This paper presents empirical evidence on the determinants of interest rate swap spreads in Sweden during the period 1999-2003. The results suggest that the spread between STIBOR and the general collateral repo rate is positively related to shorter maturity swap spreads. The risk premium associated with commercial bonds is positively related to swap spreads of all maturities. A negative relationship is observed between the term structure of interest rates and swap spreads. The short-term interest rate is positively related to spreads with shorter maturities.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the companies on Nasdaq OMXS Large and Mid Cap to see if there are interesting patterns regarding their WACC assumptions, used when performing impairment tests on goodwill, during 2007-2009. If so, can we explain these patterns? MethodWe have gathered information about the WACC assumptions presented in the annual reports of the 133 companies that were listed on OMXS Large and Mid Cap during the spring of 2011. To complement this quantitative information we have also conducted an interview with Peter Malmqvist and contacted eight of the companies that were in the study.ConclusionWe can conclude that not all companies present their WACC assumptions in the annual report, even though IAS 36 states that this should be done. Of the 45 companies that were included in our study, eight had lowered their WACC during 2008 and increased it in 2009.

The competition in the milk industry has increased during the last couple of years. This is a result of the trade barrier that dissolved when Sweden entered the European Union. The membership signifies an increased internationalization for the dairies, which has also increased the existence of low price chains in the Swedish food market. The increased share of private brands has strengthened the competitive situation for the manufacturer- owned brands. Three of Sweden?s seven largest dairies have now decided to launch a low price milk to cope with the competitive situation.

We have in this essay studied the Swedish Hedge Fund Market available for the average Swedish private investor. We have closely looked at the risk measurements that are applicable on the evaluation of Hedge Funds today, and furthermore studied how they are communicated and what they actually contribute with in terms of risk and yield. Our survey attempts to clarify the shortcomings in the communication between the Hedge Fund Managers and their smaller investors. Do they really know where they put their money? The market is rapidly expanding and our goal was to find improved ways to inform about the Hedge Funds risks and opportunities.

This paper includes astudy of the mutual fund market investors during a selected timeperiod. The reader is given a descriptive picture of how people in different age groups have  acted  in  conjunction  with  the  last  major  financial  crisis.  It  has  been  studied whether people in the different age categories have saved,purchased or sold during this time  period  based  on  theories  and  analytic  material  from  one  of  the  largest  fund operators in Sweden. The result enlightens people?s activity and risk appetite in relation to the fund market. The essay results in an explanation of the underlying cause of the behavior        of         the         people         in         the         different         age         categories.The paper assumes that the market is cyclical and that more crises will occur in the future.

ABSTRACTTITLE The investors guide to hedge fund strategies ? A comparing study of hedge fund strategies on the Swedish market.COURSE Bachelor Thesis in Finance KEYWORDS Hedge funds, Hedge fund strategies, Swedish hedge fund market, Investors, Average return, Riskadjusted returnThe ThesisInvestor?s general knowledge about hedge funds and hedge fund strategies, is compared to other investment alternatives low. The purpose of this thesis is therefore to clarify to investors how examined hedge fund strategies separate concerning risk and return in hedge funds. This, in order to facilitate for investors understanding which hedge fund strategy will be more suitable for them. To achieve this, the thesis is mainly focusing on quantitative data, which is complemented with qualitative findings in terms of a questionnaire.

Investment in hedge funds is a relatively new phenomenon for investors compared with other forms of savings. In recent years, the interest has increased among investors in investing their money in hedge funds, given the protection against declines in the market they are aiming for. Their main purpose is to generate a high return at a low risk regardless of market trends. This they can achieve by having fewer restrictions that offer more flexible investment strategies and freer investment opportunities.The purpose of this paper is to identify how the selected hedge fund strategies have performed during the recent economic downturn. We also want to clarify the claim that hedge funds exhibit a positive absolute return regardless of what the market is performing.In order to answer the purpose of the essay and its problems, we have used a quantitative method with a deductive approach in the processing of data.

The grain market is facing substantial changes. Tradionally, cereal has been a supply-led market i.e. supply conditions have had a major impact on price level or indirectly, through market interventions implemented through the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP). Just a few years ago, Sweden and the EU were not affected so strongly by world market prices for cereals. EU was a surplus-area and to a substantial degree a local market.

We aim to investigate the risk exposure against commodity prices in the forestry and paper industry. The intension is also to study the affect that the changes in commodity prices has on a company?s market value..

An efficient market implies that the use of fundamental analysis should not result in excess return, and that any return exceeding the market average can be explained by compensation for risk, accord-ing to The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). The focus of this study is to test whether the suc-cessful investment strategy developed by Piotroski (2000) generates excess return on American data, after risk adjustment by using Fama & French?s (1993) 3-factor and Carhart?s (1997) 4-factor CAPM. Initially we form stock portfolios based on companies characterized by high book-to-market values, additionally, we divide them into different performance classes by ranking them with Piotroski?s (2000) measure of financial performance, F_SCORE.

Recently, the selections of ethical funds are increased; at the same time investors with social and moral preferences have increased in the capital market. There are currently debates on whether ethical funds perform better or worse than funds without ethical criteria. This also involves a vivid discussion on whether investors know about the consequences of investing in ethical funds. Therefore, this study involves theories about the rationality and decision theory, in addition to what mainly control the investment decisions. The study also discusses portfolio theory since this is one of the underlying theories behind fund management and its development.The purpose of this study is to explain if ethical limitations in the selection of securities affect risk and return in the fund portfolio.

The Swedish TV broadcasting market is constantly changing together with the players in it. The questionto be answered by this paper is how the players in the market handle these changes and to what extentthe players are changing the market. Also, are there any differences between the public service andcommercial players in this aspect? The purpose of this paper is to create a better understanding of theSwedish broadcasting market and its player's market orientation. Through case studies of the three mainbroadcasting companies, SVT, TV4-gruppen and MTG, the market is analyzed from their perspective.The conclusions from the analysis show that there are differences in the market orientation betweenpublic service and commercial players, where the commercial companies are more market driven..

Background: Since the early 60?s, the CAPM or Capital Asset Pricing Model, has been an invaluable tool for assessing an asset's expected return, assuming that the asset is added to an already well-diversified portfolio of assets. CAPM theory assume that the unsystematic risk can be diversified and that the systematic, market-specific, risk is determined by the Beta value, from the Greek ?. An investor who takes big risks expect higher returns.One of the CAPM?s basic assumptions is that disruption in the market is not taken into account.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka huruvida en aktiv individ får högre framtida pensionsutbetalningar än en individ som låter kapitalet vara kvar i Premiesparfonden.Vår undersökning har en deduktiv ansats, då ekonomiska teorier har utgjort grunden för de beräkningar som har gjorts. Beräkningarna bygger på hårddata, i form av historiska fondvärden, och studien är därmed kvantitativ. Tidigare undersökningar och beräkningar används för att styrka uppsatsen, som i och med detta är en sekundäranalys.  Den placeringsstrategi som visade sig ge högst framtida utbetalningar med hänsyn tagen till risken var den aktiva placeringen. De portföljer som de aktiva premiepensionstagarna har att välja mellan i vår studie, ger alla högre framtida utbetalningar än Premiesparfonden. Vidare kan tilläggas att Premiesparfonden är ett av alternativen som har för hög risk i förhållande till dess låga avkastning.Det skulle vara intressant att om några år, då Premiespar-fonden har förändrats till generationsfonder, göra om denna studie och då undersöka om detta leder till högre pensionsutbetalningar för de icke-aktiva premiepensionstagarna.Denna studie bidrar med och stärker, genom konkreta exempel, det som en del andra författare redan påpekat, att de icke- aktiva premiepensionsspararna får lägre framtida utbetalningar än de som är aktiva i sitt sparande..

This study is about the potential advantages as an investment option in a portfolio. The study shows that the incorporation of bitcoins in a portfolio, even to a small degree, gives significant increases of both risk and return. The different studied portfolios sharpe ratio rises, which in turn shows that the risk reducing return increases when bitcoins is used as an investment option.This study is based on Virtual Currency, Tangible Return: Portfolio Diversification with Bitcoins by Brière, Oosterlinck and Szafarz. The authors of this study have compared their own results with the study mentioned and seen its similarities and differences. The study investigated a total of eleven different assets percentage return over 192 weeks ranging from July 2010 to March 2014.