International Journal of Financial Studies

187 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Reverse Mortgage Participation in the United States: Evidence from a National Study

by Swarn Chatterjee

Int. J. Financial Stud. 2016, 4(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijfs4010005 - 17 Mar 2016

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 7416

This paper uses the most recent wave of a nationally representative dataset to examine the factors associated with elderly homeowners’ decision to obtain reverse mortgage loans. The findings of this study suggest that very few homeowners participated in the reverse mortgage market, and [...] Read more.

This paper uses the most recent wave of a nationally representative dataset to examine the factors associated with elderly homeowners’ decision to obtain reverse mortgage loans. The findings of this study suggest that very few homeowners participated in the reverse mortgage market, and homeowners younger than 67 were less likely to have reverse mortgage loans. However, homeowners who were risk averse, and homeowners in the two highest quartiles of net worth were more likely to have reverse mortgage loans. Further analyses reveal that among the reverse mortgage participants, homeowners with long-term care insurance coverage were less likely to have reverse mortgage loans. Implications for financial economists, financial planners, policy-makers, and scholars of retirement economics are included. Full article

233 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Efficiency of the European Non-Life Insurance: CEO Power, Macroeconomic, and Market Characteristics Impact

by Walid Bahloul and Abdelfettah Bouri

Int. J. Financial Stud. 2016, 4(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijfs4010004 - 01 Mar 2016

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4546

Abstract

A numbers of studies focusing on the determinant of the insurance market efficiency have increased in the last decade. In fact, many factors, like the CEO’s power, can influence the efficiency in the insurance firm. The purpose of this research is to analyze [...] Read more.

A numbers of studies focusing on the determinant of the insurance market efficiency have increased in the last decade. In fact, many factors, like the CEO’s power, can influence the efficiency in the insurance firm. The purpose of this research is to analyze the relationship between efficiency, measured by the cost function using the stochastic frontier approach (SFA) methodologies, and the market structure, as well as the macroeconomic variables. In addition, it focuses on identifying the impact of the integration of the CEO power variable in the cost function on this relation. The result shows that after the consideration of the CEO power score in the cost efficiency, the relation between insurance efficiency and the determinant of market development, as well as the domestic economy, has changed and become more significant. The result also shows that the firms become more efficient and more profitable with a higher concentration ratio and this is in accordance with the structure-conduct-performance (SCP) theory. Full article

3249 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Level Set Analysis and A Nonparametric Regression on S&P 500 Daily Return

by Yipeng Yang and Allanus Tsoi

Int. J. Financial Stud. 2016, 4(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijfs4010003 - 18 Feb 2016

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4495

Abstract

In this paper, a level set analysis is proposed which aims to analyze the S&P 500 return with a certain magnitude. It is found that the process of large jumps/drops of return tend to have negative serial correlation, and volatility clustering phenomenon can [...] Read more.

In this paper, a level set analysis is proposed which aims to analyze the S&P 500 return with a certain magnitude. It is found that the process of large jumps/drops of return tend to have negative serial correlation, and volatility clustering phenomenon can be easily seen. Then, a nonparametric analysis is performed and new patterns are discovered. An ARCH model is constructed based on the patterns we discovered and it is capable of manifesting the volatility skew in option pricing. A comparison of our model with the GARCH(1,1) model is carried out. The explanation of the validity on our model through prospect theory is provided, and, as a novelty, we linked the volatility skew phenomenon to the prospect theory in behavioral finance. Full article

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291 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Acknowledgement to Reviewers of the International Journal of Financial Studies in 2015

by International Journal of Financial Studies Editorial Office

Int. J. Financial Stud. 2016, 4(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijfs4010002 - 22 Jan 2016

Viewed by 3165

Abstract

The editors of the International Journal of Financial Studies Editorial Office, would like to express their sincere gratitude to the following reviewers for assessing manuscripts in 2015. [...] Full article

602 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Calisthenics with Words: The Effect of Readability and Investor Sophistication on Investors’ Performance Judgment

by Xiao Carol Cui

Int. J. Financial Stud. 2016, 4(1), 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijfs4010001 - 05 Jan 2016

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5068

Abstract

Since the 1990s, the SEC has advocated for financial disclosures to be in “plain English” so that they would be more readable and informative. Past research has shown that high readability is related to more extreme investor judgments of firm performance. Processing fluency [...] Read more.

Since the 1990s, the SEC has advocated for financial disclosures to be in “plain English” so that they would be more readable and informative. Past research has shown that high readability is related to more extreme investor judgments of firm performance. Processing fluency is the prevalent theory to explain this: higher readability increases the investor’s subconscious reliance on the disclosure, so positive (negative) news leads to more positive (negative) judgments. The relationship may not be so simple, though: drawing on research from cognitive psychology, I predict and find that investor financial literacy simultaneously influences investor decision-making, and that it has an interactive effect with readability. When presented with financial disclosure containing conflicting financial information, investors with higher financial literacy make more negative judgments than investors with low financial literacy when the disclosure is easy to read, but the effect becomes insignificant when the disclosure becomes difficult to read. This effect is moderated by a comprehension gap between the two investor groups. Financial literacy and readability interact to impact both how and how well the investor processes financial information. Full article

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Int. J. Financial Stud., Volume 4, Issue 1 (March 2016) – 5 articles

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