Blog post - Is the recent outperformance of growth strategies consistent with long-term results? The answer depends on what you mean by growth strategy.

Research paper - The explosion in alternative data has been a blessing and a curse to investment managers. We have identified one source that provided unique and uncorrelated information when added to analysis of traditional factors and other measures of sentiment.

For most of the past two decades, a benevolent relationship between bonds and equities has provided a hedge for asset allocators. We used our macroeconomic model to examine whether this risk protection could disappear in a secular shift.

Blog post - The U.S. price momentum factor, which we highlighted for elevated crowding scores and vulnerability to negative performance at the end of June, suffered sizable drawdowns in the first seven trading days of September.

Research paper - Low-volatility indexes have been attractive to some investors, especially in times of market uncertainty and heightened volatility. We investigate the possibility of incorporating the defensive characteristics of the MSCI Minimum Volatility Indexes into the construction of other factor indexes with the aim of achieving the highest “factor exposure-to-risk ratio.”

Blog post - On the surface, holding-based asset allocation appears to produce stability. But is what you see always what you get? We investigate the pros and cons of a factor-based approach.

Research paper - Asset owners use indexes as policy benchmarks and reference portfolios in their asset allocation. Index investors track cap-weighted indexes that seek to capture the market return. Active investors select securities and build portfolios that aim to outperform the market. All these types of investors may be able to benefit from incorporating factors into their process.

Research paper - How has the introduction of factors affected the performance and characteristics of different investment strategies? Have factors enhanced active strategies without impairing the manager’s ability to select stocks and generate alpha? How can factors help investors and advisers compare mutual funds? As published in the Investments & Wealth Monitor.