Performance Managerial Skill And Factor Exposures In Commodity Trading Advisors And Managed Futures Funds

Understanding risk is important. Prior to 2008, as the yields on safe assets hit rock bottom, investors began to focus on an alphabet soup of more complex instruments. These complex securities were rated AAA and appeared as safe as U.S. Treasuries, but with much higher yields. The 2008 financial crisis revealed, however, that higher yields on these instruments came with higher risk, albeit too late for these investors. This study seeks to understand the risk–return tradeoff, managerial skill, and factor exposures on the risk-return tradeoff in two financial instruments that have been limitedly investigated: commodity trading advisors (CTAs) and managed futures funds (MFFs). This study begins by documenting the differences between CTAs/MFFs and hedge funds and mutual funds, starting with the legal and operational differences. Next, it conducts a performance analysis, which indicates that CTAs and MFFs, as standalone investment vehicles, provide returns that are higher than the average market returns in bear markets, while carrying lower risk. The strong standing of CTAs and MFFs in bear markets earn them their reputation as “downside risk protectors.” CTAs and MFFs are profitable individual assets but adding these funds to classical asset portfolios enhances portfolio performance significantly. This feature makes them strong hedging assets. As expected, their performance is below that of standard assets in up markets. Chapter 4 finds that the superior performance of CTAs and MFFs can be explained by managerial skill. Positive and significant Jensen alphas are evidence of good performance; moreover, the persistence of the Jensen alphas is supported by both parametric and non-parametric tests. Incentive fees and fund age are found to be positively related to managerial skill, while (somewhat surprisingly) management fees are found to be negatively related to it. Chapter 5 finds that many financial and macroeconomic factors are statistically unrelated to CTA and MFF performance. However, the value premium (HML) factor and industrial production growth (IPG) are correlated with their performance. HML has a relation effect on one-month-ahead fund returns, whereas IPG has a negative association with them. Nonparametric tests support these results marginally. Overall, these findings suggest that both CTAs and MFFs use well-known and well-established predictors of expected returns to generate their alphas.

"Understanding risk is important. Prior to 2008, as the yields on safe assets hit rock bottom, investors began to focus on an alphabet soup of more complex instruments. These complex securities were rated AAA and appeared as safe as U.S. Treasuries, but with much higher yields. The 2008 financial crisis revealed, however, that higher yields on these instruments came with higher risk, albeit too late for these investors. This study seeks to understand the risk-return tradeoff, managerial skill, and factor exposures on the risk-return tradeoff in two financial instruments that have been limitedly investigated: commodity trading advisors (CTAs) and managed futures funds (MFFs). This study begins by documenting the differences between CTAs/MFFs and hedge funds and mutual funds, starting with the legal and operational differences. Next, it conducts a performance analysis, which indicates that CTAs and MFFs, as standalone investment vehicles, provide returns that are higher than the average market returns in bear markets, while carrying lower risk. The strong standing of CTAs and MFFs in bear markets earn them their reputation as "downside risk protectors." CTAs and MFFs are profitable individual assets but adding these funds to classical asset portfolios enhances portfolio performance significantly. This feature makes them strong hedging assets. As expected, their performance is below that of standard assets in up markets. Chapter 4 finds that the superior performance of CTAs and MFFs can be explained by managerial skill. Positive and significant Jensen alphas are evidence of good performance; moreover, the persistence of the Jensen alphas is supported by both parametric and non-parametric tests. Incentive fees and fund age are found to be positively related to managerial skill, while (somewhat surprisingly) management fees are found to be negatively related to it. Chapter 5 finds that many financial and macroeconomic factors are statistically unrelated to CTA and MFF performance. However, the value premium (HML) factor and industrial production growth (IPG) are correlated with their performance. HML has a relation effect on one-month-ahead fund returns, whereas IPG has a negative association with them. Nonparametric tests support these results marginally. Overall, these findings suggest that both CTAs and MFFs use well-known and well-established predictors of expected returns to generate their alphas"--

Authoritative, up-to-date research and analysis that provides a dramatic new understanding of the rewards-and risks-of investing in CTAs Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) are an increasingly popular and potentially profitable investment alternative for institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals. Commodity Trading Advisors is one of the first books to study their performance in detail and analyze the "survivorship bias" present in CTA performance data. This book investigates the many benefits and risks associated with CTAs, examining the risk/return characteristics of a number of different strategies deployed by CTAs from a sophisticated investor's perspective. A contributed work, its editors and contributing authors are among today's leading voices on the topic of commodity trading advisors and a veritable "Who's Who" in hedge fund and CTA research. Greg N. Gregoriou (Plattsburgh, NY) is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Finance and Research Coordinator in the School of Business and Economics at the State University of New York. Vassilios N. Karavas (Amherst, MA) is Director of Research at Schneeweis Partners. Francois-Serge Lhabitant (Coppet, Switzerland) is a FAME Research Fellow, and a Professor of Finance at EDHEC (France) and at HEC University of Lausanne (Switzerland). Fabrice Rouah (Montreal, Quebec) is Institut de Finance Mathématique de Montréal Scholar in the finance program at McGill University.

An all-inclusive guide to trend following As more and more savvy investors move into the space, trend following has become one of the most popular investment strategies. Written for investors and investment managers, Trend Following with Managed Futures offers an insightful overview of both the basics and theoretical foundations for trend following. The book also includes in-depth coverage of more advanced technical aspects of systematic trend following. The book examines relevant topics such as: Trend following as an alternative asset class Benchmarking and factor decomposition Applications for trend following in an investment portfolio And many more By focusing on the investor perspective, Trend Following with Managed Futures is a groundbreaking and invaluable resource for anyone interested in modern systematic trend following.

Investment Performance Measurement Over the past two decades, the importance of measuring, presenting, and evaluating investment performance results has dramatically increased. With the growth of capital market data services, the development of quantitative analytical techniques, and the widespread acceptance of Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS®), this discipline has emerged as a central component of effective asset management and, thanks in part to the Certificate in Investment Performance Measurement (CIPM) program, has become a recognized area of specialization for investment professionals. That's why Investment Performance Measurement: Evaluating and Presenting Results the second essential title in the CFA Institute Investment Perspectives series has been created. CFA Institute has a long tradition of publishing content from industry thought leaders, and now this new collection offers unparalleled guidance to those working in the rapidly evolving field of investment management. Drawing from the Research Foundation of CFA Institute, the Financial Analysts Journal, CFA Institute Conference Proceedings Quarterly, CFA Magazine, and the CIPM curriculum, this reliable resource taps into the vast store of knowledge of some of today's most prominent thought leaders from industry professionals to respected academics who have focused on investment performance evaluation for a majority of their careers. Divided into five comprehensive parts, this timely volume opens with an extensive overview of performance measurement, attribution, and appraisal. Here, you'll become familiar with everything from the algebra of time-weighted and money-weighted rates of return to the objectives and techniques of performance appraisal. After this informative introduction, Investment Performance Measurement moves on to: Provide a solid understanding of the theoretical grounds for benchmarking and the trade-offs encountered during practice in Part II: Performance Measurement Describe the different aspects of attribution analysis as well as the determinants of portfolio performance in Part III: Performance Attribution Address everything from hedge fund risks and returns to fund management changes and equity style shifts in Part IV: Performance Appraisal Recount the history and explain the provisions of the GIPS standards with attention paid to the many practical issues that arise in the course of its implementation in Part V: Global Investment Performance Standards Filled with invaluable insights from more than fifty experienced contributors, this practical guide will enhance your understanding of investment performance measurement and put you in a better position to present and evaluate results in the most effective way possible.

Whether already experienced with hedge funds or just thinking about investing in them, readers need a firm understanding of this unique investment vehicle in order to achieve maximum success. Hedge Funds unites over thirty of the top practitioners and academics in the hedge fund industry to provide readers with the latest findings in this field. Their analysis deals with a variety of topics, from new methods of performance evaluation to portfolio allocation and risk/return matters. Although some of the information is technical in nature, an understanding and applicability of the results as well as theoretical developments are stressed. Filled with in-depth insight and expert advice, Hedge Funds helps readers make the most of this flexible investment vehicle.

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