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Can Individual Investors Beat the Market?

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Author Info
JOSHUA D. COVAL (Harvard University - Finance Unit)
David Hirshleifer (Fisher College of Business, Ohio State University, Department of Finance)
TYLER G. SHUMWAY (University of Michigan)

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Abstract

We document strong persistence in the performance of trades of individual investors. Investors classified in the top 10 percent place other trades that on average earn excess returns of 15 basis points per day. A rolling-forward strategy of going long firms purchased by previously successful investors and shorting firms purchased by previously unsuccessful investors results in excess returns of 5 basis points per day. These returns are not confined to small stocks nor to stocks in which the investors are likely to have inside information. Our results suggest that skillful individual investors exploit market inefficiencies to earn abnormal profits, above and beyond any profits available from well-known strategies based upon size, value, or momentum.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by EconWPA in its series Finance with number 0412005.

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Length: 45 pages
Date of creation: 04 Dec 2004
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:wpa:wuwpfi:0412005

Note: Type of Document - pdf; pages: 45. PDF
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Web page: http://129.3.20.41

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Related research
Keywords: Individual Investors; Market Efficiency; Performance Persistence;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
G - Financial Economics

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Carhart, Mark M, 1997. " On Persistence in Mutual Fund Performance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(1), pages 57-82, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Terrance Odean, 1998. "Are Investors Reluctant to Realize Their Losses?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 53(5), pages 1775-1798, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Elton, Edwin J & Gruber, Martin J & Blake, Christopher R, 1996. "The Persistence of Risk-Adjusted Mutual Fund Performance," Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 69(2), pages 133-57, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Bruce N. Lehmann & David M. Modest, 1987. "Mutual Fund Performance Evaluation: A Comparison of Benchmarks and Benchmark Comparisons," NBER Working Papers 1721, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. David Hirshleifer, 2001. "Investor Psychology and Asset Pricing," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 56(4), pages 1533-1597, 08. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Brad M. Barber & Terrance Odean, 2000. "Trading Is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(2), pages 773-806, 04. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Klaas P. Baks, 2001. "Should Investors Avoid All Actively Managed Mutual Funds? A Study in Bayesian Performance Evaluation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 56(1), pages 45-85, 02. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  8. Klaas Baks & Andrew Metrick & Jessica Wachter, 1999. "Bayesian Performance Evaluation," NBER Working Papers 7069, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Loughran, Tim & Ritter, Jay R., 2000. "Uniformly least powerful tests of market efficiency," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(3), pages 361-389, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Lehmann, Bruce N & Modest, David M, 1987. " Mutual Fund Performance Evaluation: A Comparison of Benchmarks and Benchmark Comparisons," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 42(2), pages 233-65, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Russ Wermers, 2000. "Mutual Fund Performance: An Empirical Decomposition into Stock-Picking Talent, Style, Transactions Costs, and Expenses," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(4), pages 1655-1703, 08. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. KENT D. DANIEL & David Hirshleifer & AVANIDHAR SUBRAHMANYAM, 2004. "A Theory of Overconfidence, Self-Attribution, and Security Market Under- and Over-reactions," Finance 0412006, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
  13. Terrance Odean, 1999. "Do Investors Trade Too Much?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(5), pages 1279-1298, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Judith Chevalier & Glenn Ellison, 1999. "Are Some Mutual Fund Managers Better Than Others? Cross-Sectional Patterns in Behavior and Performance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(3), pages 875-899, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  15. Brown, Stephen J, et al, 1992. "Survivorship Bias in Performance Studies," Review of Financial Studies, Oxford University Press for Society for Financial Studies, vol. 5(4), pages 553-80. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Glaser, Markus & Weber, Martin, 2005. "Which Past Returns Affect Trading Volume?," Sonderforschungsbereich 504 Publications 05-33, Sonderforschungsbereich 504, Universität Mannheim & Sonderforschungsbereich 504, University of Mannheim.
  2. Malika, HAMADI & Erick, RENGIFO & Diego SALZMAN, 2004. "Illusionary Finance and Trading Behavior," Discussion Papers (ECON - Département des Sciences Economiques) 2005012, Université catholique de Louvain, Département des Sciences Economiques, revised 15 Jan 2005. [Downloadable!]
  3. Zoran Ivkovich & Clemens Sialm & Scott Weisbenner, 2004. "Portfolio Concentration and the Performance of Individual Investors," NBER Working Papers 10675, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. Gina Nicolosi & Liang Peng, 2004. "Do individual investors learn from their trading experience," Econometric Society 2004 North American Summer Meetings 532, Econometric Society. [Downloadable!]
  5. Andersson, Patric, 2004. "How well do financial experts perform? A review of empirical research on performance of analysts, day-traders, forecasters, fund managers, investors, and stockbrokers," Working Paper Series in Business Administration 2004:9, Stockholm School of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  6. David Hirshleifer & James N. Myers & Linda A. Myers & Siew Hong Teoh, 2004. "Do Individual Investors Drive Post-Earnings Announcement Drift? Direct Evidence from Personal Trades," Finance 0412003, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
  7. Glaser, Markus & Weber, Martin, 2005. "Which Past Returns Affect Trading Volume?," SIFR Research Report Series 35, Institute for Financial Research. [Downloadable!]
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