Author: David F. Swensen
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0684864436
Category : Institutional investments
Languages : en
Pages : 393
Book Description
In his fourteen years as Yale's chief investment officer, David Swensen has revolutionised management of the university's investment portfolio. By relying on non conventional assets, including private equity and venture capital, Swensen has achieved a remarkable annualised return of 16.2 percent, which has added more than $2 billion to Yale's endowment. With his exceptional performance record prompting many other institutional portfolio managers to emulate his approach, Dr. Swensen has long been besieged by professionals in the field to write a book articulating his philosophy and strategies of portfolio management. PIONEERING PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT provides a road map for creating a successful investment programme. Informed by Swensen's deep knowledge of financial markets, and ranging from the broad issues of goals and investment philosophy to the strategic and tactical aspects of portfolio management - such as handling risk, selecting investment advisers, and negotiating the opportunities and pitfall in individual asset classes - the book provides a vital source of information for anyone involved in institutional investments.
Pioneering Portfolio Management
Author: David F. Swensen
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0684864436
Category : Institutional investments
Languages : en
Pages : 393
Book Description
In his fourteen years as Yale's chief investment officer, David Swensen has revolutionised management of the university's investment portfolio. By relying on non conventional assets, including private equity and venture capital, Swensen has achieved a remarkable annualised return of 16.2 percent, which has added more than $2 billion to Yale's endowment. With his exceptional performance record prompting many other institutional portfolio managers to emulate his approach, Dr. Swensen has long been besieged by professionals in the field to write a book articulating his philosophy and strategies of portfolio management. PIONEERING PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT provides a road map for creating a successful investment programme. Informed by Swensen's deep knowledge of financial markets, and ranging from the broad issues of goals and investment philosophy to the strategic and tactical aspects of portfolio management - such as handling risk, selecting investment advisers, and negotiating the opportunities and pitfall in individual asset classes - the book provides a vital source of information for anyone involved in institutional investments.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0684864436
Category : Institutional investments
Languages : en
Pages : 393
Book Description
In his fourteen years as Yale's chief investment officer, David Swensen has revolutionised management of the university's investment portfolio. By relying on non conventional assets, including private equity and venture capital, Swensen has achieved a remarkable annualised return of 16.2 percent, which has added more than $2 billion to Yale's endowment. With his exceptional performance record prompting many other institutional portfolio managers to emulate his approach, Dr. Swensen has long been besieged by professionals in the field to write a book articulating his philosophy and strategies of portfolio management. PIONEERING PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT provides a road map for creating a successful investment programme. Informed by Swensen's deep knowledge of financial markets, and ranging from the broad issues of goals and investment philosophy to the strategic and tactical aspects of portfolio management - such as handling risk, selecting investment advisers, and negotiating the opportunities and pitfall in individual asset classes - the book provides a vital source of information for anyone involved in institutional investments.
Pioneering Portfolio Management
Author: David F. Swensen
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1416554033
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 433
Book Description
In the years since the now-classic Pioneering Portfolio Management was first published, the global investment landscape has changed dramatically -- but the results of David Swensen's investment strategy for the Yale University endowment have remained as impressive as ever. Year after year, Yale's portfolio has trumped the marketplace by a wide margin, and, with over $20 billion added to the endowment under his twenty-three-year tenure, Swensen has contributed more to Yale's finances than anyone ever has to any university in the country. What may have seemed like one among many success stories in the era before the Internet bubble burst emerges now as a completely unprecedented institutional investment achievement. In this fully revised and updated edition, Swensen, author of the bestselling personal finance guide Unconventional Success, describes the investment process that underpins Yale's endowment. He provides lucid and penetrating insight into the world of institutional funds management, illuminating topics ranging from asset-allocation structures to active fund management. Swensen employs an array of vivid real-world examples, many drawn from his own formidable experience, to address critical concepts such as handling risk, selecting advisors, and weathering market pitfalls. Swensen offers clear and incisive advice, especially when describing a counterintuitive path. Conventional investing too often leads to buying high and selling low. Trust is more important than flash-in-the-pan success. Expertise, fortitude, and the long view produce positive results where gimmicks and trend following do not. The original Pioneering Portfolio Management outlined a commonsense template for structuring a well-diversified equity-oriented portfolio. This new edition provides fund managers and students of the market an up-to-date guide for actively managed investment portfolios.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1416554033
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 433
Book Description
In the years since the now-classic Pioneering Portfolio Management was first published, the global investment landscape has changed dramatically -- but the results of David Swensen's investment strategy for the Yale University endowment have remained as impressive as ever. Year after year, Yale's portfolio has trumped the marketplace by a wide margin, and, with over $20 billion added to the endowment under his twenty-three-year tenure, Swensen has contributed more to Yale's finances than anyone ever has to any university in the country. What may have seemed like one among many success stories in the era before the Internet bubble burst emerges now as a completely unprecedented institutional investment achievement. In this fully revised and updated edition, Swensen, author of the bestselling personal finance guide Unconventional Success, describes the investment process that underpins Yale's endowment. He provides lucid and penetrating insight into the world of institutional funds management, illuminating topics ranging from asset-allocation structures to active fund management. Swensen employs an array of vivid real-world examples, many drawn from his own formidable experience, to address critical concepts such as handling risk, selecting advisors, and weathering market pitfalls. Swensen offers clear and incisive advice, especially when describing a counterintuitive path. Conventional investing too often leads to buying high and selling low. Trust is more important than flash-in-the-pan success. Expertise, fortitude, and the long view produce positive results where gimmicks and trend following do not. The original Pioneering Portfolio Management outlined a commonsense template for structuring a well-diversified equity-oriented portfolio. This new edition provides fund managers and students of the market an up-to-date guide for actively managed investment portfolios.
Pioneering Portfolio Management
Author: David F. Swensen
Publisher: Free Press
ISBN: 9781416544692
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 432
Book Description
An indispensable roadmap for creating a successful investment program from Yale’s chief investment officer, David F. Swensen. In the years since the now-classic Pioneering Portfolio Management was first published, the global investment landscape has changed dramatically -- but the results of David Swensen's investment strategy for the Yale University endowment have remained as impressive as ever. Year after year, Yale's portfolio has trumped the marketplace by a wide margin, and, with over $20 billion added to the endowment under his twenty-three-year tenure, Swensen has contributed more to Yale's finances than anyone ever has to any university in the country. What may have seemed like one among many success stories in the era before the Internet bubble burst emerges now as a completely unprecedented institutional investment achievement. In this fully revised and updated edition, Swensen, author of the bestselling personal finance guide Unconventional Success, describes the investment process that underpins Yale's endowment. He provides lucid and penetrating insight into the world of institutional funds management, illuminating topics ranging from asset-allocation structures to active fund management. Swensen employs an array of vivid real-world examples, many drawn from his own formidable experience, to address critical concepts such as handling risk, selecting advisors, and weathering market pitfalls. Swensen offers clear and incisive advice, especially when describing a counterintuitive path. Conventional investing too often leads to buying high and selling low. Trust is more important than flash-in-the-pan success. Expertise, fortitude, and the long view produce positive results where gimmicks and trend following do not. The original Pioneering Portfolio Management outlined a commonsense template for structuring a well-diversified equity-oriented portfolio. This new edition provides fund managers and students of the market an up-to-date guide for actively managed investment portfolios.
Publisher: Free Press
ISBN: 9781416544692
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 432
Book Description
An indispensable roadmap for creating a successful investment program from Yale’s chief investment officer, David F. Swensen. In the years since the now-classic Pioneering Portfolio Management was first published, the global investment landscape has changed dramatically -- but the results of David Swensen's investment strategy for the Yale University endowment have remained as impressive as ever. Year after year, Yale's portfolio has trumped the marketplace by a wide margin, and, with over $20 billion added to the endowment under his twenty-three-year tenure, Swensen has contributed more to Yale's finances than anyone ever has to any university in the country. What may have seemed like one among many success stories in the era before the Internet bubble burst emerges now as a completely unprecedented institutional investment achievement. In this fully revised and updated edition, Swensen, author of the bestselling personal finance guide Unconventional Success, describes the investment process that underpins Yale's endowment. He provides lucid and penetrating insight into the world of institutional funds management, illuminating topics ranging from asset-allocation structures to active fund management. Swensen employs an array of vivid real-world examples, many drawn from his own formidable experience, to address critical concepts such as handling risk, selecting advisors, and weathering market pitfalls. Swensen offers clear and incisive advice, especially when describing a counterintuitive path. Conventional investing too often leads to buying high and selling low. Trust is more important than flash-in-the-pan success. Expertise, fortitude, and the long view produce positive results where gimmicks and trend following do not. The original Pioneering Portfolio Management outlined a commonsense template for structuring a well-diversified equity-oriented portfolio. This new edition provides fund managers and students of the market an up-to-date guide for actively managed investment portfolios.
Unconventional Success
Author: David F. Swensen
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 074327461X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 417
Book Description
The bestselling author of Pioneering Portfolio Management, the definitive template for institutional fund management, returns with a book that shows individual investors how to manage their financial assets. In Unconventional Success, investment legend David F. Swensen offers incontrovertible evidence that the for-profit mutual fund industry consistently fails the average investor. From excessive management fees to the frequent "churning" of portfolios, the relentless pursuit of profits by mutual fund management companies harms individual clients. Perhaps most destructive of all are the hidden schemes that limit investor choice and reduce returns, including "pay-to-play" product-placement fees, stale-price trading scams, soft-dollar kickbacks, and 12b-1 distribution charges. Even if investors manage to emerge unscathed from an encounter with the profit-seeking mutual fund industry, individuals face the likelihood of self-inflicted pain. The common practice of selling losers and buying winners (and doing both too often) damages portfolio returns and increases tax liabilities, delivering a one-two punch to investor aspirations. In short: Nearly insurmountable hurdles confront ordinary investors. Swensen's solution? A contrarian investment alternative that promotes well-diversified, equity-oriented, "market-mimicking" portfolios that reward investors who exhibit the courage to stay the course. Swensen suggests implementing his nonconformist proposal with investor-friendly, not-for-profit investment companies such as Vanguard and TIAA-CREF. By avoiding actively managed funds and employing client-oriented mutual fund managers, investors create the preconditions for investment success. Bottom line? Unconventional Success provides the guidance and financial know-how for improving the personal investor's financial future.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 074327461X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 417
Book Description
The bestselling author of Pioneering Portfolio Management, the definitive template for institutional fund management, returns with a book that shows individual investors how to manage their financial assets. In Unconventional Success, investment legend David F. Swensen offers incontrovertible evidence that the for-profit mutual fund industry consistently fails the average investor. From excessive management fees to the frequent "churning" of portfolios, the relentless pursuit of profits by mutual fund management companies harms individual clients. Perhaps most destructive of all are the hidden schemes that limit investor choice and reduce returns, including "pay-to-play" product-placement fees, stale-price trading scams, soft-dollar kickbacks, and 12b-1 distribution charges. Even if investors manage to emerge unscathed from an encounter with the profit-seeking mutual fund industry, individuals face the likelihood of self-inflicted pain. The common practice of selling losers and buying winners (and doing both too often) damages portfolio returns and increases tax liabilities, delivering a one-two punch to investor aspirations. In short: Nearly insurmountable hurdles confront ordinary investors. Swensen's solution? A contrarian investment alternative that promotes well-diversified, equity-oriented, "market-mimicking" portfolios that reward investors who exhibit the courage to stay the course. Swensen suggests implementing his nonconformist proposal with investor-friendly, not-for-profit investment companies such as Vanguard and TIAA-CREF. By avoiding actively managed funds and employing client-oriented mutual fund managers, investors create the preconditions for investment success. Bottom line? Unconventional Success provides the guidance and financial know-how for improving the personal investor's financial future.
Capital Allocators
Author: Ted Seides
Publisher: Harriman House Limited
ISBN: 0857198874
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
The chief investment officers (CIOs) at endowments, foundations, family offices, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds are the leaders in the world of finance. They marshal trillions of dollars on behalf of their institutions and influence how capital flows throughout the world. But these elite investors live outside of the public eye. Across the entire investment industry, few participants understand how these holders of the keys to the kingdom allocate their time and their capital. What’s more, there is no formal training for how to do their work. So how do these influential leaders practice their craft? What skills do they require? What frameworks do they employ? How do they make investment decisions on everything from hiring managers to portfolio construction? For the first time, CAPITAL ALLOCATORS lifts the lid on this opaque corner of the investment landscape. Drawing on interviews from the first 150 episodes of the Capital Allocators podcast, Ted Seides presents the best of the knowledge, practical insights, and advice of the world’s top professional investors. These insights include: - The best practices for interviewing, decision-making, negotiations, leadership, and management. - Investment frameworks across governance, strategy, process, technological innovation, and uncertainty. - The wisest and most impactful quotes from guests on the Capital Allocators podcast. Learn from the likes of the CIOs at the endowments of Princeton and Notre Dame, family offices of Michael Bloomberg and George Soros, pension funds from the State of Florida, CalSTRS, and Canadian CDPQ, sovereign wealth funds of New Zealand and Australia, and many more. CAPITAL ALLOCATORS is the essential new reference manual for current and aspiring CIOs, the money managers that work with them, and everyone allocating a pool of capital.
Publisher: Harriman House Limited
ISBN: 0857198874
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
The chief investment officers (CIOs) at endowments, foundations, family offices, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds are the leaders in the world of finance. They marshal trillions of dollars on behalf of their institutions and influence how capital flows throughout the world. But these elite investors live outside of the public eye. Across the entire investment industry, few participants understand how these holders of the keys to the kingdom allocate their time and their capital. What’s more, there is no formal training for how to do their work. So how do these influential leaders practice their craft? What skills do they require? What frameworks do they employ? How do they make investment decisions on everything from hiring managers to portfolio construction? For the first time, CAPITAL ALLOCATORS lifts the lid on this opaque corner of the investment landscape. Drawing on interviews from the first 150 episodes of the Capital Allocators podcast, Ted Seides presents the best of the knowledge, practical insights, and advice of the world’s top professional investors. These insights include: - The best practices for interviewing, decision-making, negotiations, leadership, and management. - Investment frameworks across governance, strategy, process, technological innovation, and uncertainty. - The wisest and most impactful quotes from guests on the Capital Allocators podcast. Learn from the likes of the CIOs at the endowments of Princeton and Notre Dame, family offices of Michael Bloomberg and George Soros, pension funds from the State of Florida, CalSTRS, and Canadian CDPQ, sovereign wealth funds of New Zealand and Australia, and many more. CAPITAL ALLOCATORS is the essential new reference manual for current and aspiring CIOs, the money managers that work with them, and everyone allocating a pool of capital.
Multi Asset Class Investment Strategy
Author: Guy Fraser-Sampson
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470033894
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
The book explains that instead of asset allocation being set in an isolated and arbitrary fashion, it is in fact the way in which specific hurdle investment returns can be targeted, and that this approach is already in use in the US (and has been for many years). It involves extended and detailed financial analysis of various asset class returns and proposes a five-asset class approach for future use. Opening with a study of the historic asset allocation practice of UK pension funds, the book shows how the current approach has led to the present funding crisis. It goes on to compare and contrast the UK approach with that of the US and to propose a new approach to UK asset allocation: the five asset class approach ("MAC Investing"). The book reviews and analyses different asset classes based on historic returns, examines risk, and concludes with a suggestion of the five asset classes to use; Quoted equities (both Domestic and foreign), hedge funds, private equity and property. This book also includes benchmark performance figures never previously published.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470033894
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
The book explains that instead of asset allocation being set in an isolated and arbitrary fashion, it is in fact the way in which specific hurdle investment returns can be targeted, and that this approach is already in use in the US (and has been for many years). It involves extended and detailed financial analysis of various asset class returns and proposes a five-asset class approach for future use. Opening with a study of the historic asset allocation practice of UK pension funds, the book shows how the current approach has led to the present funding crisis. It goes on to compare and contrast the UK approach with that of the US and to propose a new approach to UK asset allocation: the five asset class approach ("MAC Investing"). The book reviews and analyses different asset classes based on historic returns, examines risk, and concludes with a suggestion of the five asset classes to use; Quoted equities (both Domestic and foreign), hedge funds, private equity and property. This book also includes benchmark performance figures never previously published.
Foundation and Endowment Investing
Author: Lawrence E. Kochard
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118045009
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 325
Book Description
In Foundation and Endowment Investing, authors Lawrence Kochard and Cathleen Rittereiser offer you a detailed look at this fascinating world and the strategies used to achieve success within it. Filled with in-depth insights and expert advice, this reliable resource profiles twelve of the most accomplished Chief Investment Officers within today’s foundation and endowment community—chronicling their experiences, investment philosophies, and the challenges they face—and shares important lessons that can be used as you go about your own investment endeavors.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118045009
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 325
Book Description
In Foundation and Endowment Investing, authors Lawrence Kochard and Cathleen Rittereiser offer you a detailed look at this fascinating world and the strategies used to achieve success within it. Filled with in-depth insights and expert advice, this reliable resource profiles twelve of the most accomplished Chief Investment Officers within today’s foundation and endowment community—chronicling their experiences, investment philosophies, and the challenges they face—and shares important lessons that can be used as you go about your own investment endeavors.
Capital Ideas
Author: Peter L. Bernstein
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118523989
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 375
Book Description
Capital Ideas traces the origins of modern Wall Street, from the pioneering work of early scholars and the development of new theories in risk, valuation, and investment returns, to the actual implementation of these theories in the real world of investment management. Bernstein brings to life a variety of brilliant academics who have contributed to modern investment theory over the years: Louis Bachelier, Harry Markowitz, William Sharpe, Fischer Black, Myron Scholes, Robert Merton, Franco Modigliani, and Merton Miller. Filled with in-depth insights and timeless advice, Capital Ideas reveals how the unique contributions of these talented individuals profoundly changed the practice of investment management as we know it today.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118523989
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 375
Book Description
Capital Ideas traces the origins of modern Wall Street, from the pioneering work of early scholars and the development of new theories in risk, valuation, and investment returns, to the actual implementation of these theories in the real world of investment management. Bernstein brings to life a variety of brilliant academics who have contributed to modern investment theory over the years: Louis Bachelier, Harry Markowitz, William Sharpe, Fischer Black, Myron Scholes, Robert Merton, Franco Modigliani, and Merton Miller. Filled with in-depth insights and timeless advice, Capital Ideas reveals how the unique contributions of these talented individuals profoundly changed the practice of investment management as we know it today.
In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio
Author: Andrew W. Lo
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691222681
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 416
Book Description
How the greatest thinkers in finance changed the field and how their wisdom can help investors today Is there an ideal portfolio of investment assets, one that perfectly balances risk and reward? In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio examines this question by profiling and interviewing ten of the most prominent figures in the finance world—Jack Bogle, Charley Ellis, Gene Fama, Marty Leibowitz, Harry Markowitz, Bob Merton, Myron Scholes, Bill Sharpe, Bob Shiller, and Jeremy Siegel. We learn about the personal and intellectual journeys of these luminaries—which include six Nobel Laureates and a trailblazer in mutual funds—and their most innovative contributions. In the process, we come to understand how the science of modern investing came to be. Each of these finance greats discusses their idea of a perfect portfolio, offering invaluable insights to today’s investors. Inspiring such monikers as the Bond Guru, Wall Street’s Wisest Man, and the Wizard of Wharton, these pioneers of investment management provide candid perspectives, both expected and surprising, on a vast array of investment topics—effective diversification, passive versus active investment, security selection and market timing, foreign versus domestic investments, derivative securities, nontraditional assets, irrational investing, and so much more. While the perfect portfolio is ultimately a moving target based on individual age and stage in life, market conditions, and short- and long-term goals, the fundamental principles for success remain constant. Aimed at novice and professional investors alike, In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio is a compendium of financial wisdom that no market enthusiast will want to be without.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691222681
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 416
Book Description
How the greatest thinkers in finance changed the field and how their wisdom can help investors today Is there an ideal portfolio of investment assets, one that perfectly balances risk and reward? In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio examines this question by profiling and interviewing ten of the most prominent figures in the finance world—Jack Bogle, Charley Ellis, Gene Fama, Marty Leibowitz, Harry Markowitz, Bob Merton, Myron Scholes, Bill Sharpe, Bob Shiller, and Jeremy Siegel. We learn about the personal and intellectual journeys of these luminaries—which include six Nobel Laureates and a trailblazer in mutual funds—and their most innovative contributions. In the process, we come to understand how the science of modern investing came to be. Each of these finance greats discusses their idea of a perfect portfolio, offering invaluable insights to today’s investors. Inspiring such monikers as the Bond Guru, Wall Street’s Wisest Man, and the Wizard of Wharton, these pioneers of investment management provide candid perspectives, both expected and surprising, on a vast array of investment topics—effective diversification, passive versus active investment, security selection and market timing, foreign versus domestic investments, derivative securities, nontraditional assets, irrational investing, and so much more. While the perfect portfolio is ultimately a moving target based on individual age and stage in life, market conditions, and short- and long-term goals, the fundamental principles for success remain constant. Aimed at novice and professional investors alike, In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio is a compendium of financial wisdom that no market enthusiast will want to be without.
Behavioral Portfolio Management
Author: C. Thomas Howard
Publisher: Harriman House Limited
ISBN: 0857193252
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 329
Book Description
The investment industry is on the cusp of a major shift, from Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) to Behavioral Finance, with Behavioral Portfolio Management (BMP) the next step in this transition. BPM focuses on how to harness the price distortions that are driven by emotional crowds and use this to create superior portfolios. Once markets and investing are viewed through the lens of behavior, and portfolios are constructed on this basis, investable opportunities become readily apparent. Mastering your emotions is critical to the process and the insights provided by Tom Howard put investors on the path to achieving this. Forty years of Behavioral Science research presents a clear picture of how individuals make decisions; there are few signs of rationality. Indeed, emotional investors sabotage their own efforts in building long-horizon wealth. When this is combined with the misconception that active management is unable to generate superior returns, the typical emotional investor leaves hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars on the table during their investment lifetimes. Howard moves on to show how industry practice, with its use of the style grid, standard deviation, correlation, maximum drawdown and the Sharpe ratio, has entrenched emotion within investing. The result is that investors construct underperforming, bubble-wrapped portfolios. So if an investor masters their own emotions, they still must challenge the emotionally-based conventional wisdom pervasive throughout the industry. Tom Howard explains how to do this. Attention is then given to measureable and persistent behavioral factors. These provide investors with a new source of information that has the potential to transform how they think about portfolio management and dramatically improve performance. Behavioral factors can be used to select the best stocks, the best active managers, and the best markets in which to invest. Once the transition to behavioral finance is made, the emotional measures of MPT will quickly be forgotten and replaced with rational concepts that allow investors to successfully build long-horizon wealth. If you take portfolio construction seriously, it is essential that you make the next step forward towards Behavioral Portfolio Management.
Publisher: Harriman House Limited
ISBN: 0857193252
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 329
Book Description
The investment industry is on the cusp of a major shift, from Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) to Behavioral Finance, with Behavioral Portfolio Management (BMP) the next step in this transition. BPM focuses on how to harness the price distortions that are driven by emotional crowds and use this to create superior portfolios. Once markets and investing are viewed through the lens of behavior, and portfolios are constructed on this basis, investable opportunities become readily apparent. Mastering your emotions is critical to the process and the insights provided by Tom Howard put investors on the path to achieving this. Forty years of Behavioral Science research presents a clear picture of how individuals make decisions; there are few signs of rationality. Indeed, emotional investors sabotage their own efforts in building long-horizon wealth. When this is combined with the misconception that active management is unable to generate superior returns, the typical emotional investor leaves hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars on the table during their investment lifetimes. Howard moves on to show how industry practice, with its use of the style grid, standard deviation, correlation, maximum drawdown and the Sharpe ratio, has entrenched emotion within investing. The result is that investors construct underperforming, bubble-wrapped portfolios. So if an investor masters their own emotions, they still must challenge the emotionally-based conventional wisdom pervasive throughout the industry. Tom Howard explains how to do this. Attention is then given to measureable and persistent behavioral factors. These provide investors with a new source of information that has the potential to transform how they think about portfolio management and dramatically improve performance. Behavioral factors can be used to select the best stocks, the best active managers, and the best markets in which to invest. Once the transition to behavioral finance is made, the emotional measures of MPT will quickly be forgotten and replaced with rational concepts that allow investors to successfully build long-horizon wealth. If you take portfolio construction seriously, it is essential that you make the next step forward towards Behavioral Portfolio Management.