Presidents Message:

Greetings to all! Outlined in this newsletter is information about our upcoming programs.

 

We're off to another exciting year with the CFA Society Pittsburgh! Thanks to all that attended our 2016 Summer Social on August 29th, and volunteered to be a part of our committee structure. Volunteer participation is what allows us to accomplish so much each year - it's never too late to sign up!

 

Our annual meeting was held on October 5th in which we conducted our annual charterholder recognition ceremony.  This year we held the meeting at River's Casino - thanks for all your participation.

 

Joe Lantz and I attended the Americas Regional Meeting October 13-15 in Miami.  The Institute asked me to present an overview of our financial literacy efforts in western Pennsylvania. We are gaining quite a reputation for our efforts in this important endeavor!

 

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate at contact me at [email protected].

 

- Dr. Greg Filbeck, CFA, FRM, CAIA, CIPM, PRM 

President, CFA Society Pittsburgh

 

Upcoming Events

Central Bankers Gone Wild

Please join us on

Dr. Marvin Goodfriend of CMU.

Dr. Goodfriend is the Friends of Allan Meltzer Professor of Economics at Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business, where his teaching and research focus on macroeconomic fluctuations, money and banking, international finance, and economic development. 

Before coming to Carnegie Mellon he was director of research and policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, regularly attending meetings of the Federal Open Market Committee at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, DC. from 1993 to 2005. Dr. Goodfriend was a visiting economist at the Federal Reserve Board in 1982-3. He served as a senior staff economist for the President's Council of Economic Advisors at the White House in 1984-5. He was a visiting professor of business economics at the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business from September 1988 to June 1990. He has taught at the universities of Rochester, Stanford, and Virginia. 

He has been a visiting scholar at the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, de Nederlandsche Bank, the Federal Reserve Board, the Institute for International Economic Studies at the University of Stockholm, the International Monetary Fund, the Swiss National Bank, and the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta, Cleveland, Kansas City, and New York. He has served on three-person panels to evaluate research and policy advice at the European Central Bank, Norges Bank, the Swedish Riksbank, and the Swiss National Bank. He has taught short courses on monetary theory and policy in China, Germany, Japan, Korea, and Switzerland.

Dr. Goodfriend is a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. He is a member of the Economic Advisory Panel of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and a past member of its Monetary Policy Panel. He is an honorary advisor of the Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies at the Bank of Japan and a member of the Shadow Open Market Committee. Dr. Goodfriend is coeditor of the Carnegie Rochester Conference Series on Public Policy and has served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, the International Journal of Central Banking, and the Journal of Monetary Economics. 

Dr. Goodfriend holds a Ph.D. in economics from Brown University and a B.S. in mathematics from Union College.

"Overview of CFA Exam and Study Strategies for Success":

Real Asset Investing: 

Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics

Please join us on

Michael Underhill, of Capital Innovations.

Michael is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the firm's investment process and is focused on the strategic direction of the firm. Recognized for his expertise, he is frequently asked to speak on topics such as investment policy, portfolio management, and the risk characteristics of Real Asset investing. He is a regular contributor to Bloomberg's Market Sense program & Money Moves with Deirdre Bolton.

 

Michael has published widely on international economic and finance topics and is author of the bestselling Handbook of Infrastructure Investing. (the infrastructure finance textbook recommended by the CFA Institute) He remains one of the world's most provocative, respected financial analysts in the last 25 years. His alternative investment strategies have won numerous awards for performance.

 

His teaching and research has been published in top academic journals such as the CFA Institute, EDHEC Risk Institute and leading think tanks like the Inter American Dialogue. His research has been published by some of the leading industry trade journals: Wall Street Journal, New York Times. He is a guest speaker at the Wharton Executive Education program. In 2011, Michael was appointed Chairman of the Infrastructure Workstream for the United Nations Principles of Responsible Investment. (UNPRI) He is widely recognized as one of the leading strategic thinkers in the investment industry.

 

Michael graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics. He has completed post-graduate coursework from Pepperdine University centered on Fiduciary Studies and Stanford Law School where he focused on corporate governance. He is a former NCAA athlete with his current hobbies ranging from marathon running, downhill skiing and surfing.

 

Private Asset Management named him as one of the Best Money Managers for Long-Term Performance

Highlights from Recent Events

CFA Society Pittsburgh - Job Fair

On Mon day September 12th , we hosted our second annual Job Fair . 

Dawn of a New Era for Oil 

and a New World for MLPs

On  Wednesday September 14th , we welcomed oil industry veteran,  Jim Carroll  to Pittsburgh.   

Jim is Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager at Pointe Capital Management. 

Jim led us in a lively discussion on the outlook for both the global oil market and MLPs in particular. MLPs have gone from the worst performing asset class in 2015(-33%) to one of the better performing asset classes this year, even with a 25% drop in prices during the first part of 2016. Despite the steep drop in oil prices from late 2014, midstream MLP fundamentals have been more consistent than investors realize. However, most investors remain skeptical that MLPs can continue to maintain 7%+ yields with oil prices at current levels. 

 

As far as the price of oil goes Jim felt that we were entering a period of balance. Demand growth is fairly steady and inventories are close to balanced. He also believes that if the dollar strengthens due to higher rates than that will put a lid on oil prices in the $50 range. Jim was pretty confident that the higher quality distribution oriented MLPs would continue to grow their dividends in the 4% - 8% range.

Click here for a copy of Jim's presentation

2016 Annual Meeting and New Charter Holder Recognition

On  October 5th, we held our Annual Meeting and new charter holder recognition at The Rivers Casino on the North Shore.  W e reviewed your Society's operations for the last year, and took a look at what we have planned for this year. We also welcomed and congratulated our new CFA Charter Holders, and spent some time socializing and enjoying the evening.

Bear Traps - Managing Money in an Increasingly Risky Global Environment

On  Wednesday, October 12th , we welcomed a very special guest,

Larry McDonald  to Pittsburgh. 

Stock Pickers Contest

 Update  -  2/17/16 - 10/13/16