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Is It Possible to OD on Alpha?

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  • Zura Kakushadze
  • Jim Kyung-Soo Liew

Abstract

It is well known that combining multiple hedge fund alpha streams yields diversification benefits to the resultant portfolio. Additionally, crossing trades between different alpha streams reduces transaction costs. As the number of alpha streams increases, the relative turnover of the portfolio decreases as more trades are crossed. However, we argue, under reasonable assumptions, that as the number of alphas increases, the turnover does not decrease indefinitely; instead, the turnover approaches a non-vanishing limit related to the correlation structure of the portfolio's alphas. We also point out that, more generally, computational simplifications can arise when the number of alphas is large.

Suggested Citation

  • Zura Kakushadze & Jim Kyung-Soo Liew, 2014. "Is It Possible to OD on Alpha?," Papers 1404.0746, arXiv.org, revised Nov 2018.
  • Handle: RePEc:arx:papers:1404.0746
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Fung, William & Hsieh, David A., 2000. "Performance Characteristics of Hedge Funds and Commodity Funds: Natural vs. Spurious Biases," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 35(3), pages 291-307, September.
    2. Nicholas Chan & Mila Getmansky & Shane M. Haas & Andrew W. Lo, 2007. "Systemic Risk and Hedge Funds," NBER Chapters, in: The Risks of Financial Institutions, pages 235-330, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Mark Carey & René M. Stulz, 2007. "The Risks of Financial Institutions," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number care06-1, January.
    4. Liang, Bing, 2000. "Hedge Funds: The Living and the Dead," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 35(3), pages 309-326, September.
    5. Agarwal, Vikas & Naik, Narayan Y., 2000. "Multi-Period Performance Persistence Analysis of Hedge Funds," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 35(3), pages 327-342, September.
    6. Fung, William & Hsieh, David A, 2001. "The Risk in Hedge Fund Strategies: Theory and Evidence from Trend Followers," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 14(2), pages 313-341.
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    Cited by:

    1. Zura Kakushadze, 2015. "A Spectral Model of Turnover Reduction," Econometrics, MDPI, vol. 3(3), pages 1-13, July.
    2. Zura Kakushadze, 2015. "Combining Alphas via Bounded Regression," Risks, MDPI, vol. 3(4), pages 1-17, November.

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