Using accounting data based indexing to create a low volatility portfolio of financial objects

Abstract

A system, method and computer program product creates an index based on accounting data, or a portfolio of financial objects based on the index where the portfolio is weighted according to accounting data. Indexes may be built with metrics other than market capitalization weighting, price weighting or equal weighting. Financial and non-financial metrics may be used to build indexes to create passive investment systems. A combination of financial non-market capitalization metrics may be used with non-financial metrics to create passive investment systems. Once built, the index may be used as a basis to purchase securities for a portfolio. Specifically excluded are widely-used capitalization-weighted and price-weighted indexes, in which price of a security contributes in a substantial way to calculation of weight of that security in the index or the portfolio, and equal weighting weighted indexes. The indexes may be constructed to minimize volatility.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]The present application is a continuation-in-part of, and claims priority to, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13 / 216,238, filed Aug. 23, 2011, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11 / 931,913, filed Oct. 31, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,005,740, issued Aug. 23, 2011, which is a continuation-in-part of and claims the benefit of U.S. Patent Application No. 60 / 896,867, filed Mar. 23, 2007, the contents of all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety and are of common assignee.[0002]U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11 / 931,913 is also a continuation-in-part of and also claims the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11 / 509,002, filed Aug. 24, 2006, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety and are of common assignee, which claims the benefit of (i) U.S. Patent Application No. 60 / 751,212, filed Dec. 19, 2005, the contents of which are incorporated herei...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0021]An exemplary embodiment may use four specific metrics in ADBI construction: book equity value; income (free cash flow); sales; and / or gross dividends, if any. Another exemplary embodiment may include additional and / or alternative metrics. Metrics may be varied by country according to another exemplary embodiment. An ADBI construction strategy may offer several advantages. For example, ADBI may outperform cap-weighted indexes. Additionally, ADBI may be adaptable to distinct strategies. ADBI may be used to construct either large or small company indexes, industry sector indexes, geographic indexes and others. ADBI may also effectively limit portfolio risk by providing the benefits of traditional cap-weighted indexes, including diversification, broad market participation, liquidity and low turnover, while generating incrementally higher returns with somewhat lower volatility than comparable cap-weighted indexes. ADBI may also provide protection against market bubbles and fads because a stock's weight in the index is immune to errors in stock valuation.

[0183]According to one exemplary embodiment, the method may include where the method is used to keep a return characteristic of the index, while decreasing a risk characteristic of the index while maintaining diversified geographic and sector variation.

Problems solved by technology

The disadvantages of market capitalization weighting passive indexes, which can be substantial, center on the fact that any under-valued securities are underweighted in the index and related portfolios, while any over-valued securities are over weighted.

This creates unnecessary volatility, which is not in the interests of most investors.

It may also lead to investment returns that have had to absorb the phenomenon of having to repeatedly increase weightings in shares after they have risen and reduce weightings in them after they have fallen.

Unfortunately, cap-weighted indexes suffer from an inherent flaw as they overweight all overvalued stocks and underweight all undervalued stocks.

This causes cap-weighted indexes to under-perform relative to indexes that are immune to this shortcoming.

In addition, cap-weighted indexes are vulnerable to speculative bubbles and emotional bear markets which may unnaturally drive up or down stock prices respectively.

Equal-weighted indexation is a popular alternative to cap-weighting but one that suffers from its own shortcomings One significant problem with equal-weighted indexes is that they come out of the same cap-weighted universes as cap-weighted indexes.

High turnover and associated high costs are additional problems of equal-weighted indexes.

These small illiquid stocks must be traded as often as the larger stocks but at a higher cost because they are less liquid.