Advanced Investments

This subject is not offered in 2014.

Estimated total time commitment of 120 hours per semester

Entry into the Master of Commerce (Finance)

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FNCE40002 Advanced Investments

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements for this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

This subject examines the principles and techniques of portfolio choice and asset pricing with particular emphasis on the latest research. Topics may include factor pricing models, performance evaluation, event studies, consumption-based asset pricing, dynamic portfolio choice, and behavioural finance.

On successful completion of this subject students should be able to:

• Explain factor pricing models and apply them to practical problems;
• Evaluate the performance of investment managers;
• Evaluate the impact of corporate events on a firm’s value;
• Explain the intuition behind consumption-based asset pricing;
• Recognise the potential but also the limits of return predictability; and
• Create optimal portfolios for private and institutional investors.

A 3-hour end-of-semester examination (70%), and two assignments of not more than 1500 words (15%) each, with the first assignment due by the end of week 5 of semester, and the second assignment due by the end of week 10 of semester.

You will be advised of prescribed texts by your lecturer.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On successful completion of this subject, students should have improved the following generic skills:

• Oral communication
• Written communication
• Collaborative learning
• Problem solving
• Team work
• Statistical reasoning
• Application of theory to practice
• Interpretation and analysis
• Critical thinking
• Synthesis of data and other information
• Evaluation of data and other information
• Using computer software
• Accessing data and other information from a range of sources.

Students may not gain credit for both FNCE90007 Advanced Investments and FNCE40002 Advanced Investments.