Interest-rate derivative models governed by parabolic partial differential equations (PDEs) are studied with discrete-time recombining binomial trees. For the Buehler-Kaesler discount-bond model, the expiration value of the bond is a limit point of tree sites. Representative calculations give a...

A valuation model is presented for options on stocks for which Black- Scholes arbitrage does not entirely eliminate risk. The price dynamics of a portfolio of options and the underlying security is quantified by requiring that the excess reward-to-risk ratio of the portfolio be identical to that...

We document a surprising pattern in market prices of S&P 500 index options. When implied volatilities are graphed against a standard measure of moneyness, the implied volatility smirk does not flatten out as maturity increases up to the observable horizon of two years. This behavior contrasts...

We develop a simple robust test for the presence of continuous and discontinuous (jump) com­ponents in the price of an asset underlying an option. Our test examines the prices of at­the­money and out­of­the­money options as the option maturity approaches zero. We show that these prices...

We derive discrete markov chain approximations for continuous state equilibrium term structure models. The states and transition probabilities of the markov chain are chosen effciently according to a quadrature rule as in Tauchen and Hussey (1991). Quadrature provides a simple yet method which...

As is well known, the classic Black­Scholes option pricing model assumes that returns follow Brownian motion. It is widely recognized that return processes differ from this benchmark in at least three important ways. First, asset prices jump, leading to non­normal return innovations. Second,...

A generalized Black-Scholes formula is presented for the case when the volatility part of the percentage changes in a stock price obeys a mean reverting Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process. When the parameter of the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process converges to zero the generalized formula converges to the...

In this paper we discuss an analytical method in pricing contingent claims of European style on the assets, whose state variables follow a multi-dimensional Levy process. We give explicit formulae for the hypothetical ``two-price'' contingent claim prices by means of the conditional...

The characteristic functions of many affine jump-diffusion models, such as Heston’s stochastic volatility model and all of its extensions, involve multivalued functions such as the complex logarithm. If we restrict the logarithm to its principal branch, as is done in most software packages,...