Buy-Side Financial Modeling – Wall Street Prep

Led by Hedge Fund Veteran Brett Caughran (ex-Maverick, Citadel, DE Shaw, Schonfeld), this program begins where financial modeling training ends — with a deep-dive into how buy-side analysts build models to make key investment decisions.
Learn the “Buy-Side Mentality”
Meet the Instructor: Brett Caughran (Maverick, DE Shaw and Citadel) will walk you through modeling techniques typically developed over several years on the job.

Taught by an Experienced Hedge Fund Professional

Led by a hedge fund veteran with experience at top buy-side firms, this course is a deep-dive into buy-side modeling that provides tools, frameworks and over a decade of industry experience for students to learn from.
Develop Buy-Side Modeling Intuition and Frameworks

Learn to build buy-side models, understand why the buy-side model is the backbone of investment decisions and how it differs from the sell-side and investment banking model.
Understand Buy-Side Modeling Applications

Learn the importance of tracking and incorporating company-specific key drivers into your models and how to set up your model to develop an actionable perspective on stock valuation.

What You Will Learn

Process Driven Investing – Understand the role of modeling as a tool for thesis development in the investing process.
Buy-Side Model Construction – Learn what a PM wants to see from a buy-side model and how that differs from a sell-side model.
Analyzing a Business – Learn how buy-side Analysts go about the process of understanding a business in depth.
Buy-Side Forecasting Frameworks – Gain a general orientation to forecasting and learn key forecasting frameworks.
Buy-Side Valuation – Learn the factors that influence valuation, from growth, business momentum, business quality, capital deployment/structure, and terminal value stability.
Buy-Side Thesis Development – Here, we will move from the model towards a thesis.

Who Should Take This Course?

Aspiring Hedge Fund Analysts
Upcoming Portfolio Managers
Seasoned Asset Managers
Sell-side to Buy-Side Career Switchers
Public Equity Investors

Get the Buy-Side Financial Modeling Certification
Trainees are eligible to take the WSP Buy-Side Financial Modeling Certification Exam upon completion of the Buy-Side Financial Modeling course. Those who complete the exam and score above 70% will receive the certification. The exam is a challenging online examination covering the most difficult concepts covered in the Buy-Side Financial Modeling course.
Program Prerequisites
This course presumes knowledge of basic financial & valuation modeling, accounting, financial reporting and Excel. Students with limited experience in these areas can enroll in these prerequisite courses during checkout at special prerequisite pricing.
Prereq 1 Accounting Crash Course

Prereq 2 Excel Crash Course

Prereq 3 Analyzing Financial Reports

Prereq 4 Non-GAAP Reporting

Prereq 5 Basic Financial Modeling

Prereq 6 Valuation & DCF Modeling
Course TOC

Process Driven Investing
Buy-Side Model Construction
Analyzing a Business
Buy-Side Forecasting Frameworks
Buy-side Valuation
Buy-Side Thesis Development

Course Highlights
Taught by a Top Hedge Fund Manager

Brett Caughran (Maverick, DE Shaw and Citadel) will walk you through modeling techniques typically developed over years on the job.
Used by Leading Buy-Side Investment Firms

Go through the same training program that our hedge fund, family office and pension fund clients use to train their analysts.
Real Case Studies and Excel Models

This course uses real financial filings and Excel models to show you how buy-side valuation is done in the real world.
In-Lesson Instructor Support

Have a question on course content? Communicate directly with the instructor by asking questions throughout the course.
About the author
Wall Street Prep was established in 2004 by investment bankers to train the financial services industry. Our instructor-led and online training programs bridge the gap between academia and the real world by teaching the practical skills needed to succeed on the job. Our global faculty is a group of 90+ highly specialized investment bankers, private equity and investment professionals.