The stop-loss start-gain paradox and option valuation: a new decomposition into intrinsic and time value

The downside risk in a leveraged stock position can be eliminatedby using stop-loss orders. The upside potential of such a positioncan be captured using contingent buy orders. The terminal payoffto this stop-loss start-gain strategy is identical to that ofa call option, but the strategy costs less initially. This articleresolves this paradox by showing that the strategy is not self-financingfor continuous stock-price processes of unbounded variation.The resolution of the paradox leads to a new decomposition ofan option's price into its intrinsic and time value. When thestock price follows geometric Brownian motion, this decompositionis proven to be mathematically equivalent to the Black-Scholes(1973) formula.     

The effect of information releases on the pricing and timing of equity issues

With time-varying adverse selection in the market for new equityissues, firms will prefer to issue equity when the market ismost informed about the quality of the firm. This implies thatequity issues tend to follow credible information releases.In addition, if the asymmetric in information increases overtime between information releases, the price drop at the announcementof an equity issue should increase in the time since the lastinformation release. Using earning releases as a proxy for informativeevents, we find evidence supporting these propositions.     

What makes a good conference? Analysing the preferences of labour economists

Conferences are an important element in the work of researchers, requiring substantial investments in fees, travel expenses and the time spent by the participants. The aim of this paper is to identify the preferences of participants with respect to conference characteristics. Based on a sample of European labour economists, preferences are measured using the vignette approach where participants are asked to choose between hypothetical European Association of Labour Economists (EALE) conferences. We find that the keynote speakers are the most important element in the preference for a conference, followed by the location of the conference. There is substantial heterogeneity in the taste of labour economists especially with respect to location, though the link between preference parameters and measured characteristics like gender, age and seniority is limited. Factor analysis suggests that the variety in preferences can be best described by a latent variable that reflects the weights people put on content versus fun.     

收购旧设备及更新计划

<正> 南方公司是美国东南部5间受控管制公用电之控股公司,并为美国最大之电力生产商。南方电力是南方公司其中一间附属公司,在世界各地从事电力发展业务。其子公司亚洲电力发展有限公司发展项目遍布中国、菲律宾及亚洲其他地区。南电收购State Line发电设备的项目是更新旧电厂以提高效率、减低烟气排放及延长机组寿命的好例子。     

Your Place in Space: Classroom Experiment on Spatial Location Theory

The authors detail an urban economics experiment that is easily run in the classroom. The experiment has a flexible design that allows the instructor to explore how congestion, zoning, public transportation, and taxation levels determine the bid–rent function. Heterogeneous agents in the experiment compete for land use using a simple auction mechanism. Using the data that is collected, a bid–rent function is derived, and the experimental treatment is altered over the course of three sessions to uncover core concepts in urban economics. Moreover, this provides a tangible experience that can be used to help undergraduates relate to urban issues such as the steep rent gradient found around many larger colleges and universities.     

The Labor Force Participation of Older Americans in 1900: Further Results

Data from the 1900 census are used to study the proper labor force classification of older male Americans experiencing 6 months or more of unemployment (the "long-term unemployed"). The evidence is consistent with the view that the older an individual was on entering the state of long-term unemployment, the greater the likelihood that he would leave the labor force in a short period of time. I conclude, however, that this is insufficient reason to exclude the long-term unemployed from the count of gainful workers in 1900, as has recently been advocated.     

An empirical investigation of international asset pricing

We investigate several asset pricing models in an internationalsetting. We use data on a large number of assets traded in theUnited States, Japan, the United Kingdom, and France. The modeltogether with the hypothesis of capital market integration implytestable restrictions on multivariate regressions relating assetreturns to various benchmark portfolios. We find that multifactormodels tend to outperform single-index models in both domesticand international forms especially in their ability to explainseasonality in asset returns. We also find that the behaviorof the models is affected by change in the regulatory environmentin international markets.     

传统的会计方法会抑制技术革新吗?(下篇)

财务指标在决定一个项目是否应该上马时是十分重要的。但企业需要使用一系列会计和非会计方法来决定如何推进项目。     

Endometriosis,an unknown entity: the consumer's perspective

This paper reports the findings of a consumer‐driven investigation conducted by the Centre for Clinical Nursing Research at Epworth Hospital in conjunction with the Endometriosis Association (Victoria, Australia) aimed at identifying the information and support needs of women experiencing endometriosis. Women's experiences of endometriosis and laparoscopy were examined. A questionnaire was designed to explore women's experiences of, and informational need for, the four categories of: diagnosis of endometriosis, endometriosis, laparoscopy and managing at home. A total of 465 women who had a positive diagnosis of endometriosis, including patients at the Epworth Endometriosis Centre and members of the Endometriosis Association, were included. The data were analysed in terms of frequency of responses and themes that arose from the research. Five main themes consistently emerged from the overall analysis of the questionnaire; these included: lack of communication, no‐one listens, the emotional turmoil, expressions of gratitude to the Endometriosis Association and being young and helpless. Also identified was a lack of understanding of endometriosis and laparoscopy, on behalf of both the patient and the practitioner, which has led to communication of misinformation, extended physical pain and emotional distress. Based on these findings, recommendations were made for education strategies to be focused towards increasing awareness of endometriosis and for information to be disseminated using the preferred printed format and to be made available from gynaecologists, hospitals and schools. Through consumer participation, the information obtained in this study is of benefit to all women who come in contact with endometriosis by (a) validating women's experiences of endometriosis and (b) identifying women's needs in relation to the disease.     

Preferences, continuity, and the arbitrage pricing theory

This article investigates the structure on preferences requiredto derive Ross's arbitrage pricing theory (APT). It is shownthat only ordinal preferences are required. In particular, theAPT does not require that agents possess preferences representableas risk-averse expected utility functions. This characteristicof the APT is not shared by the standard equilibrium-based capitalasset pricing models.