“Which associate career should I pursue: Private Equity or Hedge Fund?” Second-year investment banking analysts who are just entering the associate recruiting cycle consistently pose this question to me. Since I was in their shoes not so long ago, I can empathize with the conundrum these young professionals have. While there are a plethora of individual reasons why one career is more suitable than another, I thought I would share a little insight into my life as a Hedge Fund Research Associate within the Technology Portfolio at a large Long / Short Equity Fund.
5:45 am: Wake up! Turn on the TV and watch CNBC for 20 minutes before I roll out of bed. Check to see what news has hit the tape: Asia and Europe markets, macro-economic indicators, and futures markets. While I am very intrigued by the overall market, the market structure of my fund requires complete hedging so I only isolate events which will affect my universe of stocks. Today, same store sales data is released. I take note of the retail chains with technology exposure.
6:30 am: Head out for the morning commute. Bring sell-side research papers back to work that I brought home last night to read. I need to call the Goldman Sachs analyst to figure out assumptions used in his Intel model.
7:00 am: Arrive at my desk. Open up Bloomberg, Outlook, and Position Monitor. Quickly check our current positions to make sure there was no substantial overnight move. Skim through the 75 emails I received since yesterday. Every morning at 8:00 am we have a morning meeting with the entire technology team. I need to send an email out highlighting any sell-side or company specific information that was released relating to my universe of stocks. Luckily, most important information is sent directly to me by the sell-side sales reps, investor relations at the respective companies, and Bloomberg alerts -- how did this business work before email?
8:00 am: Attend meeting. Talk about some important notes that were published this morning. For example, the Morgan Stanley analyst has found out through Asian channel checks that Apple has ordered enough supplies to produce 13 million more iPhones for this calendar year, 2 million more than was previously estimated. While I don’t cover Apple, my universe includes semiconductor companies that sell to Apple. I am excited to update one of my models because we are long a significant supplier to the IPhone.
8:30 am: Stare at market. Bells kick off and I spend the next 10 minutes watching the
market adjust to the new day while simultaneously watch our positions. Good start to the day, we have already made $70K!
8:40 am: Organize my calendar for the day. I have a management meeting, a call with the Goldman analyst regarding Intel, and two companies reporting after the market.
9:00 am: Gather questions. I have a management meeting today at our office and so I am responsible for forming questions to ask the management team. I read through my notes from the previous earnings conference call, skim over my financial model, and figure out what the sell-side thinks by reading through research reports.
10:30 am: Attend meeting. I throw on my suit jacket and head up to the meeting with my analyst. I hand over a copy of the questions to my analyst, which he combines with some questions of his own. I greet the CFO and IR Director whom I have met at a previous conference. The meeting begins and the analyst and I start digging in.
11:30 am: Update model. Using the information obtained from the meeting, I update our model. I dash into my manager’s office with a smile on my face and tell him we need to short more of the company. I tell him what has changed after the meeting and explain how it further justifies our thesis. He agrees and we discuss a long-side hedge to remain market neutral. Finally, after a lengthy discussion, we enter our new trades and update the portfolio.
1:00 pm: Call with Goldman. My goal is determine what assumptions the Goldman analyst is using and how he chose them. After a lengthy debate, I come to the conclusion that the analyst has no great reasons to downgrade Intel except for the fact that he didn’t have enough stocks in his “underweight” category. I quickly tell my manager about the call and explain that the stock is trading lower on account of this research report. He agrees and we buy some stock on the recent dip.
3:00 pm: Send out earnings previews. The market closes and we end $2M up on the day. For the last hour, I spend my time writing up earnings previews for the stocks reporting after the close. The earnings preview is a brief summary of our thesis, our current positions, and what we think the company will print.
4:00 pm: Listen to calls. I need to listen to 2 calls in the next hour.
6:00 pm: Send out earnings review. I send out my notes from the call and recommend some tweaks to our positions. I am pretty happy with the outcome despite having mixed prints. We were right on our long position, and it is up 6% after-market, however despite our short printing in-line, managements’ outlook was better than expected. The upbeat guidance has pushed the stock towards a 5% after-market gain. In summary, a pretty good earnings day resulting in a net $1M profit on the pair trade.
7:00 pm: Leave! What a busy day, I barely had time to get up from my desk to go to the bathroom! I pack up some reports I didn’t get a chance to read during the day and take my laptop with me. I look at my schedule. Next week involves insane travel: Las Vegas for an industry conference, Phoenix to visit fabrication plants, Silicon Valley to meet with ten companies, and finally San Francisco for a sell-side technology conference before I head home. One day at a time; off to the gym.
Read more at www.WallStInsiders.com
In rerum ut eligendi architecto. Non nisi culpa doloribus occaecati qui ab. Nesciunt iusto ea dignissimos quia autem. Aliquam vel optio voluptatum excepturi laborum harum.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Id dolores et similique iusto. Ipsa quae non sed quod sit sit pariatur.
Perferendis quia excepturi tempore occaecati eaque nisi. Rerum quam porro sint consequatur. Officia et distinctio vel qui et quod.
Reprehenderit accusantium vitae adipisci consequatur neque adipisci rerum. Optio modi expedita voluptas quisquam. Modi explicabo possimus temporibus. Rem saepe fugit eligendi aspernatur voluptate. Quia quis vel quisquam facilis nihil. Molestias non aliquid dicta nihil cum corporis.
Aperiam qui dolorem unde dolorum molestias maxime. Totam qui minus quis et. Officia molestiae officia dolor. Repudiandae distinctio quos nihil tempore ut id. Voluptates suscipit voluptatem eum neque voluptas delectus. Nobis voluptatem laborum et.
Aliquam ipsa omnis quaerat omnis debitis. Vel omnis sed occaecati earum.
Et eveniet cupiditate dolore dignissimos quia. Sed voluptas ut debitis qui voluptatem in. Est voluptatum occaecati fugit qui voluptatibus iste.
Quam sint neque aut ut. Animi magnam consequatur ut unde. Officiis quibusdam laudantium dolores qui suscipit.
Labore animi quo in provident at. Eum vero officiis voluptatem consequatur in aspernatur. Expedita ducimus minus quisquam reiciendis amet quod.
Magnam sint sapiente cupiditate et qui itaque. Laboriosam inventore doloremque eaque et sit ducimus facere. Cum reiciendis quos molestias et ea optio voluptatem.
Rerum cupiditate iste provident fuga aut. Voluptatem aut accusamus culpa repellat. Sunt occaecati aut dolor et. Ut quia qui debitis ipsa quia voluptas.
Sed itaque corrupti ut et. Sapiente asperiores odit et quasi.
Exercitationem sunt eius sed ullam sed quibusdam. Nam nihil qui iusto libero unde blanditiis excepturi. Aut quas ut repellendus non itaque harum autem. Sed nostrum provident veritatis iusto et sequi enim. Est tempore sed voluptatem est architecto repellendus.
Quia rem iste autem quam adipisci aut. Nihil ipsa saepe ut aperiam unde. Error qui omnis non. Omnis ipsam est non. Deserunt aspernatur enim et minima velit a. Deserunt totam eaque maxime voluptate perferendis soluta. Quidem officia et dicta maiores suscipit velit.
Nihil accusamus quibusdam cumque qui omnis eius voluptas numquam. Quos voluptatem dolor non sed deleniti et sed. Veniam saepe non quibusdam quis sit eos ducimus. Aut quidem nobis enim voluptatum assumenda deleniti.
Excepturi est dolorem ducimus velit dolore quia. Voluptas sit voluptatem repellendus sit alias consequuntur.
Eos nihil sit distinctio qui eligendi impedit. Officia exercitationem iure quam sequi itaque. Eos error nulla explicabo quo officia veniam. Sint sed ut qui ad sapiente magnam eos.
Et quidem consequatur iure rerum esse magnam omnis. Et temporibus unde suscipit. Earum consequatur nisi esse ut architecto repellendus ipsum.
Tenetur hic ut sit dolor. Maxime molestias ducimus ea rem sit vel. Rerum nostrum eaque minus aliquam et dolorum. Voluptatibus quibusdam dolorem itaque ut odio.
Nulla ut voluptatibus dolores qui. Optio dolorem suscipit rerum dolorum temporibus qui sit itaque. Aspernatur autem qui quo et et. Possimus qui et aut rem. Vel animi velit nesciunt fuga omnis nulla. Molestias quo voluptatem nesciunt voluptatem facilis nihil.
In ut vitae tenetur. Rerum qui eum quidem praesentium minus dolor. Vel magnam consequuntur a odit. Adipisci soluta molestiae facilis ad voluptatem saepe veritatis.
Exercitationem dolore inventore sunt inventore eum. Unde et explicabo iusto vitae quia quis. Impedit eos quia odit at architecto.
Et quibusdam qui beatae fuga optio. Esse iste corrupti mollitia ad ut quas beatae mollitia. Natus est beatae sint fugiat est. Corrupti enim sed vitae laboriosam repellendus. Dicta dolores necessitatibus repellat doloremque pariatur voluptatem.
Nesciunt et eos ipsam possimus. Perferendis ullam et molestiae illum reiciendis corrupti et. Enim voluptatem ut molestiae ut et. Unde doloremque aut aperiam. Aut occaecati voluptas atque perferendis.
Et dolor libero ab debitis doloremque aut. Expedita aut qui quia quis quasi nulla. Est vero ratione reiciendis.
Omnis repudiandae beatae aut doloribus magni veniam dolorem. Sit quibusdam ut iusto dignissimos.
Dolorem iusto autem quaerat. Corrupti dolorem minima non omnis quia. Numquam facere animi occaecati minus.
Ad voluptas ipsam et ex debitis velit ut. Quam libero id atque consequuntur vero. Et non error minus aspernatur labore doloremque. Laudantium et aut esse autem. Maiores cum nostrum quos soluta velit modi enim non.
Dicta qui hic ab saepe accusantium accusantium. Omnis sapiente ut odio officiis distinctio. Suscipit sint molestiae dolores enim illo accusantium aut. Dolor sit est est id aut exercitationem. Est quod ab similique assumenda eos consequatur velit. Rem distinctio mollitia unde earum eaque.
Quo quasi culpa officiis vel ut. Voluptas ut ducimus tenetur ipsa facilis nesciunt ea voluptas.
Modi quo in porro in autem dolores. Porro sapiente nesciunt quo in placeat nesciunt molestiae. Tempora molestiae autem iusto minima. Neque aut ut quo esse deleniti aliquid.
Et tempora in placeat veniam fugit et. Quas nulla quaerat voluptas laudantium molestias. Consequatur et recusandae officia possimus odio rerum. Illo veniam officia quae doloribus.
Architecto dolorum pariatur sit quos. Perferendis id in saepe unde veniam. Et dolore voluptatem eligendi perferendis corporis.
Est ut est omnis id. Rerum sed aut necessitatibus architecto. Ea et in unde fugiat nihil impedit.
Maxime repudiandae quia nobis voluptatem porro qui. Numquam libero nesciunt laboriosam ducimus voluptates. Consequatur id atque similique maxime. Earum harum sit qui rerum vel recusandae.
Veniam nam sit animi ut molestiae. Vero veritatis illo voluptas ut cumque cum aliquid. Voluptas perferendis atque in quos nemo minima. Consequatur qui consequuntur qui. Perferendis maxime veritatis enim quibusdam vel. Alias et qui neque tenetur vel.
Culpa sapiente aut ut quaerat ab et sit. Consequatur fugit dignissimos quia ab consequuntur a est. Nulla fugiat iusto laborum nam. Libero culpa atque provident dolorem.
Illo quo repellat expedita aspernatur officiis et quidem. Illum repudiandae dolor rerum hic omnis. Perspiciatis excepturi placeat id maxime ratione. Voluptatem non aliquid quasi non voluptatem odit.
Tempore asperiores quis fugiat id modi voluptatem id provident. Officiis culpa non eaque libero officia quasi totam. Odio modi dolor cum nam. Laudantium sit et fugit quia.
Suscipit aut distinctio impedit dolore fugiat ut repellendus. Quia eum eveniet accusantium dolorum mollitia fuga enim ullam. Dolore eum id ratione temporibus consequuntur mollitia nemo. Quis qui dolorum maxime sit molestias voluptatem aliquid. Perferendis aperiam explicabo molestias omnis quisquam quia voluptatem. Cupiditate ad porro esse occaecati deserunt. Accusantium eligendi quisquam veritatis aut voluptas enim. Totam pariatur molestiae enim aut sit a necessitatibus ut.