Business Commons^™

Initial Public Offerings And The Failed Promise Of Disintermediation, A. Christine Hurt

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Effective Basemetal Hedging: The Optimal Hedge Ratio And Hedging Horizon, Michael Dewally, Luke Marriott

Finance Faculty Research and Publications

This study investigates optimal hedge ratios in all base metal markets. Using recent hedging computation techniques, we find that 1) the short-run optimal hedging ratio is increasing in hedging horizon, 2) that the long-term horizon limit to the optimal hedging ratio is not converging to one but is slightly higher for most of these markets, and 3) that hedging effectiveness is also increasing in hedging horizon. When hedging with futures in these markets, one should hedge long-term at about 6 to 8 weeks with a slightly greater than one hedge ratio. These results are of interest to many purchasing departments …

Sp711 Tough Times, Tough Choices... You're Not Alone In A Financial Crisis, The University Of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service

Financial Management

When income doesn’t cover expenses for several months, you and your family face tough choices. But these choices don’t have to be made alone. Reaching out for help during times of financial stress may make the difference in whether your family emerges from the crisis with its emotional and physical health intact.

Supportive people in one or more of the following agencies and organizations may help you work through the problems that accompany a temporary crisis or a long-term life change. You pay for most of their services through tax dollars and community support. Tap their resources as you face …

Technical Analysis: The Interface Of Rational And Irrational Decision Making, William Martin

Publications – Dreihaus College of Business

No abstract provided.

Measuring Effectiveness Of Quantitative Equity Portfolio Management Methods, Andrew J. Mesale

Honors Projects in Finance

In this paper, I use quantitative computer models to measure the effectiveness of Quantitative Equity Portfolio Management in predicting future stock returns using commonly accepted industry valuation factors. Industry knowledge and practices are first examined in order to determine strengths and weaknesses, as well as to build a foundation for the modeling. In order to assess the accuracy of the model and its inherent concepts, I employ up to ten years of historical data for a sample of stocks. The analysis examines the historical data to determine if there is any correlation between returns and the valuation factors. Results suggest …

Financial Risk Management: Lessons From The Current Crisis ... So Far, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

The current economic recovery looks long and difficult, and makes providing for an ageing population an even greater challenge. Will economies rebound to provide for the health care needs of retirees? At a conference organised in November 2008 by the Sim Kee Boon Institute’s newly launched Center for Silver Security at the Singapore Management University, Todd Groome of the International Monetary Fund spoke on how the ongoing financial crisis could shape retirement risk.

The Timeliness Of Accounting Disclosures In International Security Markets, C. Mitchell Conover, Robert E. Miller, Andrew Szakmary

Finance Faculty Publications

In this study, we examine financial reporting lags, the incidence of late filing, and the relationship between reporting lags, firm performance and the degree of capital market scrutiny. We use a large sample of firms spanning 22 countries over an eleven-year period. A focal point of our analysis is whether the incidence of late filing, and the relations between reporting days and other variables, differ systematically between common and code law countries. Relative to U.S. firms, we report that the time taken and allowed for filing is usually longer in other countries and that the statutory requirement is more frequently …

The Archway Investment Fund Semi Annual Report, December 2008, Bryant University, Archway Investment Fund

Archway Investment Fund

No abstract provided.

How Surprising Are Returns In 2008? A Review Of Hedge Fund Risks, Melvyn Teo

Research Collection BNP Paribas Hedge Fund Centre

Many investors, expecting absolute returns, were shocked by the dismal performance of various hedge fund investment strategies in 2008. In this issue of the statistical digest, I review the academic literature on hedge fund risks and conduct some simple analyses. I find that many hedge funds, even those without directional equity exposure, have payoffs that resemble those from writing put options on equity indices. A central theme is that their strategies all involve being short liquidity. Therefore, these hedge funds tend to underperform during liquidity crises, which coincide with extreme bear markets.

Style Investing And Institutional Investors, Kenneth Froot, Melvyn Teo

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This paper explores the importance and price implications of style investing by institutional investors in the stock market. To analyze styles, we assign stocks to deciles or segments across three style dimensions: size, value/growth, and sector. We find strong evidence that institutional investors reallocate across style groupings more intensively than across random stock groupings. In addition, we show that own segment style inflows and returns positively forecast future stock returns, while distant segment style inflows and returns forecast negatively. We argue that behavioral theories play a role in explaining these results.

Thierry Apoteker On The Threat Of Global Stagflation, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Managing director Thierry Apoteker and his team at French company T-A-C (Thierry Apoteker Consulting) have correctly predicted many of the economic shocks that the world has seen in the past three months. In a recent presentation hosted by the International Trading Institute, Singapore Management University, Apoteker made a convincing case for worldwide inflation and recession, known as stagflation.

Fair-Value Accounting Provides Much Needed Transparency In Dislocated Markets, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

In the current global financial turmoil, more transparency is needed, not less, say Singapore Management University professor of accounting Andrew Lee and accounting lecturer Lim Chu Yeong. While some critics argue that fair-value accounting is partly to blame and should be suspended, in a recent commentary Lee and Lim made the case for fair-value accounting as having an important role to play in providing timely and relevant information to investors.

Retail Investors And Structured Products: A Case Of 'Buyer Beware'!, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Across the globe, buyers of structured products linked to Lehman Brothers have seen their investments wiped out. In Singapore, the MAS (Monetary Authority of Singapore) has appointed an independent committee to oversee the review and resolution of customer complaints. Tan Chong Hui, professor of quantitative finance at Singapore Management University, has this advice especially for retail investors of structured products: caveat emptor or ‘buyer beware’.

The Dynamics Of Quote Adjustments, Kee H. Chung, Chairat Chuwonganant, Jing Jiang

WCBT Faculty Publications

Liquidity providers on the NYSE make faster quote adjustments towards equilibrium spreads and depths than they do on NASDAQ. Liquidity providers in both markets make faster spread and depth adjustments for stocks with more frequent trading, greater return volatility, higher prices, smaller market capitalizations, and smaller trade sizes. We find that stocks with greater information-based trading and in more competitive trading environments exhibit faster quote adjustments. The speed of quote adjustment is faster after decimalization in both markets. These results are robust and not driven by differences in stock attributes between the two markets or time periods. Overall, our results …

Market Segmentation, Liquidity Spillover, And Closed-End Country Fund Discounts, Sai Pang (Justin) Chan, Ravi Jain, Yihong Xia

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

In a segmented international capital market, the illiquidity of a country fund in the market in which its shares are traded affects only the share price of the fund (S), while the illiquidity of its underlying assets in the market in which these are traded affects only the fund net asset value (NAV). In an integrated market, illiquidity in one market can easily spill over to another and affect both the fund share price and its underlying asset value. It follows that the closed-end country fund premium, P[reverse not equivalent]ln(S)-ln(NAV), is negatively (positively) affected by the fund (underlying asset) illiquidity …

Connecting Resources To Student Achievement: Assessment Of The Indeterminacy Of District Performance, Peter Simpson, Robert K. Gable, Stacey L. Kite

School Finance and Student Achievement

The purpose of this study is to conduct cluster analyses, resulting in groupings of N=113 districts based on socioeconomic status (SES), which is the independent variable and primary correlate of performance. It is a quantitative analysis of N=113 districts in Massachusetts for the period from 2000 to 2005. The study conducts cluster analyses to evaluate district performance as measured by student achievement. The problem is stated by National Research Council (1999) that: “Indeterminacy characterizes education production”. Indeterminacy is represented by variation in the N=113 districts’ performance. The groupings of performance obtained from the cluster analyses provide information about the types …

Money Largely Accounts For Increased Unemployment During Stagflation, Shows A Recent Study, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Is there a relation between money, measured by inflation or interest rates, and unemployment? According to Aleksander Berensten, Guido Menzio and Randall Wright -- co-authors of a recent paper on “Inflation and Unemployment in the Long Run” -- there is a strong positive relation. Wright, who is professor of economics at Wharton, presented a seminar based on their paper at the Singapore Management University’s School of Economics.

After The Acquisition: Here Are Seven Steps To Successfully Integrating Finance And Accounting Functions After A Merger Or Acquisition, Barbara M. Tarasovich, Bridget Lyons, John Gerlach

WCBT Faculty Publications

Although much has been written regarding the factors critical to successful integration after a merger or acquisition, very little research has focused on the particulars of integrating the finance and accounting functions of the companies involved. As with overall business integration, detailed planning, effective communication, and speed of execution are critical. The authors recommend a seven-step process that will help balance the needs of the business during an acquisition as well as ensure financial controls are established. The overall steps provide the key activities to be accomplished and provide specific and explicit guidance. This seven-step process includes: 1. Begin planning, …

Sox Section 404 Material Weaknesses Related To Revenue Recognition, Dana R. Hermanson, Daniel M. Ivan, Susan H. Iva

Faculty and Research Publications

The article analyzes disclosures of material weaknesses in internal control after the implementation of U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) 404 and summarizes the efforts of firms to remediate such material weaknesses. According to SOX section 404, management must issue a report on the effectiveness of the internal control of the firm over financial reporting. It notes that a report must be issued by the external auditor expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting.

Ceo Characteristics, Ceo-Firm Match And Corporate Refocus Value, Sheng Huang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This paper investigates how CEO characteristics affect firm value through divestiture. Using a novel dataset tracking CEO’s career path, from which CEO’s talent and expertise are reasonably inferred, I find when CEOs have differing abilities across divisions of conglomerates, they more likely divest divisions that they are less qualified to manage, and focus on divisions of better match with their talents and expertise. The better match of their talents with firms’ retained assets is the source of value creation from refocusing divestiture. Divestitures that increase corporate focus but not improve the talent-asset match do not create value in long run. …

2008-2009 Revised Operating Budget: Southern University At Shreveport, Southern University System: Office Of Finance & Administration.

All Southern University System Budgets

This and the accompanying forms, statements and explanations comprising of 45 sheets, including Intercollegiate Athletic Budget each of which has been approved by me, constitute the actual Southern University at Shreveport operating budget for fiscal year 2007-2008.

2008-2009 Revised Operating Budget, Southern University System. Office Of Finance & Administration.

All Southern University System Budgets

The Higher Education Revised Operating Fund Budget Fiscal Year Ending June 20, 2009.

Deficiencies Noted In Pcaob Inspections: Implications For Auditing Instruction, Bernard H. Newman, Mary Ellen Oliverio

Faculty Working Papers

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) has responsibility for monitoring public accounting firms that provide audits for publicly owned companies. Among the duties assigned to the PCAOB was “conducting inspections of registered public accounting firms.” A strategy for such inspections was developed that includes reporting deficiencies judged to be significant for supporting conclusions made.

This paper presents a content analysis of deficiencies disclosed in the nine inspections (during three years) of three accounting firms, along with the largest four firms, that are inspected each year. Also discussed are the general implications for auditing teaching in colleges/universities and in continuing …

Digital Storytelling Engages Tech-Savvy Accounting Students, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Singapore has ambitions to become a global hub for `digital economy’ services. In September 2008, Singapore’s National Library Board, National Book Development Council and The Arts House are hosting the inaugural Asian Digital Storytelling Congress, Beyond Words 2008. Themin Suwardy, accountancy professor and associate dean at Singapore Management University, is one of the key speakers at the congress. His topic: Academic Learning through Digital Storytelling.

Home Biased Analysts In Emerging Markets, Sandy Lai, Melvyn Teo

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We find that local analyst recommendations are systematically more optimistic than foreign analyst recommendations in emerging markets. The effects of this novel home bias among local analysts overwhelm any information asymmetry between foreign and local analysts. Consequently, local analyst upgrades underperform foreign analyst upgrades, while local analyst downgrades outperform foreign analyst downgrades. Neither foreign investors, local institutions, nor retail investors appear to be fully cognizant of this bias. Trade reactions suggest that foreign investors overestimate the bias in foreign analyst recommendations while local institutions underestimate the bias in local analyst recommendations. These results are pervasive across countries, time periods, and …

The Chilean Pension System At 25 Years: The Evolution Of A Revolution, Gregory J. Buchholz, Alberto Coustasse, Patricio Silva, Peter Hilsenrath

Management Faculty Research

The 1981 reform of the Chilean pension system was revolutionary at its time. It was the first instance of a mature public Pay-As-You-Go social security system being converted into a mandatory defined contribution system managed by the private sector. This paper contends that a unique confluence of events were responsible for this change. The rise of a dictatorship in Chile, a struggling public retirement system, and a cadre of Chicago oriented economists determined to make Chile a model free market neoliberal economy. This was later followed by the Washington Consensus and the promotion of Chilean reform by the World Bank. …

Software Nightmares, Manoj Thulasidas

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

To err is human, but to really foul things up, you need a computer. So states the remarkably insightful Murphy’s Law. And nowhere else does this ring truer than in our financial workplace. After all, it is the financial sector that drove the rapid progress in the computing industry – which is why the first computing giant had the word “business” in its name. The financial industry keeps up with the developments in the computer industry for one simple reason. Stronger computers and smarter programs mean more money — a concept we readily grasp. As we use the latest and …

2008-2009 Higher Education Inter-Institutional Cost Transfers Budget, Southern University System. Office Of Finance & Administration.

All Southern University System Budgets

The Southern University System Administration & Board of Supervisors Higher Education Inter-Institutional Cost Transfers Budget, Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2009

The Asian Banker: From Trade Journal To Industry Benchmark Setter, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Emmanuel Daniel is founding president and editor-in-chief of The Asian Banker, one of the region’s leading consultancies in financial services research, benchmarking and intelligence. A trade publisher should provide leadership and not be a follower of the industry that it covers, believes Daniel, who spoke recently at a Masters Seminar on benchmarking and measuring IT performance in banks organised by the School of Information Systems, Singapore Management University.

Do Tax-Exempt Yields Adjust Slowly To Substantial Changes In Taxable Yields?, Donna Dudney, John Geppert

Department of Finance: Faculty Publications

This paper examines the profitability of two futures trading strategies: a municipal bond futures contract strategy and a spread strategy consisting of a municipal bond futures contract and a Treasury bond futures contract. Both strategies are designed to exploit a slow municipal yield adjustment following changes in Treasury yields. We find economically significant profits to both strategies. Average holding period returns per trade for both strategies tend to increase with the magnitude of the Treasury yield change. Profit distributions associated with various Treasury yield change thresholds tend to be positively skewed, and median profits are significantly lower than average profits. …