KNOXVILLE – University students participating in the Tennessee Valley Authority Investment Challenge Program delivered double-digit returns, outpacing the S&P 500 in 2017.
“Our student investors exceeded expectations by beating the S&P 500 average and outperforming last year’s strong financial market,” said TVA Vice President, Treasurer, and Chief Risk Officer Tammy Wilson. “We care about our students’ success, and the ICP is a smart investment in their future as we work to train and foster the next generation of financial leaders in the Valley.”
Earlier this month, TVA recognized more than 200 students from 25 universities in TVA’s seven-state service area for generating a 23.88 percent average return on investment. Nineteen teams produced returns above that of the S&P 500, which only returned 21.83 percent. Students that outperform the S&P 500 in a calendar year earn performance awards for their respective universities.
The top three performing ICP teams in 2017 and their annual returns are:
• Western Carolina University, 29.54 percent
• Tennessee Tech University, 29.41 percent
• Western Kentucky University, 29.25 percent
“For the past 20 years, TVA has partnered with the region’s top universities to help over 9,000 business students learn to invest, giving them an advantage in today’s competitive job market,” said Wilson.
With more than $13 million in assets, TVA’s ICP is delivering results by growing into one of the nation’s largest and most successful student-managed investment programs. Student teams gain hands-on financial asset management experience that they could never get reading a textbook. They actively manage stock portfolios for TVA, design long-term investment strategies and select investments under the guidance of faculty members and within investment guidelines established and monitored by TVA.
While the S&P 500 has returned 6.46 percent since the ICP was established in 1998, the students have collectively outperformed the benchmark by a cumulative 32 percent.
Other participating universities are Alabama A&M University, Austin Peay State University, Belmont University, Christian Brothers University, East Tennessee State University, Lipscomb University, Middle Tennessee State University, Mississippi State University, Mississippi University for Women, Murray State University, Tennessee State University, Trevecca University, University of Alabama at Huntsville, University of Kentucky, University of Memphis, University of Mississippi, University of North Alabama, Union University, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, University of Tennessee at Martin, and Vanderbilt University.
For more information about the ICP, visit www.tvainvestmentchallenge.com.
