CFA Research Challenge 2025/26 The Local Level Final: The decision has been made
The CFA research challenge is a (CFA-sponsored) competition between student teams that
research a publicly traded company (public information, management meeting),
prepare a written report („initiation-of-coverage sell-side equity research report“), and
present their findings to a panel of judges.
The CFA research challenge has four competition levels
Local level (Austria, Vienna) => winning team will participate in
Sub-regional level final (March, pre-recorded, online) = > winning team(s) will participate in
EMEA-Regional level semifinal (April live, online) => winning team will participate in
EMEA-Regional level final (April live, online) and
Global level final (May, live in Hong Kong, USA).
7,000+ students from 1,100+ universities participated in 2025/2026. Last year’s winning team came from Kozminski University (Poland).
The decision
In 2026 Team Vienna University of Economics and Business 1 (Teresa Cabric, Nina Hoffmann, Sophia Pannermayr, Philipp Höfinger, Alexander Stanek) led by Prof. Manfred Frühwirth and mentored by Kamen Hadjiivanov,CFA won the competition and will represent CFA Society Austria at the Sub-regional level final.
Winning Team_1st from left_Evgeni Radilov, RC Winner team, 1st from right_ Harald P. Holzer, CFA (President CFA Society Austria
Teams and mentors 2026
| University | Faculty Advisor | Industry Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| FH BFI Wien | Prof. Christian Cech | Verna Berger, CFA |
| University of Klagenfurt | Prof. Dr. Martin Wagner | Florian Harasleben, CFA |
| Vienna University of Economics and Business Team 1 | Prof. Manfred Frühwirth | Matthias Runte, CFA |
| Vienna University of Economics and Business Team 2 | Prof. Manfred Frühwirth | Harald Egger, CFA |
| University of Vienna | Prof. Gyoengyi Loranth | Marlon Eibl |
| Lauder Business School | Dr. Thomas Eidenberger | Artur Dolago, CFA |
| FH Wiener Neustadt | Dr. Paul Pudschedl | Corina Moza, CFA |
| Central European University Team 1 | Assoc. Prof. Andras Danis | Kamen Hadjiivanov, CFA |
| Central European University Team 2 | Assoc. Prof. Andras Danis | Florian Kolkovski, CFA |
Subject company 2026 – EVN AG
| Basic facts - Full FY 2024/25 | |
|---|---|
| Trading Ticker | EVN @ Vienna SE |
| Industry | Utilities |
| Headquarter | Maria Enzersdorf, Austria |
| Freefloat (%) | 19,7% |
| Revenue (2025) | EURm 3.000 |
| EBITDA | EURm 909 |
| Total Assets | EURm 11.046 |
| Earnings per share | EUR 2,45 |
| Dividend per share | EUR 0,90 |
All participating teams of the Research Challenge and Jury members, Professors and Subject Company mentors