Reminiscences of a Cornell Undergraduate Stock Pitch Challenge Participant

by Henry Beyrich ’26

Early this summer, Baldo Granados ’25, Daniil Rakov ’26, and I applied for Cornell University’s Undergraduate Stock Pitch Challenge, a competition for students from top undergraduate programs. After sending in a letter of interest, we learned we were not selected to represent Cornell due to high demand, but a Cornell-only competition was occurring in the preceding week. Though we were a bit blue, we immediately began brainstorming potential investment ideas.

On August 22, everything changed. I was reading on a beach when I heard the familiar ping of Google Mail. A slot had opened to represent Cornell for the original pitch challenge – we were back in business!

First Steps – Finding/Manufacturing the Growth Investor Within Us

On Tuesday, September 3, the fateful email arrived. The Undergraduate Stock Pitch Challenge event organizers provided teams with the names of four AI-related companies: Arista Networks, Equinix, Super Micro Computers, and Vertiv Holdings. My team and I would have exactly one week to research the stock selection, pick one stock, and formulate a stock pitch presentation. My excitement levels were almost as colossal as the P/E ratios.

Meeting up later that day, my teammates and I scoured each company’s investor relations pages, looking for the most understandable and relatively attractive option. We recognized quickly that the time required to formulate a well-researched short thesis that we could adequately defend in front of industry professionals exceeded one week by a wide margin. It was later revealed that across the country, many teams were simultaneously pushed into the Arista or Vertiv camps after stumbling upon Hindenburg Research reports for the other two firms. Channeling our inner Bill Ackmans, which of these two companies was simple (relatively simple), predictable (not completely unpredictable), free cash flow generative, and had something of a moat built around it? After much thought and discussion, we set our sights on Vertiv.

The Research Process

Creating a presentation-grade stock pitch within one week while keeping up with classes is much easier said than done. The 24-hour library quickly went from being a trusted colleague to a close friend. Delegating somewhat effectively, we worked to isolate the market’s misconceptions about Vertiv, how the firm made money, how it lined up against its competitors, and more. After temporarily destroying my Notability app with hundreds of pages of company filings, industry reports, and so on, I worked with my team to create a slide deck and valuation model we were all happy with. After some practice, we were ready to take on our competition.

Opening Night

The evening before the competition provided participants with the opportunity to mingle, sample new mocktail flavors and learn from the judges. Eighteen teams from 14 schools had found their way to the hilltop, including Brown University, Dartmouth College, the University of Chicago, and the University of Pennsylvania. Following a delectable meal, Thomas Spratt from T. Rowe Price and Zachary Turner from Fidelity Investments spoke on a panel moderated by Lakshmi Bhojraj, executive director of the Parker Center for Investment Research. After saying our goodnights, we scurried back to the office to practice the presentation a few more times. We were ready.

The Day Arrives

Following breakfast, the competition officially commenced at 8:00 AM. The teams were divided in half so that each judge could view nine pitches. Each team of three would have 10 minutes to pitch and five minutes of questions, with two winning teams per room. Though we did not end up placing, I was proud of our performance. The comments from Tom Spratt following the pitch were quite helpful, and I will keep them in mind as I embark on my next pitch.

The Undergraduate Stock Pitch Challenge in Summary

My teammates and I had no idea what lay ahead when we sent our initial inquiry regarding Cornell’s Stock Pitch Challenge. Looking back, I am incredibly grateful to have been selected to represent Cornell. Our team received formative feedback, made lasting connections, and had great fun in the process. I highly recommend that undergraduates interested in investing apply to future competitions.

About Henry Beyrich ’26

Henry Beyrich ’26 is an undergraduate in the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science at Cornell University. He is majoring in biometry and statistics, and he is an incoming investment banking summer analyst at UBS. On campus, Beyrich is the vice president of operations at Cayuga Capital. Previously, he completed an internship with Bessemer Trust as a corporate research intern on the corporate analysis and planning team.