EMBA - Investment Club

Investment Club

The Executive Student Investment Fund (ESIF) is the first student club designed specifically for Executive MBA students at Darden. Similar to Darden Capital Management (DCM), ESIF is a student-run club giving Executive MBA students hands-on experience researching, pitching, and directly managing a portfolio of active investments in publicly traded assets. ESIF generates positive learning experiences for its members by building on three facets of learning prized at Darden:  individual study and preparation, teamwork, and experiential learning.

ESIF offers both a for-credit elective and a non-credit club participation option for Executive MBA students. For-credit students research, prepare, and pitch a stock to the fund’s leadership team for investment consideration. Club participants are also welcome to pitch stocks to the team, participate in all stock pitch sessions, and participate in all ESIF sponsored events. ESIF club meetings are held virtually to accommodate the schedules of Executive MBA members.

The Sabre Fund

The Sabre Fund is focused on midcap equity opportunities by viewing both growth and value opportunities in the universe of investments. We believe that the midcap equity universe offers balanced prospects to find emerging growth opportunities in the smaller cap members of the universe and the potential for identifying value opportunities in larger cap names that may have fallen out of favor.

The Sabre Fund managers aim to outperform our competitive benchmark through a process of disciplined fundamental research and analysis. By leveraging our team’s diverse experiences and educational foundations, we work together to realize superior returns while remaining conscious of and managing the inherent risk of our investments.

Leadership Team

We welcome prospective students to reach out to members of our leadership team to learn more about the Executive Student Investment Fund.

 

Faculty Advisor, Dr. Robert (Bob) Conroy, J. Harvie Wilkinson, Jr., Professor of Business Administration

Alumni Board

The alumni board is a mix of former ESIF members and Executive MBA alumni directly involved in the investment community. They advise the current leadership team and provide opportunities to connect ESIF members with the broader Darden alumni network and opportunities within the investment career field.

Phillip St. Ours, ’16 (former ESIF CEO) 
Brendan Miniter, ’16 (former ESIF COO) 
Mac Livingston, ’16 (former ESIF CIO) 
Tom Holz, ’17 (former ESIF CEO) 
Cindy Tahija, ’17 (former ESIF CIO) 
John Chase, ’17 (former ESIF COO) 
Carlos Navarrette, ’17 (former 2017 ESIF PM) 
Lewis Nelson, ’17 (former ESIF CCO)

History

In recognition of the value of DCM within the traditional Darden residential student experience, ESIF was conceived in the Spring of 2015 by members of the class of 2016. Nine executive MBA students enrolled in a fall 2015 elective to explore the concept and set the framework for the club. This founding team consisted of Phillip St.Ours, Brendan Miniter, Mac Livingston, Generra Peck, Andrew Zasowski, Chris Hartman, Liz Goldstein, Joel Starzmann and Mike Paradis.

With support from then associate dean of the MBA for Executives program and NewMarket Corporation Professor of Business Administration, Dr. Ron Wilcox, and administrative support from the then assistant dean of the MBA for Executives, Dr. Barbara Millar, the ESIF development team launched using endowment funds from the Executive MBA Classes of 2008 and 2010 earmarked for innovation.

ESIF officially launched in January 2016 and executed its first trades during the Spring 2016 term. Read more about the development team’s efforts in this article, " UVA Darden Executive MBAs Leave Legacy Through New Student Investment Fund."

2016'S INAUGURAL ESIF LEADERSHIP TEAM

  • Chief Executive Officer, Phillip St. Ours
  • Chief Investment Officer, Mac Livingston
  • Chief Operating Officer, Brendan Miniter
  • Portfolio Manager, Andrew Zasowski
  • Chief Communications Officer, Generra Peck