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What is the CBOE PutWrite Index (PUT) and how does it behave?
PUT sells 1-month ATM SPX puts on T-bill collateral. Harvests vol risk premium. Similar return to SPX with lower vol but capped upside and tail risk.
What's the real economic difference between stock dividends and cash dividends?
Stock dividends distribute shares (proportional ownership unchanged); cash dividends pay cash. Stock dividends are economically neutral in theory (market cap unchanged, price adjusts). Used for signaling without cash, price range management, and avoiding immediate taxes...
How do I structure a yield curve slope (steepener/flattener) trade?
Slope trades are DV01-neutral positions isolating curve slope. Steepener = long short maturity, short long maturity; flattener is the reverse. Sizing: for $100M 2Y long, short ~$22M 10Y based on relative DV01.
What is a receive-pay curve trade in swap markets?
'Receive 5s, pay 10s' means receive fixed 5Y swap and pay fixed 10Y swap, duration-neutral. This is a curve flattener — profits when the 10s–5s spread narrows via 5Y rallying more or 10Y selling off more.
What does Standard VI(C) say about referral fees?
Standard VI(C) requires disclosing the nature and value of all referral compensation — both received and paid — to employers, clients, and prospective clients before engagement.
How does Standard VI(B) priority of transactions work in practice?
Standard VI(B) requires this order: clients first, firm second, personal and family accounts last — with fee-paying family clients treated equally with others.
PPP vs Interest Rate Parity for forecasting exchange rates — when do I use which?
Exchange rate forecasting appears frequently on the Level III exam. PPP is best for long-term forecasts based on inflation differentials, while Interest Rate Parity models work for medium-term directional guidance based on interest rate differentials.
How does MM Proposition II relate cost of equity to leverage?
MM II: cost of equity rises linearly with D/E to offset cheaper debt, keeping WACC constant in a no-tax world. With taxes, WACC falls with leverage via tax shields until bankruptcy costs dominate.
How does credit migration interact with embedded options in bond valuation?
Credit migration widens Z-spread and reduces call likelihood because distressed issuers cannot refinance cheaply. Default dominates with recovery value. Use rating transition matrices to weight credit-state cash flows...
How does the yield curve shape affect binomial tree outputs?
Curve shape drives future rate distribution. Steep upward curves reduce call option value (fewer paths below coupon). Flat curves produce larger option values. Inverted curves make callable options very valuable and putable options less so...
What is the Modified Dietz method and when is it used?
Modified Dietz approximates TWR by weighting cash flows by the fraction of the period they're present, useful when daily valuations are unavailable...
How does logistic regression work and what's the intuition behind the logit link?
Logistic regression predicts binary outcomes using a logit link that transforms bounded probabilities into unbounded log-odds, allowing linear modeling...
What is the one-fund theorem and the tangency portfolio?
The one-fund theorem: with a risk-free asset, all investors hold combinations of the risk-free asset and the tangency portfolio (maximum Sharpe ratio). Risk tolerance dictates the cash mix only...
How do information barriers (Chinese walls) work at investment firms?
Information barriers separate firm functions that handle MNPI from those that don't. The goal: prevent private-side information from influencing public-side decisions...
How do I attribute returns to yield curve slope and curvature changes?
Curve effect attributes non-parallel moves to active partial-duration bets. Covenant's 2Y overweight (+7.6bps) and 10Y underweight (+9.7bps) during steepening produced +17.3bps curve alpha, separate from level/duration effect.
What is a moving average (MA) model and how does it differ from AR?
MA(q) models express current value via current and past q error terms. ACF cuts off at lag q; PACF decays. Short memory contrasts with AR's persistent feedback.
What is an autoregressive (AR) model in time series analysis?
AR(p) models express current value as a linear function of past p lags plus error. AR(1) is the simplest; requires covariance stationarity (phi magnitude less than 1) to be valid.
How is a curve flattener trade structured?
A flattener profits when the spread between long and short yields narrows...
How do I construct a curve steepener trade?
A curve steepener profits when long rates rise more (or fall less) than short rates...
What are the key strategies for using a donor-advised fund (DAF)?
A donor-advised fund provides immediate tax-deductible contributions with flexible grant timing. Key strategies include bunching, donating appreciated securities, and estate simplification...
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