Conversation with Smith and Xan Whitt
In 2023, CS alumni Alex Smith and Xan Whitt won second place in the Global Stock Pitch Competition hosted by the Young Investors Society. This competition featured over 2000 high school entries from 71 countries. As a result of their impressive performance, they received cash prizes, stocks, and a two-week internship at Seven Canyons Advisors. They were also granted a phone call with the Director of Investor Relations at MercadoLibre, facilitated by the Vice President of the Young Investors Society.
Q: Can you share a little background on how you know each other, how you got interested in financial analysis, and what educational experiences in your past helped lead to your success?
A: (Alex) Xan and I became friends through the unique learning opportunities offered at Community School and got to know each other better in our math classes, which is a shared interest area between us. We initially got interested in financial analysis because we wanted to become financially literate and learn how to attain a financially secure future. One of the past educational experiences that aided us in our success was our experience in Model United Nations and in math as well as the humanities. We pitched a foreign equity, so it was useful to understand the relationships between different nations as well as the situation in the countries where the company operates.
Q: During your presentation, you had to defend your analysis in front of a panel of judges. Can you talk about any challenging questions or moments you encountered during the presentation and how you handled them?
A: (Alex) We had practiced the presentation several times before the finals, but we could not have prepared for the questions that the judges asked. One of the most challenging questions was how we obtained our “dollar-amount” valuation for the company. I was responsible for a lot of the data analysis, so I had to justify our opinion. Something that helped me answer this question was confidence and understanding of our math steps, as it allowed me to lucidly explain how we ended up with our value.
