A $60,000 budget increase this semester allows the Oklahoma Christian University Student Investments Club to capitalize on a rising stock market.
According to Professor of Business Jody Jones, two separate alumni made donations of $10,000 and $50,000 to the club last semester, increasing the former investment budget from $5,000 to $65,000.
“I walked into their meeting in December and said, ‘Hey, here’s $50,000 more dollars,’” Jones said. “It’s like bringing them a brand new car. They have been a lot more involved.”
Club President Stephen Amalong said the group last year consisted of only a few people and had little money to work with. This year, the club is made up of 12 upperclassmen, some of whom come from outside the College of Business Administration.
“We only had a little bit of involvement last year,” Amalong said. “This year is when it really evolved into a club.”
The club meets on Thursday nights each week to discuss potential investments and trends, Amalong said. According to Amalong, one major goal of the club has been to distribute funds evenly and build a diverse portfolio.
“You don’t want to get too risky, or else you might lose money,” Amalong said. “It’s been tough balancing it out, because we have never had this much money before. It’s difficult to invest this amount of money and still be safe with it.”
The club is currently invested in 19 distinct stocks, including Johnson & Johnson and ExxonMobil. Amalong said the club has a policy to not invest more than 10 percent of the club’s total portfolio into a single stock. He said they also avoid investing in companies whose values do not align with the mission of Oklahoma Christian. An advisory board of Oklahoma Christian business professors and local financial experts gives the final approval for investments.
Jones said the club has seen a 4 percent return on investment since the advisory board approved appropriations for the additional funds. If the fund continues to grow, the club will make plans to disperse the funds to appropriate causes.
“There is no reason to have money unless you are going to spend it sooner or later,” Jones said. “It will be reinvested back into the college, and that is at the dean’s discretion, because they are in charge of our budget.”
Nine club members will travel to New York City, NY over spring break to meet with fellow students and financial experts at the Quinnipiac University G.A.M.E. forum. Last year, over 1,500 college students from 46 states and 41 foreign nations attended the conference. Senior Casey Lind said the trip to New York is an opportunity to share the club’s success with a larger financial community.
“We will present our portfolio stocks and the decisions behind our investments,” Lind said. “We also have some sessions to attend, where they have nationwide financial advisors and other people speak to us.”
Lind, a marketing student, said she joined the Student Investments Club last semester. She said she was approached to join because of her experience in marketing and presenting data, but has since become involved in the decision-making process of the club.
“I wanted to gain experience investing stocks,” Lind said. “I know my parents have money for their retirement invested in the stock market, but I was not very familiar with how to do trades or choose stocks, and I knew I would learn how to do that in this club. I also enjoy hanging out with the other club members. This is something to put on my resume, but that wasn’t my main goal behind joining.”
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