Local student rings bell at New York Stock Exchange
Vickie Etchart holds the trophy her son Cameron, center, won for his analysis of stocks. Cameron will get to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange today.
If you’re looking to invest in stocks, you might want to get advice from 15-year-old Cameron Etchart.
The home-schooled high school freshman was named the 2007-08 National High School InvestWrite Grand Champion in Las Vegas last week. The Reno teen was joined by various state officials, including first lady Dawn Gibbons, to celebrate the award he received for writing an analysis on two stocks.
As the high school winner, he and his parents traveled to New York Monday. They will be involved in ringing the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange today. Later today, he also will be interviewed by TheStreet.com for a podcast.
“I’m pretty excited about it. I had no idea something like that was happening,” Etchart said about the chance to ring the closing bell at the NYSE. “I had absolutely no clue. They totally surprised me.”
Etchart said an investment course at the EAGLE Home School Co-op inspired him to enter the competition.
In the essay portion of the competition, he was asked to research both a young, growing company and an older company that pay dividends to their stock holders. He selected Wells Fargo and semi- conductor company Himax Technologies as his two stocks. In the essay, he described their earnings and why it would be advisable to invest in them.
“I enjoy doing a contest of some sort every year,” Etchart said. “So, I liked the idea of it and since I’m interested in investing myself, I thought I’d look into it.”
This article originally appeared in Reno Gazette-Journal.
