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Hawk Stawks Take a Top Spot at Stock Market Challenge
On Thursday, December 6, the Business Club competed in a stock market challenge against 150 other high school students from around the state.
Eight members of the Business Club, moderated by Mr. White of the math department, faced 12 schools and over 100 students in a Stock Market Challenge, hosted by Junior Achievement of Northern New England.
The students worked hard to secure a competing spot in the contest. Each competitor was first required to review a crash course on stocks and the stock market.
The Xaverian team was separated into two sets of four students, the "Hawk Stawks" and the "Wolf of Xaverian." They traveled to Boston for the competition, which was hosted at the State Street Channel Center.
At 1:30, the first bell rang. The competition was a 60-day simulation of the stock market, with each day being represented in 60 seconds. The goal was to create as much profit as possible. Before the first bell, each team chose a portfolio of stocks in fake companies. Each fake company had their own characteristics that would shape their value.
At the end of each "day" of trading, news came out that altered the worth of the stocks of each company. Each team would have to react by buying and selling stocks depending on how good or bad the news was for their stock portfolio.
"We invested in a bunch of different companies in the beginning but ended up selling all of them. It was incredibly fast-paced because the challenge was designed to go through 60 days in just a few hours," said Matt Smith ’19, who participated as a member of the Hawk Stawks. "The Hawks Stawks was a top-five team throughout the first 40 days or so, but then took a hit when a stock dropped and we moved into 12th place."
At this point, Matt and the rest of his team knew that they had to go "all in" in order to win. They sold all of their stocks and placed their remaining money in a single company.
At the sound of the last bell, the Hawk Stawks had made their last move. They had come in 2nd place overall, turning $500,000 into $804,054.81 in just 60 simulated days. As a prize, each student took home a brand new Kindle Fire. The Wolf of Xaverian team ended as the 7th best overall.
"I had a great experience at the Junior Achievement Stock Market Challenge because it gave me an idea of what happens on the trading floor each day," said Matt.
The club now looks forward to the remainder of the year, during which they will reflect and expand upon the knowledge and experience earned at this event.
Congratulations for the following Business Club members:
Jake Loncar ’19
Zach Walnista ’19
Matt Smith ’19
Congratulations for the following Business Club members:
Hawks Stawks
Romek Kozdrowicz ’19Jake Loncar ’19
Zach Walnista ’19
Matt Smith ’19
Wolf of Xaverian
Thomas Fryar ’20
Thomas Fryar ’20
Peter Barton ’21
John Coughlin ’22
Evan Sepe ’20
John Coughlin ’22
Evan Sepe ’20
Xaverian Brothers High School
Xaverian is a Catholic, college-preparatory school for boys in grades 7-12. As an inclusive community, we embrace diverse experiences and perspectives, welcoming students and families from all faiths and backgrounds. Through exceptional academics, athletics, the arts, faith formation, and service opportunities, we help young men discover their unique gifts and talents so they can share them with a world in need.
