The majority of risk adjusted performance measures (RAPM) currently in use – e.g., Treynor ratio, (?/?)) ratio, Omega index, RoVaR, ‘coherent’ preference criteria, etc. – are incompat- ible with any sensible utility function and would be best avoided. We argue instead for the assessment...

This study proposes a utility-based framework for the determination of optimal hedge ratios that can allow for the impact of higher moments on the hedging decision. The approach is applied to a set of 20 commodities that are hedged with futures contracts. We find that in sample, the performance...

Generalizations of traditional preference criteria such as the Sharpe ratio, the information ratio and the Jensen alpha are obtained by maximizing a certain equivalent excess return (CER) under relevant investment conditions. They are increasing functions of CERs and therefore equivalent...

Many popular techniques for determining a securities firm’s value at risk are based upon the calculation of the historical volatility of returns to the assets that comprise the portfolio, and of the correlations between them. One such approach is the J.P. Morgan RiskMetrics methodology using...

We examine the pricing of Asian and non-Asian credit default swaps that traded during the 1997 to 1999 time period. We employ two credit risk models, Duffie and Singleton (1999) and Jarrow and Turnbull (1995). We argue that credit default swaps should have a positive economic value since credit...

By examining the distribution of state prices obtained from binomial versions of Jarrow and Turnbull (1995), Lando (1998) and Duffie and Singleton (1999), we are able to suggest which credit risk parameters are of critical interest. We find that it appears worthwhile to parameterize credit risk...