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What does fiduciary duty mean in investment management and how is it tested on CFA Level III?
Fiduciary duty requires investment professionals to act in the best interest of clients through two core components: the duty of loyalty (acting in good faith, avoiding conflicts) and the duty of care (exercising prudence and competence in investment decisions).
What are the key differences in cash flow classification between IFRS and US GAAP?
Under US GAAP, interest paid and received go to CFO, dividends paid to CFF, and dividends received to CFO — with no flexibility. IFRS allows companies to classify interest and dividends across CFO, CFI, or CFF, which creates comparability challenges for analysts.
How does an LSTM cell solve the vanishing gradient problem?
LSTM adds forget, input, output gates and a cell state that preserves info via additive updates. Solves vanishing gradient, handles long sequences.
How is contingent consideration (earnouts) accounted for in business combinations?
Contingent consideration (earnouts) is measured at fair value at acquisition date and included in total consideration. Subsequently, liability-classified earnouts are remeasured to fair value through P&L; equity-classified are not remeasured...
How does the Treynor-Black model combine active and passive portfolios?
The Treynor-Black model combines a passive market index with an active alpha portfolio weighted by alpha-to-residual-variance ratios, improving Sharpe by information ratio.
How is the Markowitz efficient frontier constructed and interpreted?
The Markowitz efficient frontier plots portfolios maximizing expected return per variance level, traced via quadratic programming on expected returns and covariances.
How much diversification benefit do international equities actually provide?
International equity diversification still provides modest volatility reduction (~1–2 percentage points) and protection against country-specific shocks, though global correlations have risen to 0.78.
How is private company stock valued for fair value reporting?
Private stock valuation blends market, income, and cost approaches with calibration to recent financings. Always Level 3 due to significant unobservable inputs requiring full disclosure.
How does shareholder activism affect target company valuations?
Shareholder activism typically generates a 5-10% initial pop and 10-15% two-year abnormal returns, but outcomes depend on activist quality and demand merit.
What are fallen angel bonds and why do they often outperform?
Fallen angels are bonds that were investment grade at issuance but have been downgraded to high yield. They outperform for technical and fundamental reasons.
When should I use polynomial regression to capture curvature in the data?
Polynomial regression is useful when you have clear evidence of nonlinearity and a theoretical reason for the curvature.
When should I add interaction terms to my regression in practice?
Add interactions when theory or domain knowledge predicts that the effect of one variable depends on another. Do not add them mechanically as a data-mining exercise.
What is the fundamental approach to credit analysis?
Fundamental credit analysis follows 8 steps: industry, competitive position, management, financials, leverage/coverage, liquidity, structure, scenarios. For Silvercrest Logistics: #5 trucking player, 3.2x leverage, clean structure → Ba2/BB rating...
When should I use a debit spread instead of buying a single option?
A debit spread caps both risk and reward, making it cheaper than a naked call when you have a specific price target and want to reduce vega.
What is a credit spread and how is it different from selling naked options?
A credit spread defines maximum loss with a protective long option, drastically reducing margin and tail risk versus selling naked options.
Why is own credit risk on liabilities reported in OCI rather than P&L?
OCI treatment of own-credit avoids the paradox of P&L gains when credit deteriorates. Measure via residual method or CDS-based approximation; special exception exists if OCI creates new mismatch.
What is a GP-led continuation fund?
A GP-led continuation fund moves trophy assets into a new vehicle, offering existing LPs cash-or-roll choice, with strict conflict protocols.
How does the resource-based view (RBV) identify sustainable competitive advantage?
VRIO tests whether a resource is Valuable, Rare, Inimitable, and Organizationally embedded. Inimitability comes from historical accident, causal ambiguity, social complexity, or legal protection...
What is Porter's 'stuck in the middle' problem and how do I spot it?
'Stuck in the middle' describes a firm that fails to commit to cost leadership or differentiation and underperforms both. Symptoms: gross margin below differentiators but costs above cost leaders, medium loyalty, weak ROIC...
What are bespoke CDS portfolios and how do they differ from standardized indices?
Bespoke CDS portfolios are customized synthetic credit baskets for specific investors, contrasting with standardized indices that have fixed constituents...
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