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Journal of Finance Vol. 78 No. 3 2023

Pockets of Predictability

Leland E. Farmer; Lawrence Schmidt; Allan Timmermann1

1 University of California San Diego

open access

Abstract

For many benchmark predictor variables, short‐horizon return predictability in the U.S. stock market is local in time as short periods with significant predictability (“pockets”) are interspersed with long periods with no return predictability. We document this result empirically using a flexible time‐varying parameter model that estimates predictive coefficients as a nonparametric function of time and explore possible explanations of this finding, including time‐varying risk premia for which we find limited support. Conversely, pockets of return predictability are consistent with a sticky expectations model in which investors slowly update their beliefs about a persistent component in the cash flow process.

DOI
10.1111/jofi.13229
Volume
78
Issue
3
Pages
1279-1341
Language
en
Sources
bibtex:phds-export.bib openalex crossref

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