In this paper, as a first step in examining the properties of a feasible portfolio subset that is characterized by budget and risk constraints, we assess the maximum and minimum of the investment concentration using replica analysis. To do this, we apply an analytical approach of statistical mechanics. We note that the optimization problem considered in this paper is the dual problem of the portfolio optimization problem discussed in the literature, and we verify that these optimal solutions are also dual. We also present numerical experiments, in which we use the method of steepest descent that is based on Lagrange's method of undetermined multipliers, and we compare the numerical results to those obtained by replica analysis in order to assess the effectiveness of our proposed approach.
We provide investment advice for an individual who wishes to minimize her lifetime poverty, with a penalty for bankruptcy or ruin. We measure poverty via a non-negative, non-increasing function of (running) wealth. Thus, the lower wealth falls and the longer wealth stays low, the greater the penalty. This paper generalizes the problems of minimizing the probability of lifetime ruin and minimizing expected lifetime occupation, with the poverty function serving as a bridge between the two. To illustrate our model, we compute the optimal investment strategies for a specific poverty function and t…
This paper studies the problem of maximizing expected utility from terminal wealth combining a static position in derivative securities, which we assume can be traded only at time zero, with a traditional dynamic trading strategy in stocks. We work in the framework of a general semi-martingale model and consider a utility function defined on the positive real line.
In the present work, the optimal portfolio minimizing the investment risk with cost is discussed analytically, where this objective function is constructed in terms of two negative aspects of investment, the risk and cost. We note the mathematical similarity between the Hamiltonian in the mean-variance model and the Hamiltonians in the Hopfield model and the Sherrington{Kirkpatrick model and show that we can analyze this portfolio optimization problem by using replica analysis, and derive the minimal investment risk with cost and the investment concentration of the optimal portfolio. Furthermo…
We provide an extension of the explicit solution of a mixed optimal stopping-optimal stochastic control problem introduced by Henderson and Hobson. The problem examines wether the optimal investment problem on a local martingale financial market is affected by the optimal liquidation of an independent indivisible asset. The indivisible asset process is defined by a homogeneous scalar stochastic differential equation, and the investor's preferences are defined by a general expected utility function. The value function is obtained in explicit form, and we prove the existence of an optimal stoppi…
This paper studies the problem of maximizing the expected utility of terminal wealth for a financial agent with an unbounded random endowment, and with a utility function which supports both positive and negative wealth. We prove the existence of an optimal trading strategy within a class of permissible strategies -- those strategies whose wealth process is a supermartingale under all pricing measures with finite relative entropy. We give necessary and sufficient conditions for the absence of utility-based arbitrage, and for the existence of a solution to the primal problem. We consider two ut…
In this paper, we study the optimal investment problem of an insurer whose surplus process follows the diffusion approximation of the classical Cramer-Lundberg model. Investment in the foreign market is allowed, and therefore, the foreign exchange rate model is considered and incorporated. It is assumed that the instantaneous mean growth rate of foreign exchange rate price follows an Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process. Dynamic programming method is employed to study the problem of maximizing the expected exponential utility of terminal wealth. By soloving the correspoding Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equat…
For an exponential utility maximizing investment strategy in a Black-Scholes Setting, fixed upper and lower constraints are introduced on the terminal wealth. This is equivalent to combining the optimal strategy with options. The resulting distribution is investigated in terms of change of quantiles. The theory is illustrated with quantitative examples, including an assessment of the effects of restricting the strategy to positive investments.
We determine the optimal robust investment strategy of an individual who targets at a given rate of consumption and seeks to minimize the probability of lifetime ruin when she does not have perfect confidence in the drift of the risky asset. Using stochastic control, we characterize the value function as the unique classical solution of an associated Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation, obtain feedback forms for the optimal investment and drift distortion, and discuss their dependence on various model parameters. In analyzing the HJB equation, we establish the existence and uniqueness of vi…
We consider the problem of maximizing expected utility from consumption in a constrained incomplete semimartingale market with a random endowment process, and establish a general existence and uniqueness result using techniques from convex duality. The notion of asymptotic elasticity of Kramkov and Schachermayer is extended to the time-dependent case. By imposing no smoothness requirements on the utility function in the temporal argument, we can treat both pure consumption and combined consumption/terminal wealth problems, in a common framework. To make the duality approach possible, we provid…
This paper studies the problem of maximizing expected utility from terminal wealth in a semi-static market composed of derivative securities, which we assume can be traded only at time zero, and of stocks, which can be traded continuously in time and are modeled as locally-bounded semi-martingales. Using a general utility function defined on the positive real line, we first study existence and uniqueness of the solution, and then we consider the dependence of the outputs of the utility maximization problem on the price of the derivatives, investigating not only stability but also differentiabi…
In this paper, we extend the jump-diffusion model proposed by Davis and Lleo to include jumps in asset prices as well as valuation factors. The criterion, following earlier work by Bielecki, Pliska, Nagai and others, is risk-sensitive optimization (equivalent to maximizing the expected growth rate subject to a constraint on variance.) In this setting, the Hamilton- Jacobi-Bellman equation is a partial integro-differential PDE. The main result of the paper is to show that the value function of the control problem is the unique viscosity solution of the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation.
In this paper we investigate a utility maximization problem with drift uncertainty in a multivariate continuous-time Black-Scholes type financial market which may be incomplete. We impose a constraint on the admissible strategies that prevents a pure bond investment and we include uncertainty by means of ellipsoidal uncertainty sets for the drift. Our main results consist firstly in finding an explicit representation of the optimal strategy and the worst-case parameter, secondly in proving a minimax theorem that connects our robust utility maximization problem with the corresponding dual probl…
We consider the problem of maximizing expected utility for a power investor who can allocate his wealth in a stock, a defaultable security, and a money market account. The dynamics of these security prices are governed by geometric Brownian motions modulated by a hidden continuous time finite state Markov chain. We reduce the partially observed stochastic control problem to a complete observation risk sensitive control problem via the filtered regime switching probabilities. We separate the latter into pre-default and post-default dynamic optimization subproblems, and obtain two coupled Hamilt…
In this article we solve the problem of maximizing the expected utility of future consumption and terminal wealth to determine the optimal pension or life-cycle fund strategy for a cohort of pension fund investors. The setup is strongly related to a DC pension plan where additionally (individual) consumption is taken into account. The consumption rate is subject to a time-varying minimum level and terminal wealth is subject to a terminal floor. Moreover, the preference between consumption and terminal wealth as well as the intertemporal coefficient of risk aversion are time-varying and therefo…
Financial experts and analysts seek to predict the variability of financial markets. In particular, the correct prediction of this variability ensures investors successful investments. However, there has been a big trend in finance in the last years, which are the ESG criteria. Concretely, ESG (Economic, Social and Governance) criteria have become more significant in finance due to the growing importance of investments being socially responsible, and because of the financial impact companies suffer when not complying with them. Consequently, creating a stock portfolio should not only take into…
In this paper, we use replica analysis to investigate the influence of correlation among the return rates of assets on the solution of the portfolio optimization problem. We consider the behavior of the optimal solution for the case where the return rate is described with a single-factor model and compare the findings obtained from our proposed methods with correlated return rates with those obtained with independent return rates. We then analytically assess the increase in the investment risk when correlation is included. Furthermore, we also compare our approach with analytical procedures fo…
We consider a long-term optimal investment problem where an investor tries to minimize the probability of falling below a target growth rate. From a mathematical viewpoint, this is a large deviation control problem. This problem will be shown to relate to a risk-sensitive stochastic control problem for a sufficiently large time horizon. Indeed, in our theorem we state a duality in the relation between the above two problems. Furthermore, under a multidimensional linear Gaussian model we obtain explicit solutions for the primal problem.
Return-risk models are the two pillars of modern portfolio theory, which are widely used to make decisions in choosing the loan portfolio of a bank. Banks and other financial institutions are subjected to limited liability protection. However, in most of the model formulation, limited liability is not taken into consideration. Accordingly, to address this, we have, in this article, analyzed the effect of including it in the model formulation. We formulate four models, two of them are maximizing the expected return with risk constraint, including and excluding limited-liability, and other two a…
Cryptocurrencies (CCs) have risen rapidly in market capitalization over the last years. Despite striking price volatility, their high average returns have drawn attention to CCs as alternative investment assets for portfolio and risk management. We investigate the utility gains for different types of investors when they consider cryptocurrencies as an addition to their portfolio of traditional assets. We consider risk-averse, return-seeking as well as diversificationpreferring investors who trade along different allocation frequencies, namely daily, weekly or monthly. Out-of-sample performance…
