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GUIDELINES FOR THE PROJECT

Assume that you have saved $500,000 and you need to keep them growing for your future needs. You may decide to invest this money in the securities market. You have the course duration to do so starting from weeks 4-14, a 10-week period.

The following is not mandatory to follow, but rather guidelines to provide you with ideas on how to proceed. However, it is your responsibility to document every step and rationalize with evidence your choices. Evaluation is based on the way you constructed your portfolio and is not based on the value of your portfolio. However, combining both is a great success!

In week 1 design an asset allocation mix that is appropriate for your age (e.g. If you are a 20-year-old student you can keep 60% stocks, 10% bonds, 10% international stocks and 20% cash). You may assume any age but you need to indicate your assumption when you finish the portfolio and submit it to your teacher.

By the end of the second week, you invest at least half of your money following that asset allocation mix.

By the third week, you can start buying on margin, selling short and dollar cost average.

By the fifth week, you can start learning about options. Once you make money on a stock you can buy a protective put and lock in the profit. If you have not made money in your stocks, you can write a covered call in order to bring more income to the account to help increase the position. Also, for the stocks you bought you can trade index options to hedge your stock positions.

By the sixth-eighth weeks, watch the market news and their implication on interest rates and your investment activities to reassess the portfolio structure.

By the ninth week, you can learn about futures. You can buy future options to hedge investments.

At the end of week 15, you should be ready to submit a term paper that documents all information related to your portfolio including any research you did or data analysis to support your decision to buy or sell.  All documents are to be submitted for evaluation by your teacher and classmates.  Each classmate will write a one-page review and critique of other portfolios.  It is a fun game – we play it together and learn at the same time.  Let’s make some money!