Get Indexology® Blog updates via email.


Tag Archives: index dynamics

Jul 9, 2020

A Conundrum in a Different Key

Volatility, dispersion, and correlation are elements of what we’ve elsewhere characterized as The Active Manager’s Conundrum. Active managers should prefer: Low volatility, which is typically associated with higher returns High dispersion, which means a larger payoff for correct stock selections High correlation, which reduces the opportunity cost of a concentrated portfolio The conundrum arises because…

READ

Jun 25, 2020

Making Sense of the Active Manager’s Conundrum

Why are the market environments most conducive to generating positive absolute returns the least conducive to producing positive relative returns? Explore the active manager’s conundrum with S&P DJI’s Craig Lazzara and Anu Ganti.

READ

Apr 22, 2020

Is Volatility an Investor’s Friend or Enemy?

Explore how high volatility and high dispersion can impact passive and active managers’ performance with S&P DJI’s Craig Lazzara. Get the latest Dispersion, Volatility, & Correlation dashboard: https://spdji.com/documents/commentary/dashboard-dispersion-2020-03.pdf    

READ

Apr 13, 2020

Glory or Embarrassment?

Active funds generally lagged their passive benchmarks in 2019, but the market environment in 2020 has already shifted radically. Volatility has skyrocketed as the S&P 500® and other indices have fallen. Ironically, it is precisely in a time such as this, when absolute returns are hard to come by, that relative returns might be most…

READ

Mar 19, 2020

With VIX Above 80, Expect 5% Daily Swings in the S&P 500

Volatility – it is sometimes said – takes the elevator up but takes the stairs down.  Like seismic activity, volatility can rise precipitously, but tends to decay more slowly; aftershocks and tremors continue to roil markets after any major repricing occurs.  The practical consequence is that, once the markets become volatile, they tend to remain…

READ

Jun 4, 2019

Not Melting Yet

Despite the hovering cloud of geopolitical menace as we entered 2019, the U.S. equity market enjoyed an almost seamless rise through the first four months of the year. May’s retreat reacquainted investors with volatility and served as a reminder that the market is near all-time highs, having enjoyed a more or less sustained increase for…

READ

Mar 14, 2019

The Height of the Hurdle

Indexing provides many rewards, including a reduction in volatility. Asset owners should demand higher returns to justify the volatility that active management entails. For managers who put their stock selection skills to the test, it is worth understanding the height of the volatility hurdle in managing a portfolio’s risk/return profile. We can illustrate this by…

READ

Jan 6, 2019

Volatile but Not Necessarily Disastrous

In 2018, the S&P 500 declined for the first time in 10 years. The year’s 4% decline is obviously de minimis compared to 2008’s 37% plunge, though investors may feel it more keenly since the fourth quarter’s 14% decline erased what had been a profitable year.  Nonetheless, the risk landscape changed dramatically in 2018 compared…

READ

Oct 11, 2018

Breaking Down Volatility

“Data! Data! Data!” he cried impatiently. “I can’t make bricks without clay.” – Sherlock Holmes (in “The Adventure of the Copper Beeches”) Despite yesterday’s hand wringing loss for equity markets— the S&P 500 dropped 3.3%—the index is still up 5.8% year to date 2018. Nevertheless, losing in one day a third of what the equity market…

READ

Jun 14, 2018

Introducing the U.S. S&P Select Industry Dashboard

We recently launched the monthly U.S. S&P Select Industry Dashboard, which provides key metrics, analysis of correlation and dispersion, and historical risk/return data for 20 investable select industry indices. The dashboard is a natural extension of our U.S. Select Sector Dashboard, which provides analysis for investable sectors across the large-, mid-, and small-cap ranges. For…

READ


Get Indexology® Blog updates via email.

Indexology® Blog
Contributors

SEE ALL