This paper reexamines the ability of dividend yields to predict long-horizon stock returns. The authors use the bootstrap methodology, as well as simulations, to examine the distribution of test statistics under the null hypothesis of no forecasting ability. These experiments are constructed so as to maintain the dynamics of regressions with lagged dependent variables over long horizons. They find that the empirically observed statistics are well within the 95 percent bounds of their simulated distributions. Overall there is no strong statistical evidence indicating that dividend yields can be used to forecast stock returns.

Value at Risk (VAR), a measure of the dollar amount of potential loss from adverse market moves, has become a standard benchmark for measuring financial risk. Spurred by regulators and competitive pressures, more institutions are reporting VAR numbers in annual and quarterly financial reports. To provide preliminary evidence on the informativeness of these new disclosures, I investigate the relation between the trading VAR disclosed by a small sample of U.S. commercial banks and the subsequent variability of their trading revenues. The empirical results suggest that VAR disclosures are informative in that they predict the variability of trading revenues. Thus, analysts and investors can use VAR disclosures to compare the risk profiles of banks' trading portfolios.

Measures of volatility implied in option prices are widely believed to be the best available volatility forecasts. In this article, we examine the information content and predictive power of implied standard deviations (ISDs) derived from Chicago Mercantile Exchange options on foreign currency futures. The article finds that statistical time‐series models, even when given the advantage of “ex post” parameter estimates, are outperformed by ISDs. ISDs, however, also appear to be biased volatility forecasts. Using simulations to investigate the robustness of these results, the article finds that measurement errors and statistical problems can substantially distort inferences. Even accounting for these, however, ISDs appear to be too variable relative to future volatility.

Measures of volatility implied in option prices are widely believed to be the best available volatility forecasts. In this article, we examine the information content and predictive power of implied standard deviations (ISDs) derived from Chicago Mercantile Exchange options on foreign currency futures. The article finds that statistical time-series models, even when given the advantage of “ex post” parameter estimates, are outperformed by ISDs. ISDs, however, also appear to be biased volatility forecasts. Using simulations to investigate the robustness of these results, the article finds that measurement errors and statistical problems can substantially distort inferences. Even accounting for these, however, ISDs appear to be too variable relative to future volatility.

Executive stock options differ from exchange-traded options because of vesting and portability restrictions. Executive departure from the firm forces early exercise, reducing the value of executive options. Current methodology calculates the option value by multiplying the Black-Scholes option price by the departure probability. This ignores the possibility that executive departure is less likely when stock price is high, and thus is correlated with the stock price. We show that this correlation implies a substantial increase in option values. A similar situation occurs in performance-based option packages, where the actual number of options granted depends on stock performance.

This paper extends previous work on the information in the U.S. term structure at longer maturities to Britain, West Germany, and Switzerland. We find strong evidence that the term structure does have significant ability to forecast changes in inflation, particularly at long maturities. On the other hand, the ability of the term structure to forecast changes in one-year interest rates is somewhat weaker; only at the very longest horizon (five years) is there significant forecasting ability for interest-rate changes.

This paper examines the benefits from currency hedging, both for speculative and risk minimization motives, in international bond and equity portfolios. The risk‐return performances of globally diversified portfolios are compared with and without forward contracts. Over the period 1974 to 1990, inclusion of forward contracts results in statistically significant improvements in the performance of unconditional portfolios containing bonds. Conditional strategies are also implemented, both in sample and out of sample, and are shown to both significantly improve the risk‐return tradeoff of global portfolios and to outperform unconditional hedging strategies.