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Abnormal return  Return on a stock beyond what would be predicted by market movements alone. Cumulative abnormal return (CAR) is the total abnormal return for the period surrounding an announcement or the release of information.
Anomalies  Patterns of returns that seem to contradict the efficient market hypothesis.
Book-to-market effect  The tendency for stocks of firms with high ratios of book-to-market value to generate abnormal returns.
Cumulative abnormal return  See abnormal return.
Efficient market hypothesis  The prices of securities fully reflect available information. Investors buying securities in an efficient market should expect to obtain an equilibrium rate of return. Weak-form EMH asserts that stock prices already reflect all information contained in the history of past prices. The semistrong-form hypothesis asserts that stock prices already reflect all publicly available information. The strong-form hypothesis asserts that stock prices reflect all relevant information including insider information.
Event study  Research methodology designed to measure the impact of an event of interest on stock returns.
Fundamental analysis  Research to predict stock value that focuses on such determinants as earnings and dividends prospects, expectations for future interest rates, and risk evaluation of the firm.
Index fund  A mutual fund holding shares in proportion to their representation in a market index such as the S&P 500.
Momentum effect  The tendency of poorly performing stocks and well-performing stocks in one period to continue that abnormal performance in following periods.
Neglected-firm effect  That investments in stock of less well-known firms have generated abnormal returns.
P/E effect  That portfolios of low P/E stocks have exhibited higher average risk-adjusted returns than high P/E stocks.
Passive investment strategy  See passive management.
Random walk  Describes the notion that stock price changes are random and unpredictable.
Resistance level  A price level above which it is supposedly difficult for a stock or stock index to rise.
Reversal effect  The tendency of poorly performing stocks and well-performing stocks in one period to experience reversals in following periods.
Semistrong-form EMH  See efficient market hypothesis.
Small-firm effect  That investments in stocks of small firms appear to have earned abnormal returns.
Strong-form EMH  See efficient market hypothesis.
Support level  A price level below which it is supposedly difficult for a stock or stock index to fall.
Technical analysis  Research to identify mispriced securities that focuses on recurrent and predictable stock price patterns and on proxies for buy or sell pressure in the market.
Weak-form EMH  See efficient market hypothesis.







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