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Optimal Number of Stock Holdings in Mutual Fund Portfolios Based on Market Performance

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  • Hany A. Shawky
  • David M. Smith

Abstract

Among the decisions that most mutual fund portfolio managers make is the number of stocks to hold. We posit that there is an optimal number of stocks for each mutual fund, reflecting the trade‐off between diversification benefits versus transactions and monitoring costs. We find a significant quadratic relation between number of stock holdings and risk‐adjusted returns for U.S. equity mutual fund portfolios during 1992–2000. Moreover, we find that changes in the number of stocks held over time are more highly correlated with mutual fund flows than with funds' investment returns.

Suggested Citation

  • Hany A. Shawky & David M. Smith, 2005. "Optimal Number of Stock Holdings in Mutual Fund Portfolios Based on Market Performance," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 40(4), pages 481-495, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:finrev:v:40:y:2005:i:4:p:481-495
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6288.2005.00120.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Dellva, Wilfred L & Olson, Gerard T, 1998. "The Relationship between Mutual Fund Fees and Expenses and Their Effects on Performance," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 33(1), pages 85-103, February.
    2. John L. Evans & Stephen H. Archer, 1968. "Diversification And The Reduction Of Dispersion: An Empirical Analysis," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 23(5), pages 761-767, December.
    3. Fisher, Lawrence & Lorie, James H, 1970. "Some Studies of Variability of Returns on Investments in Common Stocks," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 43(2), pages 99-134, April.
    4. Elton, Edwin J & Gruber, Martin J, 1977. "Risk Reduction and Portfolio Size: An Analytical Solution," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 50(4), pages 415-437, October.
    5. Statman, Meir, 1987. "How Many Stocks Make a Diversified Portfolio?," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 22(3), pages 353-363, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Azra Zaimovic & Adna Omanovic & Almira Arnaut-Berilo, 2021. "How Many Stocks Are Sufficient for Equity Portfolio Diversification? A Review of the Literature," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-30, November.
    2. Dimitris P. Sotiropoulos & Janette Rutterford & Carolyn Keber, 2020. "UK investment trust portfolio strategies before the First World War," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(3), pages 785-814, August.
    3. Abhay Kaushik & Scott W Barnhart, 2009. "Do mutual funds with few holdings outperform the market?," Journal of Asset Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(6), pages 398-408, February.
    4. Amita Sharma & Sebastian Utz & Aparna Mehra, 2017. "Omega-CVaR portfolio optimization and its worst case analysis," OR Spectrum: Quantitative Approaches in Management, Springer;Gesellschaft für Operations Research e.V., vol. 39(2), pages 505-539, March.
    5. Kim, Youngsoo & Lee, Bong Soo, 2007. "Limited participation and the closed-end fund discount," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 381-399, February.
    6. Nuhiu Artor & Aliu Florin & Peci Bedri, 2022. "Assessing the diversification risk of a single equity market: evidence from the largest European stock indexes," International Journal of Management and Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, Collegium of World Economy, vol. 58(1), pages 3-16, March.
    7. Pei-I Chou & Chia-Hao Lee, 2012. "Is Concentration a Good Idea? Evidence from Active Fund Management," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 19(1), pages 23-41, March.
    8. Jin-Li Hu & Tzu-Pu Chang & Ray Chou, 2014. "Market conditions and the effect of diversification on mutual fund performance: should funds be more concentrative under crisis?," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 41(1), pages 141-151, February.

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