We investigate PDEs of the form u_t = 1/2 σ^2 (t, x)u_{xx} − g(x)u which are associated with the calculation of expectations for a large class of local volatility models. We find nontrivial symmetry groups that can be used to obtain standard integral transforms of fundamental solutions of the...

We develop a methodology to decompose the conditional market risk premium and risk premia on higher-order moments of excess market returns into components related to contingent claims on down, up, and moderate market returns. The decompositions do not depend on assumptions about investor...

Target volatility options (TVO) are a new class of derivatives whose payoff depends on some measure of volatility. These options allow investors to take a joint exposure to the evolution of the underlying asset, as well as to its realized volatility. For instance, a target volatility call can be...

Models of dependence in asset returns with non-Gaussian marginals are investigated on ETF daily return data. The first is a full rank Gaussian copula. The second is a linear mixture of independent Lévy processes. The third correlates Gaussian components in a variance gamma representation. On a...

Dynamic equilibrium models based on present value computation imply that returns are predictable but also generate particular patterns of predictability in asset returns. I take advantage of this to construct a set of tests of Equilibrium Generated Predictability (EGP). I apply the tests to...

When firms access unbounded liability exposures and are granted limited liability, then an all equity firm holds a call option, whereby it receives a free option to put losses back to the taxpayers. We call this option the taxpayer put, where the strike is the negative of the level of reserve...