It is quite common today to find firms revalue their portfolios for large cash flows. But what do we mean by "revalue"? Is "repricing" enough?Think about this scenario: On January 31 the portfolio holds 20 different stocks, along with some cash.On February 15, a...
Performance Perspectives Blog
Thoughts on performance measurement from David Spaulding and other members of our team.

Revaluation vs. Repricing … there IS a difference

Tech Survey to be Expanded
TSG has been surveying the industry for 20 years on a variety of topics. This year we focus once again on performance and risk measurement technology, with two surveys:One for the usersOne for the suppliers.Until now the suppliers' survey has been sent only to...

Cash can be your friend or enemy
I was interviewed by Julie Steinberg of the WSJ for an article that appeared this week ("These Two Funds Picked a Really Bad Day to Debut," August 5, page R1) regarding the impact contributions can have on a mutual fund's performance. While time-weighted returns...

The tentacular reach of the GIPS standards
I was recently interviewed by Pensions & Investments ("Fiduciary delegation," July 22, 2013) regarding the appropriateness of expanding the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS(R)) to outsourcing firms: firms that provide investment services to...

Being willing to be different and the need to challenge / confirm conventional wisdom
In this month's TSG newsletter, I wrote a bit about the high jumper Dick Fosbury, who introduced an entirely different way to scale the bar. I vividly recall watching the meet on television in which this was first publicized. Many laughed (including the announcers) at...

You can’t perform unless you try
This photo of one of the legends of sports, not just basketball, was recently posted on FaceBook. I thought it worthy to use as the basis for a blog post.It made me think of two of my TSG colleagues who recently completed degrees part-time, which isn't an easy thing...

A different kind of performance
When I teach our firm's Fundamentals of Performance Measurement class, I begin by saying how performance measurement isn't limited to investing. We encounter the opportunity to observe or participate in performances all the time. My friend, Herb Chain, is the...

Golf and performance measurement … more in common than you might think
I'm teaching a Fundamentals of Performance Measurement class in Sydney this week, and it struck me how much we can use from golf that applies to performance measurement. For example:Measuring performance: performance in golf is measured quantitatively (a player's...

Which return is right?
I was recently asked to do some analysis on a firm's return calculation process; this request stemmed from the fact that they were getting different returns for the same period. I surprised them, I think, when I said that more than one return could be "right."During a...

A performance measurement myth: rolling up is better
A common myth that I often run into is the one involving building up returns from the underlying assets. That is, the belief that if you calculate the returns at the security level and then "roll them up" to derive the portfolio return, that is somehow better.WRONG!It...