INDIA’S LARGEST STOCK VALUATION 

CHALLENGE 
~​Hunt for the king of bulls or, maybe bears! 
 
Introduction: 
 
The  picture  of  the  charging bull standing proudly in front of the New York 
Stock  Exchange  is  symbolic  of  the  prestige  of  financial  wizards  of  Wall 
Street.  Do  you  have  what  it  takes  to  match  them?  The  Stock  Valuation 
Competition,  under  the  banner  of  Finest,  will  test  your  business  acumen, 
investment analysis skills and pitching confidence at the highest level. 
 
Don’t take this competition as your regular research project to be 
submitted in an excel/PowerPoint format, your submission should convey 
enough sense for an investor to invest in that business. Hence, apart 
from the conventional fundamental analysis, we expect you to 
understand the complete business model of the firm as well.  
In a nutshell, this is you trying to convey to a group of people why you 
think they should invest their actual money into your investment 
suggestion. You need to develop and communicate a tangible sense of 
the business in just the same way as if you and a group of friends were 
investing a big chunk of your net worth say into a restaurant business or 
an internet company. 

The judges will be seasoned investment professionals.   

 
Event Structure:  
 
The competition will comprise of two rounds: 
 
● Round 1: ​Elimination Round  
 
It  consists  of  submitting  a  brief  abstract,  the  details  of  which  are 
mentioned below. 
Selected  teams  will  be  invited  to  participate  in  the  final  round  of  “Stock 
Valuation Challenge”. 
 
● Round 2:​ Final Round 
 
It is the final round and will be held at IIT Roorkee.  
 
 
 
PROBLEM STATEMENT​: 
 
You are expected to present your long/short recommendation for any 
stock from the BSE 200. The write-up should state reasons supporting 
your decision to buy/sell the stock. Please follow the format guidelines as 
given below. 

An investment pitch has the following essential sections: 

1) Recommendation/Summary (1 page): Key stock data at the top of the 

pitch to frame the investment idea. Followed up by a short summary of 
your investment thesis and price target. 

2) Industry Analysis: how large is this industry and what drives it? What 
are the segments within the industry? How have they changed over time? 
Is this a good industry to be in? 

3) Business Analysis: A brief description of the company’s business 

model and attractiveness. Talk about its industry position, business 
segments, product portfolio, competitive advantages, customers, 
suppliers, and historical financial performance. 

4) Comparative Analysis: Who are comparable companies to this one? 

How does the company stack up vs. peers on financial and other 
parameters? 

5) Investment Thesis (1-2 pages): Why is this company worth investing in? 
Typically, there are 3 major aspects to driving a stock’s upside: the 
company’s quality, upcoming catalysts, and valuation. Is it a high-quality 
business that will generate superior returns over competitors in the 
long-run? Does it have upcoming catalysts that likely lead to an earnings 
beat? Is the company undervalued compared to peers? Use these 
questions as starting points to form an investment thesis. Furthermore, 
focus on how your assumptions are different from others’. What do you 
see in the company’s quality, catalysts, and the valuation that sell-side 
analysts don’t see? 

6) Valuation: What’s the intrinsic value of the business? Present your 

model and explain your assumptions. Demonstrate that the company is 
either undervalued for a value pitch, or overvalued for a shorting pitch. 
Calculate the rate of return you’d expect in bear, bull, and base case 
scenarios.  

7) Investment Risks (1 page): What can go wrong that would negate your 
investment thesis? Every investment is a calculated risk, and for every 
potential upside, there’s a possible downside. Talk about these risks one 
by one to show that you’ve considered them. 

Please note, you may also use industry research reports to back your 
‘qualitative’ statements' wherever necessary. In such a case, mention the 
source of the research as well.  

 
Round 1 
(Elimination Round) 
 
Guidelines: 
● This  will  be  an  elimination  round  where  the  top  15  teams  would  be 
selected  
● Output  has  to  be  in  a  ​PDF  utilizing  up  to  5  pages​,  including  all  the 
graphical representations (if any).  
● The  teams  may  briefly  touch  upon  the  sections  mentioned  in  the 
format, but keeping it under five pages for the first round.  
 
 
Abstract Submission: 
 
● The  abstract  needs  to  be  uploaded  on  the  Cognizance  website 
before  the  given  date  (_)  or  mail  it  on  ​events@cognizance.org.in  | 
@cognizance.org.in​ with the subject format  
 
● The  cover  page  of  the  abstract  should  include  the  following details 
of all team members along with the  
 
Team name: 
Name:  City: 
Branch:  E-mail: 
Institute Name:  Contact No.:  
 
● The  confirmation  of  acceptance  of  the  abstract  will  be  informed via 
email to the participant. 
 
 
Round -2 
Guidelines: 
 ● The  shortlisted  teams,  after  the  submission  of  Round  -1, need to be 
present  at  IIT  Roorkee  during  Cognizance  2020  (  27th  March  - 
29th March ).  
● The  final  round  will  be  the  presentation  of  your  submission  for  the 
first round. 
● Each  team  will  be  given  sharp  15  minutes  to  present  on  the  stage, 
followed by 10 minutes of the question-answer round. 
 
Each team will be evaluated on these criteria:  
Quality  of  Analysis:  Did  they  clearly  explain  the  business  and  industry 
dynamics?  Does  the  material  defend  the  thesis  articulated  using  primary 
evidence and high-quality research? 
 
Strength  of  Thesis:  Did  the  team  articulate  a  clear thesis, both an upside 
and  downside  scenarios?  Did  the  team  mention  the  main  drivers  of  the 
business  and  the  industry?  Did  the  team  demonstrate  their  variant  view? 
What  is  the general market misperception that’s allowing them to buy this 
cheaply or sell this expensively? 
 
Explanation  of  Assumptions:  Did  the  team  provide  an  elaborate 
explanation  for  the  assumption  of  necessary  variables  while  arriving  at 
the value of the company?  
 
Strength  of  Slide  Deck  and  Presentation:  Did  the  team  speak  clearly  and 
deliver  a  compelling  presentation?  Did  the  team  hit  the  important  points 
of  the  presentation  and  present  the  investment case well?  Were all team 
members involved in the presentation? 
 
Ability  to  Field  Questions:  Did  the  team  respond  accurately  to  the 
questions  asked?  Did  the  answers  support  the  thesis  or  address 
concerns  about  risks  fairly?  Did  they recognize areas for future research? 
Did  the  team  honestly  indicate  when  they  didn't  know  the  answer  to  a 
question? 
 
Competition Rules: 
● Eligibility:  Students  pursuing  Undergraduate/Master’s  Degree  in 
any discipline. 
● Team Size: Maximum​ size up to ​3​ members 
● Multistage Rules: ​The event is comprised of 2 stages. 
● No  Double  Troubles:  Only  one  entry  would  be  acceptable.  In  the 
case  of  multiple  entries,  by  default,  the  first  one would be taken for 
granted. 
● Zero  Plagiarism:  The  documents  would  be  tested  via  special 
software  for  plagiarism.  If  some  duplication  would  be  found,  the 
entire work would be rejected from the competition. 
 
Queries: 
 
For  any  queries  regarding  the  Problem  Statement,  you  can  contact  the 
organizer: 
​Ishan | +91-9429066731 
Prawal Pratap Singh | +91-7355131750 
 
Or  mail  your  queries  with  Subject  “Query  |  EVENT  NAME  |  Cogni  ID  | 
Team Name” to ​finfest@cognizance.org.in