Mar 28, 2024  
2019-2020 Undergraduate Academic Catalog 
    
2019-2020 Undergraduate Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

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AC 4204 - Investment and Financial Markets

4 lecture hours 0 lab hours 4 credits
Course Description
This is the first of the sequence of two courses to prepare our students for Exam IFM of the Society of Actuaries. This course is to develop the student’s knowledge of certain actuarial models and the application of those models to insurance and other financial risks. (prereq: MA 390  and AC 3303 )
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  • Understand the assumptions of mean-variance portfolio theory and its principal results
  • Understand different methods for the valuation of asset portfolios and explain their appropriateness in different situations
  • Understand the notion of efficient markets and explain why market participants may make irrational systematic errors, leading to market inefficiencies
  • Understand different ways to measure investment risk and conduct project analysis using advanced techniques used in capital budgeting
  • Understand the factors that a company has to consider when deciding its capital structure
  • Understand how forward contracts and futures contracts can be used in conjunction with the underlying asset in a risk management context
  • Understand how call options and put options can be used in conjunction with the underlying asset inn a risk management context

Prerequisites by Topic
  • Calculus
  • Probability
  • Basic corporate finance 
  • Interest theory

Course Topics
  • Mean-variance portfolio theory
  • Asset pricing models
  • Market efficiency and behavioral finance
  • Investment risk and project analysis
  • Capital structure
  • Introductory derivatives-forwards and futures
  • General properties of options

Coordinator
Dr. Yvonne Yaz



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