We study the portfolio selection problem of an investor who can optimally exert costly effort for more income. The possibility of generating more income, if necessary, increases the risk-taking appetite of the investor. We find the optimal allocation to the risky security as a proportion of...

We introduce a method that relies exclusively on Monte Carlo simulation in order to compute optimal portfolios. Our method is completely general and only requires complete markets and knowledge of the dynamics of the security processes. It is precise and easy to implement. It can be applied...

We derive optimal portfolio weights for an investor who has specific beliefs regarding the distribution of a stock price at a future time. For example, a fundamental investor will want to take advantage of the information his analysis provides when constructing a portfolio.lt;brgt;lt;brgt;In...

We show that a possible explanation for the widespread use of options in compensation contracts might be that they provide a way to screen executives. In particular, we consider the problem of a risk-neutral firm that tries to hire a risk-averse executive. There are several types of executives,...

We introduce a model that captures the main properties that characterize employee stock options (ESO), in particular, the likelihood of early voluntary exercise and the obligation to exercise immediately if the employee leaves the firm, except if this happens before options are vested, in which...

The finance literature has shown that option grants can help to screen out low-ability executives. In this paper we develop a framework that allows us to analyze when options are likely to be optimal for this purpose. We consider a dynamic setting with asymmetric information, in which...