Chapter 1

The Process of Portfolio

Management

Portfolio Construction, Management, & Protection, 5e, Robert A. Strong

Copyright 2009 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Business & Economics. All rights reserved.

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The life of every man is a diary in which he
means to write one story, and writes
another; and his humblest hour is when he
compares the volume as it is with what he
vowed to make it.

J.M. Barrie

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 Investments
Traditional investments covers:
Security analysis
Involves estimating the merits of individual
investments
Portfolio management
Deals with the construction and maintenance of a
collection of investments

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 Security Analysis
A three-step process
1) The analyst considers prospects for the economy,
given the stage of the business cycle
2) The analyst determines which industries are likely to
fare well in the forecasted economic conditions
3) The analyst chooses particular companies within the
favored industries
EIC analysis (a top-down approach)

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 Portfolio Management
Literature supports the efficient markets
paradigm
On a well-developed securities exchange,
asset prices accurately reflect the tradeoff
between relative risk and potential returns of a
security
Efforts to identify undervalued securities are
fruitless
Free lunches are difficult to find
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Portfolio Management (contd)
Market efficiency and portfolio
management
A properly constructed portfolio achieves a
given level of expected return with the least
possible risk
Portfolio managers have a duty to create the best
possible collection of investments for each
customers unique needs and circumstances

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 Purpose of Portfolio
Management
Portfolio management primarily involves
reducing risk rather than increasing return
Consider two $10,000 investments:
1) Earns 10 percent per year for each of ten years
(low risk)
2) Earns 9 percent, 11 percent, 10 percent, 8
percent, 12 percent, 46 percent, 8 percent, 20
percent, 12 percent, and 10 percent in the ten
years, respectively (high risk)
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 Low Risk vs. High Risk
Investments
$30,000
$25,937

$23,642
$20,000
Low
Risk
High
$10,000
$10,000 Risk

$0
' '99 '01 '03 '05 '07

Both investments have a mean return of 10 percent. 8

 Low Risk vs. High Risk
Investments (contd)
1) Earns 10 percent per year for each of ten years
(low risk)
Terminal value is $25,937
2) Earns 9 percent, 11 percent, 10 percent, 8
percent, 12 percent, 46 percent, 8 percent, 20
percent, 12 percent, and 10 percent in the ten
years, respectively (high risk)
Terminal value is $23,642
The lower the dispersion in the returns, the
greater the accumulated value of equal
investments 9
 The Portfolio Managers Job
Begins with a statement of investment
policy, which outlines:
Return requirements

Investors risk tolerance

Constraints under which the portfolio must

operate
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 Six Steps of Portfolio
Management
1) Learn the basic principles of finance
2) Set portfolio objectives
3) Formulate an investment strategy
4) Have a game plan for portfolio revision
5) Evaluate the performance
6) Protect the portfolio when appropriate

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 Six Steps of Portfolio
Management (contd)
Learn the Basic
Principles of Finance
(Chapters 1 2)

Set Portfolio Objectives

(Chapters 3 4) Evaluate the
Performance
(Chapters 19 - 20)
Protect the Formulate an
Portfolio When Investment Strategy
Appropriate (Chapters 5 14)
(Chapters 21 25)

Have a Game Plan for

Portfolio Revision
(Chapters 15 18)
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 Overview of the Text
PART ONE: Background, Basic
Principles, and
Investment Policy
PART TWO: Portfolio Construction
PART THREE:Portfolio Management
PART FOUR: Portfolio Protection and
Contemporary Issues
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 PART ONE
Background, Basic Principles, and
Investment Policy
A person cannot be an effective portfolio
manager without a solid grounding in the
basic principles of finance
Egos sometimes get involved
Take time to review simple material
Fluff and bluster have no place in the formation
of investment policy or strategy
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 PART ONE
Background, Basic Principles, and
Investment Policy (contd)
There
is a distinction between good
companies and good investments
The stock of a well-managed company may be
too expensive
The stock of a poorly-run company can be a
great investment if it is cheap enough

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 PART ONE
Background, Basic Principles, and
Investment Policy (contd)
The two key concepts in finance are:
1) A dollar today is worth more than a dollar
tomorrow
2) A safe dollar is worth more than a risky dollar

These two ideas form the basis for all

aspects of financial management
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 PART ONE
Background, Basic Principles, and
Investment Policy (contd)
Other important concepts
The economic concept of utility

Return maximization (given a level of risk)

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 PART ONE
Background, Basic Principles, and
Investment Policy (contd)
Setting objectives
It is difficult to accomplish your objectives
until you know what they are

Terms like growth or income may mean

different things to different people

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 PART ONE
Background, Basic Principles, and
Investment Policy (contd)
Investment policy
The separation of investment policy from
investment management is a fundamental
tenet of institutional money management
A board of directors or investment policy
committee establishes policy
An investment manager implements the policy

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 PART TWO
Portfolio Construction
Formulate an investment strategy based
on the investment policy statement
Portfolio managers must understand the basic
elements of capital market theory
Informed diversification
Nave diversification
Beta

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 PART TWO
Portfolio Construction (contd)
International investment
Emerging markets carry special risk

Emerging markets may not be informationally

efficient

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 PART TWO
Portfolio Construction (contd)
Stock categories and security analysis
Preferred stock
Blue chips, defensive stocks, cyclical stocks
Valuation of stocks

Security screening
A screen is a logical protocol to reduce the security
universe to a workable number for closer
investigation
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 PART TWO
Portfolio Construction (contd)
Debt securities
Pricing

Duration
Enables the portfolio manager to alter the risk of
the fixed-income portfolio component

Bond diversification
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 PART TWO
Portfolio Construction (contd)
Pension funds
Significant holdings in gold and timberland
(real assets)

In many respects, timberland is an ideal

investment for long-term investors with no
liquidity problems

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 PART THREE
Portfolio Management
Subsequent to portfolio construction:
Conditions change

Portfolios need maintenance

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 PART THREE
Portfolio Management (contd)
Passive management has the following
characteristics:
Follow a predetermined investment strategy
that is invariant to market conditions or

Do nothing

Let the chips fall where they may

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 PART THREE
Portfolio Management (contd)
Active management:
Requires the periodic changing of the
portfolio components as the managers
outlook for the market changes

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 PART THREE
Portfolio Management (contd)
Options and option pricing
Black-Scholes Option Pricing model

Option overwriting
A popular activity designed to increase the yield
on a portfolio and to improve performance in a flat
market

Use of stock options under various portfolio

scenarios 28
 PART THREE
Portfolio Management (contd)
Performance evaluation
Did the portfolio manager do what he or she
was hired to do?
Someone needs to verify that the firm followed
directions
Interpreting the numbers
How much did the portfolio earn?
How much risk did the portfolio bear?
Must consider risk in conjunction with return
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 PART THREE
Portfolio Management (contd)
Performance evaluation (contd)
More complicated when there are cash deposits
and/or withdrawals from the portfolio
More complicated when the manager uses options to
enhance the portfolio yield

Fiduciary duties
Responsibilities for looking after someone elses
money and having some discretion in its investment
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 PART FOUR
Portfolio Protection and
Contemporary Issues
Portfolio protection
Called portfolio insurance prior to 1987

A managerial tool to reduce the likelihood

that a portfolio will fall in value below a
predetermined minimum level

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 PART FOUR
Portfolio Protection and
Contemporary Issues (contd)
Futures
Related to options
Use of derivative assets to:
Generate additional income
Manage risk

Interest rate risk

Duration
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 PART FOUR
Portfolio Protection and
Contemporary Issues (contd)
Contemporary issues
Exchange-traded funds
Security analyst objectivity
Stock lending
Regulatory concerns
Certificateless trading
Islamic finance margins
Structured products
CFA program 33