Buffalo, NY – A five-person team from the Canisius University Golden Griffin Fund (GGF) will advance to the Americas Regional competition after securing first place in the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute Research Challenge of Western New York. The competition was held Saturday, February 7, 2026, at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).
This year’s win marks an unprecedented 16th consecutive victory for Canisius finance students, who have dominated the regional competition since its inception in 2010.
“This 16th consecutive win reflects the consistency and dedication of our students and faculty,” said Steve Gattuso, GGF director. “It also speaks directly to the strength of the Golden Griffin Fund, which gives students hands-on exposure to professional-level financial analysis, teamwork and decision-making, preparing them to excel in competitive careers in finance and beyond.”
The Golden Griffin Fund team prevailed over strong competitors from SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Oswego, Niagara University, RIT, St. John Fisher University, University of Rochester and SUNY Geneseo. The team will now advance to the Americas Sub-Regional level, with winners to be announced in March.
This year’s winning Golden Griffin Fund team includes Hunter Andrew ’26, Joseph Ferreira ’26 (team captain), Cayden Jackson ’26, Robert Kincaid ’26 and Ashton Pfeil ’26. Steve Gattuso '87, MBA '88 served as this year’s faculty advisor. He was joined by Cameron Rosenecker ’19, MBA ’20, who advised the team as an industry mentor.
The CFA Institute Research Challenge is an annual global competition that provides university-sponsored teams with hands-on mentoring and training in financial analysis. The competition tests the analytic, valuation, reporting, writing, and presentation skills of students studying business, finance and economics. Teams research a publicly traded company and write a report with a buy, sell or hold recommendation. Teams then present and defend their analysis before a panel of industry professionals who serve as judges in the competition.
This year’s CFA Research Challenge focused on Graham Corp. (NYSE: GHM), located in Batavia, NY. Graham is a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission-critical fluid, power, heat transfer and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy and process industries. Graham and its family of global brands are built upon engineering expertise in vacuum and heat transfer, cryogenic pumps and turbomachinery technologies, supporting customers in highly regulated and high-performance environments. In 2024, the company was named Manufacturer of the Year by Buffalo Business First.
Housed within the Richard J. Wehle School of Business, the Golden Griffin Fund was one of the region's first real-money, equity investment funds managed by undergraduate and graduate business majors. GGF students select potential companies in which to invest, manage and analyze portfolio holdings, and evaluate and recommend companies to add to the portfolio. GGF teams have not only won the Western New York competition in the past but have advanced to sub-regional and regional levels across the U.S. In 2015, Canisius’ GGF team won the Global Finals of the CFA Institute Research Challenge, securing first place over more than 4,000 students from 865 universities around the world.
The CFA Institute is a global association for investment professionals. It administers the CFA and Certificate in Investment Performance Measurement (CIPM) curriculum and exam programs worldwide, publishes research, conducts professional development programs, and sets voluntary ethics-based professional and performance reporting standards for the investment industry. The institute has approximately 190,000 members in 160 markets around the globe.
Canisius was founded in 1870 in Buffalo, NY, and is one of 27 Jesuit colleges and universities in the U.S. Consistently ranked among the top institutions in the Northeast, Canisius offers undergraduate, graduate and pre-professional programs distinguished by close student-faculty collaboration, mentoring and an emphasis on ethical, purpose-driven leadership.
