Download PDF Introduction The aim of this article is to provide a comprehensive overview of equity swaps, focusing on their structure, mechanics and use cases for investors. Equity swaps evolved in the late 1980s and early 1990s, as a part of the broader development of over the counter (OTC) derivative Read more…
Download PDF Geopolitical Context The currently ongoing Red Sea Crisis, initiated as a reaction by the Houthi movement to the Israel-Palestine war, has greatly exacerbated Egypt’s ongoing political and economic turmoil. Most commercial shipping firms have announced their withdrawal from the Suez Canal. As recently as this week, the Houthis Read more…
Download PDF US Equity Performance As we approach the end of the year, the narrative on the US stock market has greatly changed since September/October and especially since the beginning of the year as major macroeconomic uncertainty has now shifted to what the cutting cycle will look like due to Read more…
Download PDF Introduction The idea behind capital structure arbitrage is that the market pricing of equity and debt can diverge away from equilibrium, which might be because different types of investors are active in each market, and they possibly have different opinions about the prospects of a company. Therefore, capital Read more…
Download PDF Introduction on recent market developments After a subdued performance of equities in 2022 (-18.01% dividends adjusted), January has seen a significant turning point for US equities, given the recent strong rally. This article will briefly summarize what happened in markets this last month, outlining the causes of the Read more…
Download PDF Introduction In 2022, the number of IPOs has plummeted to lows comparable to post-financial crisis levels after the highs of 2021 with individual deal values falling due to lower valuations. In September, the number of US IPOs was a mere 20% of the ones in the same period Read more…
Download PDF Industry Overview Uranium is a heavy metal that has been used as a concentrated energy source for more than 60 years. It is extracted from uranium-rich minerals, such as uraninite. Uranium ore can be mined either open-pit or underground and is then crushed and treated in a mill Read more…
Download PDF Introduction Relative Value strategies in equities are all those strategies that seek to minimize their systematic risk exposures while retaining exposure to certain idiosyncratic factors. We decided to analyze those strategies because their non-directional nature can be interesting in the current environment characterized by high geopolitical tensions and Read more…
Download PDF Investors tend to overgeneralize about bear markets and speak of them as if they were a homogenous group in which experiences have been largely similar. The triggers, timing and profile of recovery vary significantly, and bear markets come in many shapes and sizes. That said, despite the differences Read more…
Download PDF Over the last few decades, the overnight and intraday returns of the American market exhibit strange behavior, considering that the highest share of returns accrue in the after-hours trading and not during the day, as most would have expected. Indeed, a good visualization of the phenomenon is shown Read more…
Download PDF Introduction We are now over a year and a half into the Covid pandemic. Disruptive as this exogenous shock has been, markets have quickly recovered, and proceeded to reach one new record after the other. More interestingly, several information technology stocks have stood the challenge without a bruise. Read more…
Download PDF Introduction In the following article we will shortly analyse the implications of the current macroeconomic environment for equities, and we will propose a trade idea on a small cap stock we have identified in the Italian stock market. The Macroeconomic Background In the last week it has become Read more…
Download PDF Introduction An ATM equity long straddle position is delta neutral. If systematic risk is the only factor predicting expected returns, a delta neutral strategy should have an expected return equal to the risk-free rate. In this article we will review academic literature suggesting that not only is this Read more…
Download PDF Introduction We continue our series on the impact of negative interest rate policies (NIRP) on various asset classes by looking at equities valuations this time. The years after the Great Financial Crisis have brought secular macroeconomic, policy and structural shifts, which have resulted in an unmatched collapse in Read more…
Download PDF Introduction The Fed’s buying spree and general pandemic response has recently scooped up most of the media attention around central banking operations. The world of financial markets stands in awe when Jerome Powell speaks of or hints at the Fed’s next moves. However, the Swiss National Bank likes Read more…