Mayo Center - Darden Capital Management - DCM Funds

Leadership Team

Liz Paterra, Chief Executive Officer
Darden Summer Internship: J. P. Morgan Private Wealth Management (Buyside)

Prior to Darden, Liz worked as Senior Investment Analyst at a single family office based in Foxborough, MA, where she conducted diligence and performance analyses across private and public asset classes. She started her career on the Performance Reporting team at Cambridge Associates. Liz graduated from Kenyon College with a bachelor’s degree in economics. This summer, she will be interning with the J.P. Morgan Private Bank in Los Angeles, CA.

Christoph Bischoff, Chief Investment Officer
Darden Summer Internship: OIC (Private Equity)

Christoph worked as an Investment Banking Associate in M&A at TD Cowen and Pava Partners in Germany. In his role as Associate he managed responsibilities across all stages of both buy- and sell-side transactions, overseeing deals totaling over $1bn across various industries and geographies. This summer, he will join the private equity company OIC as Summer Associate.

Ross Williams, Chief Financial Officer
Darden Summer Internship: Santander (Healthcare IB)

Ross Williams is an Investment Banking Associate at Santander and an MBA candidate at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business. He has over seven years of experience in financial services, including roles at KPMG, BNY Mellon, XP Investments, and Dinosaur Financial Group. Ross is also the founder of Freedom Financial, a nonprofit focused on financial literacy in underserved Black communities, and CEO of Lumière Gardens, a wedding venue business. A former professional basketball player, Ross brings leadership, discipline, and global perspective, having traveled to over 20 countries. He serves as Vice Chair of the Board at Oakwood University, helping design workforce-readiness programs for underrepresented students.

Fund Overview

The Cavalier Fund is a long/short equity fund investing predominately in domestic equities across the investable market capitalization range and targeting net long exposure of 80%. The fund aims to generate positive risk-adjusted returns by utilizing a bottom-up strategy to identify undervalued companies with defensible competitive advantages and long-term earnings potential. Additionally, the ability to short stocks and indices that are expected to decrease in value allows the fund to lower volatility of returns and enhance alpha. Over a medium- to long-term horizon, the fund seeks to outperform the S&P 500 Index through prudent stock selection and portfolio management.

The Cavalier Fund in alignment with the broader goals of Darden Capital Management aims to provide students with a unique learning opportunity to gain practical hands-on experience and enhance their understanding of security valuation and portfolio management with the expectation of furthering their pursuit of careers in the investment management industry.

Portfolio Leadership

Nate Ingram, Senior Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: UVIMCO (Buyside)

Prior to Darden, Nate spent five years working for Fannie Mae in corporate strategy and digital transformation. While at Darden he has worked as a research consultant for a Family Office based out of Sarasota, FL. Nate graduated from the University of Virginia in 2019 with Majors in Economics and American Government.

Julian Alexander, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Moelis (Generalist IB)

Prior to Darden, Julian was an associate portfolio manager in BMO's Asset-Based Lending group, where he structured and closed over $300 million in loan commitments, and managed a diversified portfolio with total loan commitments in excess of $500 million. Julian will be interning with Moelis during the summer, and is a CFA charterholder.

Matt Roma, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: L.E.K. Consulting (Consulting)

Prior to Darden, Matt was a Senior Investment Analyst at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, where he supported the management of the hospital’s $8 billion endowment across a globally diversified portfolio, including hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, and long-only equities. Matt graduated from Fordham University in 2020 with a major in finance and minor in economics. This summer, he will be interning at L.E.K. Consulting in Boston.

Xavier Vecchio, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Piper Sandler (IB Sellside)

Prior to Darden, Xavier served as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) or Bomb Technician Officer in the U.S. Army. While in the Army, he deployed to Iraq in support of Special Operations Joint Task Force - Levant and augmented the U.S. Secret Service on a variety of high-risk missions. Xavier graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Science in International Relations.

Cavalier Fund Investment Thesis

The Cavalier Fund strategy focuses on long-term performance through prudent security selection, portfolio diversification techniques, and the benefits of enhanced returns and lower volatility generated through short positions. The fund intends to minimize cash allocation and portfolio managers may invest opportunistically across sectors.

For long positions, the fund employs a bottom-up investment approach focused on identifying undervalued investment opportunities relative to long-term earnings potential using fundamental analysis. For short positions, the fund seeks to identify companies with flawed business models, unsustainable performances or financial positions, overly optimistic analyst expectations, and/or signs of potential earnings manipulation and may also consider event/catalyst-driven opportunities.

Our fund will hold approximately 15-25 long positions at all times. As well, the value of our short positions will not exceed 20% of our total assets. The Cavalier Fund is able to invest in all capitalizations and sectors, excluding the microcap designation.

Fund Overview

The Colonnade Fund is a Real Estate Fund investing in primarily publicly traded real estate securities, including REITs and other real estate related stocks. The portfolio can also hold bonds, cash, and ETFs related to the real estate industry. The Fund will seek to invest in single name positions in equity REITs, mortgage REITs, and infrastructure securities. In terms of allocation, the fund will strive to hold 65% of the portfolio in publicly traded REITs and the remaining 35% in real estate adjacent securities. Over the medium to long term, the fund will seek to outperform the FTSE NAREIT US Real Estate Index.

Additionally, the Colonnade Fund, in alignment with the broader goals of Darden Capital Management, aims to provide students with a unique learning opportunity to gain practical hands-on experience investing in real estate securities. Students interested in a career in real estate or the broader investment management industry would find this opportunity extremely useful.

Portfolio Leadership

Nate Mancini, Senior Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Wells Fargo (Real Estate IB)

Prior to Darden, Nate worked in real estate development and investments in Washington, D.C., where he was involved in over $1 billion of mixed-use, multifamily, and office projects throughout the region. He began his career in general contracting, providing a practical foundation in the operation, valuation, and risk assessment of real assets. Nate holds a Bachelor’s degree with a double major in Building Construction and Real Estate from Virginia Tech. He is the Colonnade Fund’s Senior Portfolio Manager and will be interning with Wells Fargo’s Real Estate, Gaming, Lodging, and Leisure investment banking group in Washington, D.C. this summer.

David Kerr, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: BXP (Real Estate Development)

Prior to Darden, David led the leasing and acquisition of retail commercial real estate assets as Associate Vice President for Preferred Growth Properties. David graduated with a Bachelor’s from the University of Chicago in Public Policy. He is now a Portfolio Manager for the Colonnade Fund and is interning at BXP in Washington, DC, this summer.

Micah Kiser, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Santande (Financial Sponsors)

Prior to Darden, Micah enjoyed a five-year NFL career as an inside linebacker for the LA Rams, Denver Broncos, and Oakland Raiders. He also served as an NFLPA player representative during his career. Micah attended the University of Virginia, where he graduated with a degree in foreign affairs and was a two-time football team captain. Micah currently serves as a portfolio manager for Darden Capital Mangement's Collonade Fund, and will be interning at Santander Corporate & Investment Banking working with the Financial Sponsors group.

Andrew Richman, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Morgan Stanley (Generalist IB)

Prior to Darden, Andrew was an acquisitions associate for Island Capital Group, a real estate private equity firm located in New York, NY. At Island, Andrew worked on equity and debt investments across asset classes for two institutionally backed funds. Andrew graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BBA in Finance. This summer, he will be interning with the Investment Banking division at Morgan Stanley in New York.

Fund Overview

The goal of the Darden Fund management team is to deliver returns that exceed our benchmark while incurring a comparable level of risk. We believe that superior risk-adjusted returns will result from primary, value-added research that leverages our general management education at Darden.

Our equity investment strategy is focused on the small-cap segment; our equity portfolio benchmark is the S&P SmallCap 600. We believe that markets are least efficient in the small-cap arena, offering us the greatest opportunity for generating positive alpha. Furthermore, while we are focused on bottom-up research, we are optimistic about a reversal of the long bear market. Small-caps have historically outperformed in the initial stages of a bear market, offering additional upside potential to the Darden Fund.

Small companies typically carry more firm-specific risk than larger firms. As a result, the current management team will ensure adequate diversification by holding a larger number of equity positions (~40) than has been true historically (~25). In addition, careful attention will be paid to matching industry exposure to the benchmark. 

Portfolio Leadership

Lizzie Pettee, Senior Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Pettee Investors (Buyside)

Prior to Darden, Lizzie worked as an Equities Research Analyst and Portfolio Manager at Pettee Investors, a Connecticut-based RIA managing over $250 million in assets. She supported portfolio management for 80+ U/HNW clients and conducted fundamental research on U.S. large- and mid-cap growth companies. She began her career at Edelman, a global communications and public relations firm, advising clients like Adobe and Microsoft. Lizzie earned her B.S. in Marketing and Communications from New York University. This summer, she is back at Pettee Investors, continuing to focus on strategic growth and equity research.

Nick Garrett, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Cuadra Capital (Real Estate Private Equity)

Prior to Darden, Nick worked on the investments team of Asana Partners, a $7B AUM real estate private equity firm located in Charlotte, NC. At Asana, Nick led or contributed to 55+ closed investments across equity, debt, and joint venture statregies, representing $2B in capital deployment. Nick graduated from the University of Georgia with a BBA in Finance.

Adam Tivey, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Harris Williams (Generalist IB)

Prior to Darden, Adam was in the Army as a Field Artillery officer at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA. While at JBLM, he managed a rocket artillery battery of 100 soldiers, and deployed four times across the Pacific. Adam graduated from UVA in 2019 with a degree in Commerce. This summer, he will be interning at Harris Williams as a Summer Associate in Richmond, VA.

Darden Fund Investment Thesis

We believe that the market is least efficient in small-cap segment offering the greatest opportunity for generating positive alpha. Small cap stocks have outperformed mid and large-cap stocks for six consecutive years, and continued this trend in 2004 outperforming the general market by 10%.

It will be difficult for small-cap stocks to continue these outsized returns particularly in an environment of rising interest rates, which has traditionally favored large-cap stocks. However, The Darden Fund managers aim to outperform our competitive benchmarks through a process of disciplined fundamental research and analysis. By leveraging our team’s diverse experiences and educational foundations, we hope to realize superior returns while remaining conscious of the inherent risk of our investments.

Fund Overview

The objective of the Jefferson Fund is to maximize investment returns, while at the same time minimize systematic risk. Diversification is not only achieved at the sector/industry level, but also through asset allocation. As part of Darden Capital Management, the Fund’s other objective is to provide students with an opportunity to enhance their understanding of security valuation and portfolio valuation techniques, with the expectation of furthering their pursuit of careers in the asset management industry.

The Jefferson Fund seeks to generate excess returns through a value-based strategy, whereby out of favor or undervalued investment opportunities are identified primarily through a bottom-up process. We believe that this style of investment, which emphasizes the importance of valuation and seeks to identify companies trading at a discount to their intrinsic value, will lead to consistent long-term outperformance. The Jefferson fund concentrates on companies with market capitalizations in excess of $1 billion and with deep and sustainable competitive moats, which we believe positions the fund to capture above average investment returns. At any given time, the Fund will hold between 15-30 positions. Individual holdings will be limited to a maximum of 6% at time of investment.

According to the Fund’s mandate, it will hold a maximum of 30% of market value in international stocks, 20% in ETFs, and 30% in gross short exposure. From time to time, the Fund may invest opportunistically in corporate bonds or US Government issued securities. The managers intend to minimize the cash allocation.

The Fund is managed against the Russell 1000 Value Index.

Portfolio Leadership

Hampton McFadden, Senior Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Bain & Company (Consulting)

Prior to Darden, Hampton served as an Assistant Vice President at Highland Associates, an investment consulting firm with approximately $30 billion in assets under advisement. At Highland, he focused on private markets research and manager due diligence across private equity, private credit, and venture capital. He began his career as a Corporate Banking Analyst at Regions Bank. Hampton is a CFA and CAIA charterholder.

Jake Busby, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Lazard (Secondaries IB)

Prior to Darden, Jake worked in corporate development at Concert Golf Partners, a Clearlake Capital portfolio company, where he acquired nine private country clubs, adding ~$65 million in annual revenue. In this role, he led financial modeling, diligence, and deal execution, including the firm’s largest acquisition to date and a complex carveout. Jake began his career as an investment banking analyst at HSBC in New York, supporting M&A and capital markets transactions across sectors. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Brigham Young University and studied abroad at the University of Oxford. This summer, Jake will be interning with Lazard’s Private Capital Advisory team, focused on GP-led secondaries.

Chris Holland, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Goldman Sachs (Healthcare IB)

Prior to Darden, Chris was an Engagement Manager in life sciences strategy consulting at Guidehouse, where he advised biopharma and medical technology clients on clinical and commercial initiatives. He previously worked as a bioprocess engineer at Merck, contributing directly to several of the company’s COVID-19 programs. This summer, he will be interning with Goldman Sachs in their Healthcare Investment Banking group in New York City.

Jefferson Fund Investment Thesis

The Jefferson Fund seeks out of favor or undervalued investment opportunities. At any one time, we intend to hold between 15-30 equity positions. The managers will have no industry bias and will invest opportunistically in any and all sectors. The Fund will purchase companies with a minimum market capitalization of $1 billion, with no maximum capitalization. Because of the managers’ bias towards undervalued companies and businesses that demonstrate high returns on invested capital, the managers expect new investments to concentrate on companies with market capitalizations on the lower end of the Fund’s mandate. From time to time, the managers may identify and invest in undervalued companies with larger capitalization.

Managers intend to minimize the cash allocation.

Fund Overview

The Monticello Fund’s philosophy begins with the premise that superior returns over time can best be achieved through investment in undervalued companies with superior and sustainable growth prospects while integrating macroeconomic and local market factors into stock selection decisions. As a result, the Fund will consist of a blend of companies domiciled around the globe.  By employing a bottom-up approach with intensive research focused on company fundamentals and macroeconomic and local market factors, the Fund’s managers are able to identify undervalued, financially strong, and well-managed domestic and international companies in a global sector context.  Further, the managers each strive to continuously educate ourselves with regards to investment analysis and portfolio management theory. The Fund's benchmark is MSCI All Country World Index.

Portfolio Leadership

Dachi Gubadze, Senior Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Barclays (Tech)

Before attending Darden, Dachi was the Co-founder and COO of Stack, a venture-backed technology startup. In this role, he successfully raised $5 million from 11 institutional investors and scaled the company from 3 to 20 employees

Prerna Chiripal, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Barclay (Industrials IB)

Prior to Darden, Prerna was a Senior Banking Analyst at Citi, supporting its Investment Banking teams globally as part of Citi’s Institutional Clients Group. She helped with financial analysis, valuation analysis, industry research, and peer analysis to curate pitch books and deal presentations across various coverage and country teams. This summer, she will intern as an Investment Banking Summer Associate at Barclays with their Industrials Group in New York City.

Santiago Marvan, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: WagiLabs (Non-profit)

Prior to Darden, Santiago was a Financial Consultant at WFO Family Office, where he structured cross-border investments and businesses, evaluated private investment opportunities across venture capital, private equity, and alternative assets, and supported portfolio management efforts for high-net-worth clients. This summer, he is building Kuvo an AI-powered educational platform for children and supporting WagiLabs, a global nonprofit that promotes entrepreneurship among youth.

Huan Wang, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Evercore (Healthcare IB)

Prior to Darden, Huan worked in Investor Relations and Investment at a venture capital in Beijing, China, where she managed investor communications, conducted due diligence, and supported fundraising efforts. She started her career as a simultaneous interpreter at ByteDance, working closely with senior executives on strategic communications. Huan graduated from Peking University with a bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature. This summer, she will be interning with Evercore’s Healthcare Investment Banking Group in New York City.

Monticello Fund Investment Thesis

Buy decisions are based on a rigorous research process that pays special attention to relative valuation on a local market and broad sector basis, profitability, management strength and competitive advantage while taking into consideration both global market and business risk.  As a result, the Fund will be comprised of approximately 20-40 individual equity holdings with differing market capitalizations from a variety of countries and sectors.

Fund Overview

The Rotunda Fund integrates sustainability research with fundamental analysis to select investments that are likely to outperform the market due to the improved long-term financial performance and lower risk features that accompany sustainable practices.  Sustainability research provides unique and valuable insights into management and internal operations of an organization.  Companies with sound environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) practices have competitive advantages over their peer institutions; these competitive advantages can include lower costs due to efficiency, reduced risk of litigation/environmental liabilities, and lower volatility of raw material costs.  Therefore, sustainability practices are expected to yield market-outperforming risk-adjusted returns.  The Rotunda Fund integrates sustainability research with fundamental analysis to purchase “best in class” companies at attractive valuations. 

Portfolio Leadership

Carter Love, Senior Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Hanwha Asset Management (Venture Capital)

Prior to Darden, Carter was a Junior Portfolio Manager for a Family Office in Denver, CO, focused on real estate assets. Prior to that, Carter led operations and strategy at a fintech startup in Boulder, CO. Carter was a baseball player at the College of Charleston and spent 2 years playing with the White Sox organization after graduation.

Alec Bartimer, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Bank of America (TMT IB)

Prior to Darden, Alec was an Investment Specialist in the J.P. Morgan Private Bank's Washington, D.C. team. Alec advised ultra-high net worth business owners and executives across sectors on investment strategies, asset allocation, lending, and estate planning strategies in order to meet their short and long-term goals. Prior to joining the D.C. team, Alec started his career an analyst on the JPM PB's Greenwich, CT team. Alec graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor's degree in economics. This summer Alec will be a Summer Associate at Bank of America on their Technology, Media, and Telecommunications IB team in NYC.

Tyler Sudbrink, Portfolio Manager
Darden Summer Internship: Harris Williams (Generalist IB)

Prior to Darden, Tyler worked as an IT Consultant, Corporate Strategy Analyst for a boat stabilization company called Seakeeper, and as a professional sportfisherman travelling from the US to the Bahamas, Panama, and Costa Rica working on a sportfishing yacht and competing in tournaments.

Rotunda Fund Investment Thesis

The Rotunda Fund employs a two-step process to select and evaluate opportunities: a threshold step (size and information availability) and an investment evaluation step (ESG, industry, and financial evaluation). 

The threshold step requires (i) market capitalization of $500 million and above and (ii) sufficient disclosure of relevant sustainability-related data.  It is expected that companies reporting under the Carbon Disclosure Project, or a similar industry-standard report, will fulfill this threshold of required disclosure.  Alternatively, companies that publish a corporate sustainability report and/or are required to report data to the US Environmental Protection Agency, such as the chemical and utility industries, will also meet the threshold criteria. 

The companies that meet the requirements in the threshold step will then be analyzed in a three-part investment evaluation step.  This investment evaluation step seeks companies with:

1. Best-in-class ESG metrics relative to peer companies and industry best practices.
2. Industry or industries served, and position within those industries, that is conducive to long-term financial strength.
3. Superior fundamentals, both qualitative and quantitative/valuation, which indicate the potential for favorable risk-adjusted returns.