Finance and Financial Management Commons^™

A Comparison Of Costs And Returns For Organic And Conventional Cabernet Sauvignon Grape Production In San Luis Obispo County, Amanda N. Johansen

Agribusiness

This study examined the differences in costs and profitability for established conventional and organic Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in the Edna Valley region of San Luis Obispo County, California. The study used a partial budgeting approach to compare cost and profitability for established vineyards for 2009, and thus ignored transition costs. Data were obtained from UC Davis cost studies for organic and conventional grape production in other regions of California in previous years. Adjustments made to these costs to account for changes in input use, input costs and grape prices in San Luis Obispo County during the 2009 growing season.

The …

Weathering The Storm: Asian Hedge Funds, Melvyn Teo

Research Collection BNP Paribas Hedge Fund Centre

How has the financial crisis shaped the hedge fund industry in Asia? We survey the style, investment region, and assets under management landscape of Asia-based hedge funds before and after the recent economic downturn. Our findings suggest that during the early part of the crisis in 2007, macro and fixed income funds based in Australia were especially vulnerable. When Asian financial markets succumbed in 2008 and 2009, hedge fund exits ramped up in Singapore and Hong Kong, particularly amongst event driven and Japan-focused funds. Small funds were most susceptible to closure during the liquidity crunch. Conversely, CTAs and Greater China-focused …

Secrets And Lies: How One Man Charmed His Way Into The Hearts, Minds And Wallets Of New York's Rich And Powerful, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Bernie Madoff’s reputation as the largest ponzi scheme operator will probably outlast the 150-year jail sentence he is now serving. For decades, the man created an aura around himself that spoke to the romantic ambitions of Wall Street's sycophants: unyielding success, exclusivity and power. Moreover, Madoff conjured a mystique so intriguing he had investors practically begging to surrender their money. But not everyone was blinded. Harry Markopolos, a financial consultant turned famous whistleblower, was convinced that the magician hath no magical abilities. For close to ten years, he nudged US regulators to no avail. His journey is detailed in the …

Side-By-Side Management Of Hedge Funds And Mutual Funds, Tom Nohel, Z. Jay Wang, Lu Zheng

Research Collection BNP Paribas Hedge Fund Centre

We examine situations where the same fund manager simultaneously manages mutual funds and hedge funds. We refer to this as side-by-side management. We document 344 such cases involving 693 mutual funds and 538 hedge funds. Proponents of this practice argue that it is essential to hire and retain star performers. Detractors argue that the temptation for abuse is high and the practice should be banned. Our analysis based on various performance metrics shows that side-by-side mutual fund managers significantly outperform peer funds, consistent with this privilege being granted primarily to star performers. Interestingly, side-by-side hedge fund managers are at best …

Study Questions For Actuarial Exam 2/Fm, Aaron Hardiek

Statistics

No abstract provided.

Trial And Budget Analysis Of Two Synchronized Artificial Insemination Breeding Programs For Beef First Calf Heifers, John Nino

Agribusiness

This study was designed to compare the benefits and costs of two different synchronized artificial insemination programs on two groups of beef first calf heifers. A financial budget was developed that would include cost of synchronized insemination per animal and the added value of a bred heifer compared to an open one.

The two synchronized programs were called controlled internal drug release (CIDR) and Ovsynch. They used a specific timeline and drugs to complete the synchronization process. A single low birth weight high calving ease bull was used for both groups to enforce conformity between the groups. Costs of all …

The Relationship Between Stock Price And Currency Exchange Rate In Malaysia : The Case Before Pegging And After Depegging Of Ringgit Malaysia., Ooi Beng Hooi

Student Works (2010-2019)

This study examines the relationship between stock price and currency exchange rate in Malaysia for the periods before pegging and after depegging of Ringgit Malaysia. Various econometrics tests are performed to find out the coefficients of correlation, beta coefficients, stationary of stock price and currency exchange rate, cointegration and Granger causality. It is found that stock price and strength of Ringgit are strongly and positively correlated, unilateral causality from stock price to currency exchange rate before pegging of Ringgit. However, the relationship between the two variables has become less significant as the correlation and degree of cointegration has become weaker …

Naira Convertibility: The Journey So Far, Moses K. Tule

Bullion

This paper examines the path to Naira Convertibility, the Journey so far. lt avers that convertibility is pursued by countries either as an economic management approach or as a tool for achieving higher reckoning on the global economic stage. Consequently, the examples of Argentina, Chile, Peru, Brazil, etc could fall in the first category while the Russian Rubble push could qualify for the second group. Nigeria's efforts at Naira convertibility would fall. The paper suggested that Nigeria should initiate a more realistic Naira convertibility programme through trade guarantees where it insists that imports from Nigeria from member ECOWAS members would …

An Overview Of Financial Sector Reforms And Intermediation In Nigeria, George Okorie, Uche J. Uwaleke

Bullion

_{Financial systems all over the world play very important roles in the development and growth of the economy. However, the effectiveness and efficiency of the system as well as its scope and capacity varies quite considerably among economies. This is partly because of the varied levels of ,development. More developed financial systems tend to be associated with the more developed economies. This paper advocates the speedy adoption of international financial reporting standard for all Nigerian banks (currently in the pipeline). This reform, while by no means a cure-all for problems of bank transparency, would nonetheless be a significant step forward, …}

Islamic Banking In Nigeria: Issues And Prospects, Ismaila S. Abdullahi

Bullion

This paper analyzes the challenging issues and highlight the prospects of Islamic banking in Nigeria. Following this introduction is section two which discusses the evolution of Islamic banking including the basic principles as well as the products/services offered by the system. Section three reviews Islamic banking practices in Nigeria. Section four analyzes the challenging issues and highlights the prospects of practicing Islamic banking in Nigeria. Section five concludes the paper and proffers policy recommendations.

Information-Based Trading And The Bid-Ask Spread, Kee H. Chung, Jing Jiang

WCBT Faculty Publications

We analyze the equilibrium spread when the transaction size of informed traders is elastic in the value of private information (α). We show that the pooling equilibrium is likely to be inefficient when trade size is sensitive to α and the inefficient equilibrium can occur before the market breaks down. The pooling equilibrium spread does not monotonically increase with α, although it increases with the elasticity of informed trades to α. The upper bound of the elasticity of informed trades for the market to remain open for the active specialist is higher than the corresponding value for the passive specialist …

Firm Value And The Tax Benefits Of Debt : A Study On Public Listed Company In Malaysia., Izam Syaharadzi Ahmad Sofian

Student Works (2010-2019)

This study has three main objectives. First, to empirically defines the relationship between firm value and debt of Public Listed Company in Malaysia once endogeneity of contemporaneous debt is corrected. Secondly the study looks into the possibility impact of alternative theories such as Free Cash Flow and Debt Signaling Hypotheses to the relationship between firm value and debt. Finally, it examines the influence of managerial ownership towards firm value and how it affects the benefits of debts. This study uses interest expense scaled by total assets as proxy of debt. The relationship between firm value and debt is statistically tested …

The Effect Of Firm Characteristics On Capital Structure : An Empirical Study., Andrew Hon Ming Chong

Student Works (2010-2019)

The effect of firm characteristics on capital structure has been tested for thisstudy. Sample is randomly drawn from 60 manufacturing firms listed in theMain Market of Bursa Malaysia for a period from year 2004 to 2008 which totalling 300 data. A regression model is formed amongst one dependentvariable, five independent variables, and one dummy variable to study the relationship and effect between firm characteristics and capital structure. The results reveal that firm size has a positive relation to capital structure whereas interest coverage ratio, profitability, and growth opportunities have an inverse relation to capital structure. While tangibility alone is found …

Investment Performance Of Domestic And International Equity Funds In Malaysia., Choo Chih Tung

Student Works (2010-2019)

The a exploration on the performance of the unit trust funds in Malaysia is becoming more and more important nowadays as there is an increased demand and it is perceived to be able to provide better returns by diversifying its investment portfolio. This study focus on the excess returns provided by the unit trust funds when compare with the four market indexes. The returns from both Domestic Equity Funds and International Equity Funds were compare with the Bursa Malaysia (KLCI), Morgan Stanley World Index (MXWO), Morgan Stanley Asia Pacific ex-Japan (MXAPJ) and Europe, Australia and Far East Index (MXEA).

The …

Macroeconomics Stress Testing On Malaysia Commercial Banks' Credit Portfolios., Foo Chii Shia

Student Works (2010-2019)

In the research paper, quarterly data on Non-performing Loan (NPL) for commercial banks in Malaysia over the time period of quarter 1, 1998 to quarter 4, 2009 together with 5 macroeconomic indicators i.e. Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Consumer Price Index (CPI), FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (KLCI), Unemployment rate and House Property Index are collected to form a credit risk model. The estimated model is employed to analyse banking credit risks conditional on current macroeconomic conditions. Stepwise multiple regression method has been used which to select the useful subsets of variables and to evaluate the order of importance of variables. Furthermore, …

Explaining The Saving-Investment Relationship With Threshold Effects, Unro Lee

Eberhardt School of Business Faculty Articles

There have been many attempts to explain the unreasonably high correlation between domestic saving and investment rates. The threshold testing procedure developed by Hansen (1999) provides a framework for testing the effects of key variables relating to capital mobility in conjunction with the saving- investment relationship. Ho (2003) first applied this method to the saving-investment puzzle controlling for thresholds in country size. Extending this model, this paper reports a number of significant thresholds effects for country- size, trade and financial openness measures, age dependency ratios and trade balances. After controlling for threshold effects the relationship between savings and investment is …

The Impact Of Rebranding On Guest Satisfaction And Financial Performance: A Case Study Of Holiday Inn Singapore Orchard City Centre, Pingshan Huang

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Existing literature has shown that effective branding/ re-branding can positively impact customer purchase preferences and intentions, satisfaction and loyalty and a firm’s financial performance. Building on these links, this paper investigated if there was a significant improvement in the Holiday Inn Singapore Orchard City Centre’s guest satisfaction (OSAT) and financial performance after its rebranding. Paired-samples analyses were conducted on the hotel’s pre- and post-rebranding guest satisfaction, occupancy, average daily rates (ADR), revenue per available room (RevPAR), revenue and net operating profit (NOP). Overall, the results revealed that after the rebranding, HISOCC’s occupancy and RevPAR increased significantly; ADR and OSAT reflected …

Financial Sector Liberalization And Its Challenges To The Local Banks: The Experience Of Singapore, Swee Liang Tan, Gilbert Yip Wei Tan

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The main theme of the paper is about the challenges that financial sector liberalization poses to local banks. It reviews the experience of Singapore. We begin by explaining the unique circumstances surrounding Singapore. A small city-state controlled by a single party with about 65% majority in Parliament, Singapore has a paternalistic government that can be protective of industries that are strategic to the development of the country. Yet its government is also pragmatic, forward looking and pro-reformists. Because of its unique circumstances, the Singapore experience with liberalization is worth studying. Three key ideas will emerge in the paper. First, the …

Pricing Options In An Extended Black Scholes Economy With Illiquidity: Theory And Empirical Evidence, Umut Cetin, Robert Jarrow, Mitchell Protter, Mitchell Warachka

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This article studies the pricing of options in an extended Black Scholes economy in which the underlying asset is not perfectly liquid. The resulting liquidity risk is modeled as a stochastic supply curve, with the transaction price being a function of the trade size. Consistent with the market microstructure literature, the supply curve is upward sloping with purchases executed at higher prices and sales at lower prices. Optimal discrete time hedging strategies are then derived. Empirical evidence reveals a significant liquidity cost intrinsic to every option. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

An Analysis Of Extreme Price Shocks And Illiquidity Among Systematic Trend Followers, Bernard Lee, Shih-Fen Cheng, Annie Koh

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We construct an agent-based model to study the interplay between extreme price shocks and illiquidity in the presence of systematic traders known as trend followers. The agent-based approach is particularly attractive in modeling commodity markets because the approach allows for the explicit modeling of production, capacities, and storage constraints. Our study begins by using the price stream from a market simulation involving human participants and studies the behavior of various trend-following strategies, assuming initially that their participation will not impact the market. We notice an incremental deterioration in strategy performance as and when strategies deviate further and further from the …

Mutual Fund Flows, Performance Persistence, And Board Quality, Sandy Lai, Ashish Tiwari, Zhe (Joe) Zhang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This paper provides evidence on the impact of fund board quality on (a) the fund flow-performance relation, (b) persistence in fund performance, and (c) a fund’s potential change of strategy following a period of underperformance. We use Morningstar’s board quality ratings as a proxy for the quality of the fund’s board and document three main results. One, we show that funds that rank in the bottom quintile of rankings based on past performance, experience significantly lower flows at the margin when their board quality rating is poor compared to when the board quality is rated as good. Two, we document …

The Roles That Forecast Surprise And Forecast Error Play In Determining Management Forecast Precision, Jong-Hag Choi, Linda A. Myers, Yoonseok Zang, David A. Ziebart

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

Studying the determinants of management forecast precision is important because a better understanding of the factors affecting management’s choice of forecast precision can provide investors and other users with cues about the characteristics of the information contained in the forecasts. In addition, as regulators assess the regulation of voluntary management disclosures, they need to better understand how managers choose among forecast precision disclosure alternatives. Using 16,872 management earnings forecasts collected from 1995 through 2004, we provide strong evidence that forecast precision is negatively associated with the magnitude of the forecast surprise and that this negative association is stronger when the …

Ua37/29 Gary Ransdell - Federal Reserve Board - Central Bank Independence, Transparency & Accountability, St. Louis Federal Reserve Board

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

Email sent to members of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Board of speech delivered by Ben Bernanke at the 2010 Institute for Monetary & Economic Studies Conference.

Wku Sife Team Places Second At Nationals, J. Krist Schell, Director, Center For Entrepreneurship & Innovation

SIFE (Students In Free Enterprise)

No abstract provided.

Carbon Finance & Cattle Externalities In The Brazilian Amazon: Pricing Reforestation In Terms Of Restoration Ecology, Christian T. Hofer

Honors Scholar Theses

This paper evaluates land-use conflict between cattle pasture and tropical rainforest in the Brazilian Amazon and attempts to reconcile negative production externalities within the framework of carbon finance. Specifically, it analyzes the price per metric ton of CO2e that would make reforestation projects, in terms of restoration ecology, a viable land-use alternative. Regional information on opportunity, implementation, and transaction costs is used to develop a partial equilibrium cost-benefit analysis, in which carbon sequestration is the only benefit. Financing is employed through Kyoto’s Clean Development Mechanism and long-term certified emission reductions (lCERs) are the carbon financial instrument modeled. Results indicate that …

Hot Seats And Seat Warmers: The Hunt For Directors Of Quality, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Is it humanly possible for a person to hold more than five directorships? Why are there so few female directors in Singapore? Are we short of qualified directors? How can regulations help maintain standards? These were some of the questions that confronted a panel of seasoned directors speaking at the graduation ceremony of a certification programme for directors; issues that have seen heated debates in Singapore of late. This follows recent reports that an unusually high percentage of directors sit on many different boards, leading to questions of their ability to fully discharge their responsibilities as directors.

Where Were The Media In The Financial Crisis Of 2008, And Have We Seen This Trend Before?, Margaret Dickinson

Honors Projects in Communication

In the fall of 2008, the United States and the rest of the world experienced significant financial turmoil. The financial industry as we knew it crumbled before our eyes. After experiencing this event and the media's fragmented and inconsistent coverage of it, I felt an interesting topic to look into was the financial press' failed coverage of the finance industry, both today and in the past. In looking at this event, I will focus on both the financial press that failed to cover the happenings of the financial industry, as well as those that did recognize the issue at hand. …

Foreign Direct Investment And Macroeconomic Changes In Cee Integrating In To The Global Market, Lucyna Kornecki

Accounting, Economics, Finance, and Information Sciences - Daytona Beach

This study relates to the post communist era in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and focuses on foreign direct investment (FDI) as a factor facilitating the globalization process while stimulating economic growth in the host countries. The first part of this study describes the globalization process and inward FDI performance index (CEE vs. World). The second part reflects macroeconomic changes in the post communist CEE and examines macroeconomic indicators, including GDP per capita, economic growth rate, unemployment and inflation. The third section focuses on the association between inward FDI stock and economic growth in the CEE.

The Archway Investment Fund Semi Annual Report, Spring 2010, Bryant University, Archway Investment Fund

Archway Investment Fund

No abstract provided.

Orange Value Fund Research Reports And Valuations, Aaron Glick

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

Academic finance courses teach the underlying principles of portfolio management. Diversify your portfolio to eliminate idiosyncratic risk, match your portfolio beta to the risk appetite of your investors, invest in companies exhibiting earnings per share growth, and your fund will beat the market. More or less, this is the mindset of the herd, but following the herd never gets you ahead. Warren Buffet “attempts to be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful.” True investors ignore the movements in the market, and focus their energies on discovering unrecognized intrinsic value. As such, value …