We introduce a decomposition showing precisely how actively-managed portfolio returns can be separated into three measurable components that we call Opportunity, Foresight, and Active Management Risk. Opportunity reflects the degree to which the investment opportunity set contains exploitable...

This paper demonstrates that liquidity risk as measured by the covariation of fund returns with unexpected changes in aggregate liquidity is an important predictor of hedge-fund performance. The results show that funds that significantly load on liquidity risk subsequently outperform low-loading...

A model of building and using synthetic straddles has been developed; it enables an investor to significantly reduce its individual equity risk related to its own basic assets, i.e. shares. The Black-Scholes model, which is regarded as a classical model, cannot be used for this purpose for the...

This study examines the sources of credit risk associated with asset securitizations and whether credit rating agencies and the bond market differ in their assessment of this risk. Measuring credit risk using credit ratings, we find the securitizing firm's credit risk is positively related to...

This paper demonstrates that liquidity risk as measured by the covariation of fund returns with unexpected changes in aggregate liquidity is an important determinant in the cross- section of hedge-fund returns. The results show that funds that significantly load on liquidity risk subsequently...

A growing body of literature suggests that over widely varying historical eras and across a wide range of asset classes momentum investing, often accompanied by a trend following overlay, provides superior risk-adjusted returns. We examine the effectiveness of applying these methodologies to...

This paper shows that exposure to aggregate distress risk is the underlying source of the premiums for the Fama-French size (SMB) and value (HML) factors. Using a unique dataset of aggregate business failures of both private and public firms from 1926 to 1997, I build portfolios that track news...

Approximate factor models and their extensions are widely used in economic analysis and forecasting due to their ability to extracting useful information from a large number of relevant variables. In these models, candidate predictors are typically subject to some common components. In this...