The latest
Research
New ways to calculate portfolio weights
This paper presents two simple algorithms to calculate the portfolio weights for a risk parity strategy, where asset class covariance information is appropriately taken into consideration to achieve “true” equal risk contribution. Previous implementations of risk parity either (1) used a naïve 1/vol solution, which ignores asset class correlations, or (2) computed “true” risk parity […]
Research
How to find a safe haven in Europe
MSCI looks at how equity investors can find European stocks that offer some protection against the current volatility buffering markets. Zoltán Nagy and Oleg Ruban examine how the Barra Europe Equity model (EUE3) can be used to help identify stocks that are less sensitive to the unfavorable movements in troubled countries. Using the covariance matrix […]
Research
Demystifying equal weighting
The idea of accessing risk premia through the use of index-based funds and ETFs has been gaining momentum in recent years. Risk premia indexes aim to reflect the equity premia of stock characteristics such as value, size or momentum. Among the risk premia indexes, equally weighted indexes are some of the oldest and most well […]
Research
Tail risk and hedge fund returns
This paper by academics at Erasmus University and the University of Chicago shows that hedge funds exhibit persistent exposures to extreme downside risk, and that tail risk is an important determinant of the time-series and cross-section variation of hedge fund returns. Further it concludes that these results are consistent with the notion that a significant […]
Research
EDHEC puts CDS under the spotlight
In recently released research, Dominic O’Kane, affiliated professor of finance at EDHEC Business School, challenges the assumptions about the operation of the eurozone sovereign-linked credit default swaps (CDS) market. The European Parliament decided to permanently ban so-called “naked” CDS in October 2011 on the back of claims that their speculative use caused or accelerated the […]