Faculty Recognized and Romick Speaks at Anderson Investing Conference
The UCLA Anderson School of Management hosted the 3rd Annual UCLA Anderson Investing Conference on Feb. 7, 2014, taking over Korn Convocation Hall today for a day-long look into the state of investing and global economics.
Topics touched throughout the conference included “Behavioral Finance in the Digital Age,” “Equity Investing: Uncovering Opportunities in Bull Markets,” “Global Credit: Navigating Uncertain Waters” and “US Real Estate: From Boom, To Bust, To Rebound, To.”Dean Judy Olian kicked things off by recognizing members of UCLA Anderson’s faculty who help provide insights into market phenomena through their research, especially highlighting the recent award-winning paper by Associate Professor Andrea Eisfeldt. The paper, “Organization Capital and the Cross-section of Expected Returns,” analyzed the effect of organization capital on asset prices and argued that firms with high levels of that capital tend to be riskier than firms with more physical capital.
“That’s just one example of important research at Anderson that has significant market implications,” said Olian, “and why this kind of dialog between Anderson and the financial and investment communities is so valuable.”
The final keynote was delivered by Steven Romick, managing partner of First Pacific Advisors, who provided a glimpse into his firm’s investment strategies. FPA is a leading L.A.-based investment firm that manages $28 billion across five equity strategies and one fixed income strategy. Morningstar, Inc., recently named Romick its 2013 Allocation Fund Manager of the Year.
After his address, Romick fielded questions. When asked about how MBAs can prepare themselves for the real world, Romick answered that his advice for them would be the same as he would give to everyone who wanted to practice his form of value investing.
“Learn to be a psychologist. Learn how the world works and how you work. How will you react to pressures?” he said. “Whatever you want to do, apply yourself to be an independent thinker. Do what fits with your skills and what you love.”
