Cost-aware Portfolios in a Large Universe of Assets

ArXiv ID: 2412.11575 “View on arXiv”

Authors: Unknown

Abstract

This paper considers the finite horizon portfolio rebalancing problem in terms of mean-variance optimization, where decisions are made based on current information on asset returns and transaction costs. The study’s novelty is that the transaction costs are integrated within the optimization problem in a high-dimensional portfolio setting where the number of assets is larger than the sample size. We propose portfolio construction and rebalancing models with nonconvex penalty considering two types of transaction cost, the proportional transaction cost and the quadratic transaction cost. We establish the desired theoretical properties under mild regularity conditions. Monte Carlo simulations and empirical studies using S&P 500 and Russell 2000 stocks show the satisfactory performance of the proposed portfolio and highlight the importance of involving the transaction costs when rebalancing a portfolio.

Keywords: mean-variance optimization, portfolio rebalancing, transaction costs, high-dimensional portfolios, nonconvex penalty, Equities

Complexity vs Empirical Score

  • Math Complexity: 8.0/10
  • Empirical Rigor: 6.0/10
  • Quadrant: Holy Grail
  • Why: The paper involves advanced high-dimensional statistical theory, nonconvex optimization, and convergence proofs, but also demonstrates practical performance through Monte Carlo simulations and empirical backtests on S&P 500 and Russell 2000 data, balancing theoretical depth with empirical validation.
  flowchart TD
    A["Research Goal: How to perform cost-aware portfolio rebalancing with nonconvex penalties in a high-dimensional setting (assets >> samples)?"] --> B["Methodology: Mean-Variance Optimization with Integrated Transaction Costs"]
    B --> C["Inputs: S&P 500 & Russell 2000 Data + Monte Carlo Simulations"]
    C --> D["Computational Process: Proportional & Quadratic Cost Modeling with High-Dimensional Estimation"]
    D --> E["Key Findings: Proposed portfolios outperform benchmarks; transaction costs are critical for rebalancing in large universes."]