Events

What is WSWA Market Madness?

Welcome to Market Madness – a tournament where participants pit individual securities against one another using a bracket system. Participants can enter by completing an online bracket where they predict the outcome of each matchup in the tournament. A participant’s predictions are scored and compared against others in the pool. Entrants with the best prediction score will win. See the video and instructions below for sign-up and registration.

Instructions:

1. Create an account and register here! *You’ll need to create a new username*
2. Members must fill out a standard 16 team bracket by March 7, 2021 at 11:59pm PT.
   1. Pool ID: 149669
   2. Join Password: sweetsixteen
   3. Create your bracket and check in weekly for scoring updates 
3. Every week, we will calculate the total return of each matchup, with winners advancing to the next round. Points are awarded based on correct picks and seeding (see scoring).
4. The winner is the participant with the most points at the end of the contest.

The tournament will begin on March 8, 2021, so don’t wait to join! Each week, we will announce the results and participants will potentially advance to the next round. Make sure to check social media and your email to stay updated and in the running!

Scoring:

1. Points are awarded for each correct pick.
2. Points values increase as the tournament progresses, as follows: 
   1. Sweet 16 = 4 points
   2. Elite 8 = 8 points
   3. Final Four = 16 points
   4. Championship = 32 point
3. The pool uses a seed point bonus. The seed of the picked team will be added to the points assigned per round. For example, if a member correctly picks a 7 seeded team to win in the Sweet Sixteen round, they will receive 11 points (4 round points + 7 seed points). 
4. Tiebreaker
5. The winner is the entry with the most points at the end of the contest

Seeding & Players on the Field

The 16 individual securities battling in the tournament are representatives of their respective asset class. Think of an asset class as a classification for a group of investments that have similar characteristics and behave similarly in the market (e.g., US Bonds, Oil, Emerging Markets). These 16 securities are initially seeded based on their 2020 total return.

Guide to Asset Classes:

1.       Bitcoin – the world’s largest cryptocurrency or digital currency with transactions verified using a decentralized ledger called blockchain.
2.       US Large Growth – domestic large cap stocks (market cap above $10 billion) that exhibit growth characteristics such as high forecasted earnings and high valuation multiples (e.g., P/E, P/S) represented by the S&P 500 Growth index.
3.       Gold – A durable, malleable, and scarce metal that is serves as a store of value dating back centuries. Click here for more information on gold.
4.       Small Caps – domestic small cap stocks (market cap between $300 million to $2 billion) represented in the Russell 2000.
5.       ESG Investing – Environmental, Social, and Governance investing represented by the MSCI ACWI ESG Focus index.
6.       Emerging Markets – Securities of less developed economies that can offer higher risk-reward profiles contrary to developed markets. Click here for more information.
7.       S&P 500 – Widely known US Large Cap index featuring the top 500 stocks with he largest market caps.
8.       US Corporates – US Corporates bonds represented by the Bloomberg Barclays US Corporates index.
9.       Europe, Australia, Far East Stock – Equitities trading within the Europe, Australia, or Far East (EAFE) region).
10.   US Treasuries – US Treasury fixed-income securities represented by the Bloomberg Barclays US Treasury Index
11.   US Bonds – US Bond securities represented by the Bloomberg Barclays US Aggregate Bond Index.
12.   US Large Value – domestic large cap stocks (market cap above $10 billion) that exhibit value characteristics including low valuation multiples (e.g., P/E, P/S) represented by the S&P 500 Value index.
13.   US Real Estate – Represented by the Dow Jones US Real Estate Index. Tracks the performance of US real estate investment trusts (REITs) and other companies involved in real estate activity.
14.   International Real Estate – Represented by the Dow Jones ex-US Real Estate. Tracks the performance of international REITs and other companies involved in real estate activity.
15.   WTI Crude Oil – a specific grade of crude oil and is a main benchmark in oil pricing represented by the Bloomberg WTI Crude Oil Subindex.
16.   BEACH Stocks – stocks represented by the Bookings, Entertainment, Airlines, Cruiselines, and Hospitality industries.

Contact phillip@warrenstreetwealthadvisors.com for asset class constituents.