Some exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are specifically designed for harvesting factor premiums, such as the size, value, momentum and low-volatility effects. Other ETFs, however, may implicitly go against these factors. This paper analyzes the factor exposures of US equity ETFs and finds that,...

We dissect the realized performance of factor-based equity portfolios using a characteristics-based multi-factor return model. We show that generic single-factor portfolios, which invest in stocks with high scores on one particular factor, are sub-optimal because they ignore the possibility that...

I argue that delegated portfolio management can cause the equilibrium relation between CAPM beta and expected stock returns to become flat, instead of linearly positive, and propose an alternative to the widely used Fama and French (1993) 3-factor asset pricing model which incorporates this...

We explore the cross-section of factor returns using a sample of 150+ equity factors. Most factors exhibit a positive premium and a negative market beta in the long run. Factor themes with a clear positive beta, in particular low leverage and size, have no alpha after controlling for this beta...

This paper examines the exposures of low-volatility portfolios to various sources of systematic risk. Our analysis includes interest rate, implied volatility, liquidity, commodity, sentiment, macroeconomic, and climate risk factors. We find that low-volatility portfolios lower the exposure to...

The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) predicts a positive relation between risk and return, but empirical studies find the actual relation to be flat, or even negative. This paper provides a broad overview of explanations for this ‘volatility effect' that have been proposed in different...

Betas are used in many applications ranging from asset pricing tests, cost of capital estimation, investment management and risk management. Beta needs to be estimated, and to reduce estimation error, shrinkage to its cross-sectional average value of one is often applied. Since beta is the...

High-risk stocks do not have higher returns than low-risk stocks in all major stock markets. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of this low-risk effect, from the earliest asset pricing studies in the nineteen seventies to the most recent empirical findings and interpretations since....

Some exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are specifically designed for harvesting factor premiums, such as the size, value, momentum, and low-volatility effects. Other ETFs, however, may implicitly go against these factors. This paper analyzes the factor exposures of U.S. equity ETFs and finds that,...

This paper seeks to uncover the drivers of the idiosyncratic momentum anomaly. We show that: (I) idiosyncratic momentum is a distinct phenomenon that exists next to conventional momentum and is not explained by it; (ii) idiosyncratic momentum is priced in the cross-section of stock returns after...