Using the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation, we derive both a Keynes-Ramsey rule and a closed form solution for an optimal consumption-investment problem with labor income. The utility function is unbounded and uncertainty stems from a Poisson process. Our results can be derived because of the...

If a given risky prospect is compared with multiple choice alternatives, then a joint test for optimality is more appropriate than a series of pairwise Stochastic Dominance tests. We develop and implement a bootstrap empirical likelihood ratio test for this hypothesis. The test statistic and...

We study the gap between the state pension provided by the Italian pension system pre-Dini reform and post-Dini reform. The goal is to fill the gap between the old and the new pension by joining a defined contribution pension scheme and adopting an optimal investment strategy that is...

This study develops and implements a theory and method for analyzing whether introducing new securities or relaxing investment constraints improves the investment opportunity set for risk averse investors. We develop a test procedure for ‘stochastic spanning’ for two nested polyhedral...

While it is common knowledge that portfolio separation in a continuous-time lognormal market is due to the basic properties of the Gaussian distribution, the usual textbook exposition relies on dynamic programming and thus Itô stochastic calculus and the appropriate regularity conditions. This...

We propose a novel linear approximation of expected utility. The approximation guides us as we transfer the traditional quadratic dependence of third-order stochastic dominance (TSD) into an equivalent linear system. The finding also shows a dual relationship between traditional low partial...

This study develops a portfolio optimization method based on the Stochastic Dominance (SD) decision criterion and the Empirical Likelihood (EL) estimation method. SD and EL share a distribution-free assumption framework which allows for dynamic and non-Gaussian multivariate return distributions....

A framework is developed for portfolio optimization with higher-order Stochastic Dominance constraints. A finite system of restrictions on the lower partial moments can be used for evaluating the efficiency of a given benchmark and for constructing enhanced portfolios which dominate the...

A stochastic bound is a portfolio which stochastically dominates all alternatives in a reference portfolio set instead of a single alternative portfolio. An approximate bound is a portfolio which comes as close as possible to this ideal. To identify and analyze exact or approximate bounds,...

An optimization method is developed for constructing investment portfolios which stochastically dominate a given benchmark for all decreasing absolute risk-averse investors, using Quadratic Programming. The method is applied to standard data sets of historical returns of equity price reversal...