Institutional investors such as mutual funds and hedge funds play an important role in today's financial markets. This thesis consists of three essays which empirically study the behavior of active fund managers. In particular, the first essay investigates whether managers behave rationally or if some of them unconsciously make wrong investment decisions due to behavioral biases. The second essay examines whether some managers intentionally act to solely advance their own interests by strategically valuing the security positions in their portfolio. The third essay analyzes what the managers' education reveals about their investment behavior.

A pioneer in the field of behavioral finance presents an investment guide based on what really drives investors Perfectly timed to give readers a real edge for investing in post-crash markets Author is a leading authority on the theory and application of behavioral finance and a fixture in The Wall Street Journal and other leading media outlets Poised to become the definitive text on how investors and managers make financial decisions—and how these decisions are reflected in financial markets

An informative look at institutional investment management methods and practice The policies, practices, and decisions of institutional investment managers worldwide affect the economic health of not only the institutions themselves, but of countless individual clients as well. Overall, this area of finance has great impact on the capital markets. Filled with in-depth insights and practical advice, Institutional Money Management is an important basis of knowledge regarding both the theory and practice of this ever-evolving area of finance. Part of the Robert W. Kolb Series in Finance, this book on institutional investment management showcases contributed chapters from professional and academic experts in banking, insurance companies, mutual funds, pension funds, and endowments. Along the way, issues covered included everything from the role of institutional investors within the financial system and the structures that have emerged and evolved to industry standards of ethical practice and investment performance presentation. Provides a detailed examination of the objectives, constraints, methods, and stakeholders for the dominant types of institutional investors Focuses on the portfolio management strategies and techniques used by institutional investors Contains contributed chapters from numerous thought-leaders in the field of finance The practice of institutional investment management presents a diverse set of challenges. But with this book as your guide, you'll gain a better understanding of how you can overcome these challenges and manage your portfolio more effectively.

This paper (i) provides evidence on the procyclical investment behavior of major institutional investors during the global financial crisis; (ii) identifies the main factors that could account for such behavior; (iii) discusses the implications of procyclical behavior; and (iv) proposes a framework for sound investment practices for long-term investors. Such procyclical investment behavior is understandable and may be considered rational from an individual institution’s perspective. However, our main conclusion is that behaving in a manner consistent with longterm investing would lead to better long-term, risk-adjusted returns and, importantly, could lessen the potential adverse effects of the procyclical investment behavior of institutional investors on global financial stability.

Can increasingly predominant shareholders improve the performance of the corporations they own and should they attempt to do so?

Institutional types differ in their trading decisions - banks, insurance companies, and investment advisors are more likely to act in conformity with their peers, corporate and state pension funds are not significantly influenced by previous institutional trades, while mutual funds exhibit contrarian behavior. Institutional investors further exhibit the tendency to target market weights. The results relate to a series of theoretical findings about herding and strategic trading in capital markets.

The relevance of research. Today, Russia belongs to countries with emerging markets. Currently, the capital market of Russia does not fulfill its main function – attracting investors’ money to finance long-term projects. Forced development of the financial market can help attract domestic long-term investments in the context of sectoral sanctions from developed countries...

Institutional Investors' Power to Change Corporate Behavior