions, Inc., a global leader in mission-critical communications and analytics, as the feature company. Teams submitted a written report on the company that supported a buy, sell, or hold recommendation, before presenting their findings in front of a panel of industry experts.

A CFA charterholder and CFA Society Chicago member mentored each participating team. The teams' research and conclusions were based on interactions with senior executives at Motorola Solutions, Inc., investment thesis and risks analysis, financial modeling, valuation, comparable benchmarking and scenario creation. The NIU team winners along with the second and third place teams received various prizes sponsored by CFA Society Chicago.

CFA Society Chicago

Founded in 1925, CFA Society Chicago is part of the worldwide network of CFA Institute member societies that lead the investment profession globally by promoting the highest standards of ethics, education and professional excellence for the ultimate benefit of society. CFA Society Chicago represents the interests of more than 4,400 investment professionals in Chicago through advocacy, education, events, and professional development. CFA Institute, the global association of investment professionals, sets the standard for professional excellence and credentials and is a champion of ethical behavior in investment markets and a respected source of knowledge in the global financial community. There are more than 170,000 CFA charterholders worldwide in over 160 markets. For more information visit www.cfachicago.org and www.cfainstitute.org.