The Capstone Student Investment Conference – to be held next on March 7, 2026 on The University of Alabama’s campus – is the preeminent investment conference in the U.S. for professionals and students and a tremendous educational and networking opportunity for investors of all ages. It is also a great place to pick up an excellent stock idea or two: A portfolio of all the stocks that speakers highlighted at last year's event, using market closing prices on the day before the event, has increased a s48.1% since then, vs. a 15.6% increase in the S&P 500! Leading the pack were Django Davidson's recommended basket of platinum stocks, Arvind Sanger's Peabody Energy pick and three ideas (Brink's, Altria, and Blue Bird) from Steve Schurr.
CSIC brings together investors from around the country to learn from and interact with the distinguished panel of speakers listed below.
Editor's note: See our coverage from last year, which featured Stephen Schurr (who is so phenomenal he was recently poached by Millennium Management for $100 million) and many other top investors. This article is one of the most popular articles of the year and will be featuring in-depth what Schur pitches this year. So if you can't make it to the conference, make sure to check back for in-depth coverage of Schur and all the other great investors who will be speaking.
Also see: Balyasny’s Stephen Schurr at CSIC 2025: These Three Popular Shorts Are Better Longs
2026 Capstone Student Investment Conference Speakers
- Dale Boyles, Chief Financial Officer, Warrior Met Coal, Inc.
Mr. Boyles joined NYSE-traded Warrior Met Coal as Chief Financial Officer in 2017, having previously held a number of senior accounting and financial positions at publicly traded Noranda Aluminum Holding Corp. and Hanesbrands, as well as serving as an Audit Partner for KPMG. He is a Certified Public Accountant, currently serves on the board of directors of Forward Air Corp. and holds a B.S. degree in Accounting from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
- Will Brennan, Managing Partner, Long Path Partners
Prior to starting Long Path Partners in 2018, Mr. Brennan spent more than a decade at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., where he co-managed a concentrated small-cap equity portfolio and served as the Head of Strategy for the firm’s investment-management business. He is a CFA charterholder, earned an undergraduate degree in Political Science and Economics from the University of Notre Dame, and holds an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
- Joseph Cornell, Chief Investment Officer, Bluegrass Capital Partners
Mr. Cornell is the Chief Investment Officer of Bluegrass Capital Partners, which he founded in 2017 and where he manages a concentrated portfolio of high-quality companies. Prior to starting Bluegrass, he held analyst and portfolio management roles at long/short hedge fund Chilton Investment, private-equity firm Warburg Pincus, and investment bank Morgan Stanley. He holds a B.A. degree in Mathematics & Finance from Cornell University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
- Sean Fieler, President and Chief Investment Officer, Equinox Partners
Having worked at Equinox Partners as an intern prior to his senior year in college, Mr. Fieler joined the firm – which specializes in investing in energy and mining companies located in emerging and frontier markets – upon graduation in 1995 and now serves as its President and Chief Investment Officer. He currently serves on the board of publicly traded RTG Mining and holds a B.A. degree in Political Economy from Williams College.
Also see: Capstone Student Investment Conference 2025
- Matthew Fine, Portfolio Manager, Third Avenue Management
Mr. Fine, who joined pioneering value-investing firm Third Avenue Management as an analyst on its international team in 2000, now leads the firm’s International Value Strategy and serves as the Portfolio Manager of its flagship Third Avenue Value Fund. A CFA charterholder and member of the CFA Society of New York, he earned a B.A. in Economics from Hamilton College.
- C.T. Fitzpatrick, Chief Investment Officer, Vulcan Value Partners
After a 17-year tenure at Southeastern Asset Management, Mr. Fitzpatrick founded Vulcan Value Partners in 2007 and remains the firm’s Chief Investment Officer and the leader of its research team. He serves on The University of Alabama’s President’s Cabinet and on the Board of Visitors at the Culverhouse College of Business, where he founded the C.T. and Kelley Fitzpatrick Center for Value Investing. He is a CFA charterholder, earned his M.B.A. from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University, and graduated from the University of Alabama with a B.S. degree in Corporate Finance.
- David Iben, Co-Chief Investment Officer, Kopernik Global Investors
Mr. Iben is the Co-Chief Investment Officer of Kopernik Global Investors, which he founded in 2013 after holding a number of senior leadership positions at such firms as Vinik Asset Management, Tradewinds Global Investors, Palladian Capital and Farmers Group. He is a CFA charterholder, earned his undergraduate degree from University of California, Davis, and holds an M.B.A. from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, where he now serves as the Chairman of the school’s Center for Investment Studies. In 2023 he received a Fund Manager Lifetime Achievement Award at the London Value Investor Conference.
- Robert Robotti, President and Chief Investment Officer, Robotti & Co.
Originally a public accountant, Mr. Robotti turned to investing at Gabelli & Co. and then founded Robotti & Co. in 1983, where he remains the firm’s President and Chief Investment Officer. He currently serves on the board of directors of publicly traded firms AMREP Corp., Tidewater, Inc. and Pulse Seismic. He holds a B.S. degree from Bucknell University and an M.B.A. from Pace University.
- Steve Schurr, Millennium Management
After 12 years as a financial journalist at The Wall Street Journal, TheStreet.com and the Financial Times, Mr. Schurr turned to investing in 2006, specializing in short-selling. He will soon join Millennium Management, coming to the firm from Balyasny Asset Management where he served as Senior Managing Director of Fundamental Equities and Portfolio Manager. He holds a B.A. in English Literature and American Studies from Princeton University.
Also see: Millennium Hires Balyasny Vet Steve Schurr with $100M Compensation
- Will Thomson, Founder and Managing Partner, Massif Capital
Prior to founding Massif Capital in 2016 to invest in basic-materials, energy and industrial businesses, Mr. Thomson’s background included stints managing a portfolio of credit and political risk insurance policies for a Lloyd’s of London insurance syndicate and serving as a strategic and economic advisor to NATO’s International Security Assistance Force in Kabul, Afghanistan. He is a graduate of Trinity College and holds a Master’s degree in Government from Harvard University.
