Application of the Kelly Criterion to Prediction Markets

Betting markets are gaining in popularity. Mean beliefs generally differ from prices in prediction markets. Logarithmic utility is employed to study the risk and return adjustments to prices. Some consequences are described. A modified payout structure is proposed. A simple asset price model based o

December 18, 2024 · 1 min · thequant.space

Comparative Statics of Trading Boundary in Finite Horizon Portfolio Selection with Proportional Transaction Costs

We consider Merton’s problem with proportional transaction costs. It is well known that the optimal investment strategy is characterized by two trading boundaries, the buy boundary and the sell boundary, between which lies the no-trading region. We investigate how these two trading boundaries vary w

December 18, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Multivariate Rough Volatility

Motivated by empirical evidence from the joint behavior of realized volatility time series, we propose to model the joint dynamics of log-volatilities using a multivariate fractional Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process. This model is a multivariate version of the Rough Fractional Stochastic Volatility model

December 18, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

On stochastic control problems with higher-order moments

In this paper, we focus on a class of time-inconsistent stochastic control problems, where the objective function includes the mean and several higher-order central moments of the terminal value of state. To tackle the time-inconsistency, we seek both the closed-loop and the open-loop Nash equilibri

December 18, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Refining and Robust Backtesting of A Century of Profitable Industry Trends

We revisit the long-only trend-following strategy presented in A Century of Profitable Industry Trends by Zarattini and Antonacci, which achieved exceptional historical performance with an 18.2% annualized return and a Sharpe Ratio of 1.39. While the results outperformed benchmarks, practical implem

December 18, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Strictly monotone mean-variance preferences with applications to portfolio selection

The monotone mean-variance (MMV) preference proposed by Maccheroni, et al. (Math. Finance 19(3): 487-521, 2009) fails to differentiate strictly dominant payoffs, which may cause inconsistency in portfolio decision-making. This paper introduces a broader class of strictly monotone mean-variance (SMMV

December 18, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

AI-Enhanced Factor Analysis for Predicting S&P 500 Stock Dynamics

This project investigates the interplay of technical, market, and statistical factors in predicting stock market performance, with a primary focus on S&P 500 companies. Utilizing a comprehensive dataset spanning multiple years, the analysis constructs advanced financial metrics, such as momentum ind

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

An Application of the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck Process to Pairs Trading

We conduct a preliminary analysis of a pairs trading strategy using the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (OU) process to model stock price spreads. We compare this approach to a naive pairs trading strategy that uses a rolling window to calculate mean and standard deviation parameters. Our findings suggest that t

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Enhanced Momentum with Momentum Transformers

The primary objective of this research is to build a Momentum Transformer that is expected to outperform benchmark time-series momentum and mean-reversion trading strategies. We extend the ideas introduced in the paper Trading with the Momentum Transformer: An Intelligent and Interpretable Architect

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Expressions of Market-Based Correlations Between Prices and Returns of Two Assets

This paper derives the expressions of correlations between prices of two assets, returns of two assets, and price-return correlations of two assets that depend on statistical moments and correlations of the current values, past values, and volumes of their market trades. The usual frequency-based ex

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Hunting Tomorrow's Leaders: Using Machine Learning to Forecast S&P 500 Additions & Removal

This study applies machine learning to predict S&P 500 membership changes: key events that profoundly impact investor behavior and market dynamics. Quarterly data from WRDS datasets (2013 onwards) was used, incorporating features such as industry classification, financial data, market data, and corp

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Market-Neutral Strategies in Mid-Cap Portfolio Management: A Data-Driven Approach to Long-Short Equity

Mid-cap companies, generally valued between $2 billion and $10 billion, provide investors with a well-rounded opportunity between the fluctuation of small-cap stocks and the stability of large-cap stocks. This research builds upon the long-short equity approach (e.g., Michaud, 2018; Dimitriu, Alexan

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Pontryagin-Guided Policy Optimization for Merton's Portfolio Problem

We present a Pontryagin-Guided Direct Policy Optimization (PG-DPO) framework for Merton’s portfolio problem, unifying modern neural-network-based policy parameterization with the adjoint viewpoint from Pontryagin’s maximum principle (PMP). Instead of approximating the value function (as done in deep

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Productivity of Short Term Assets as a Signal of Future Stock Performance

This paper investigates cash productivity as a signal for future stock performance, building on the cash-return framework of Faulkender and Wang (2006). Using financial and market data from WRDS, we calculate cash returns as a proxy for operational efficiency and evaluate a long-only strategy applie

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Volatility-Volume Order Slicing via Statistical Analysis

This paper addresses the challenges faced in large-volume trading, where executing substantial orders can result in significant market impact and slippage. To mitigate these effects, this study proposes a volatility-volume-based order slicing strategy that leverages Exponential Weighted Moving Avera

December 17, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

A Deep Learning Approach for Trading Factor Residuals

The residuals in factor models prevalent in asset pricing presents opportunities to exploit the mis-pricing from unexplained cross-sectional variation for arbitrage. We performed a replication of the methodology of Guijarro-Ordonez et al. (2019) (G-P-Z) on Deep Learning Statistical Arbitrage (DLSA),

December 16, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

A multi-factor market-neutral investment strategy for New York Stock Exchange equities

This report presents a systematic market-neutral, multi-factor investment strategy for New York Stock Exchange equities with the objective of delivering steady returns while minimizing correlation with the market. A robust feature set is integrated combining momentum-based indicators, fundamental fa

December 16, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Cost-aware Portfolios in a Large Universe of Assets

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

December 16, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Multivariate Distributions in Non-Stationary Complex Systems I: Random Matrix Model and Formulae for Data Analysis

Risk assessment for rare events is essential for understanding systemic stability in complex systems. As rare events are typically highly correlated, it is important to study heavy-tailed multivariate distributions of the relevant variables, especially in the presence of non-stationarity. We use a g

December 16, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space

Multivariate Distributions in Non-Stationary Complex Systems II: Empirical Results for Correlated Stock Markets

Multivariate Distributions are needed to capture the correlation structure of complex systems. In previous works, we developed a Random Matrix Model for such correlated multivariate joint probability density functions that accounts for the non-stationarity typically found in complex systems. Here, w

December 16, 2024 · 2 min · thequant.space