Background. Due to prevailing technological development, telecommunication and computers have become very advanced. This has had a tremendous effect on the financial markets as well, various facilitating financial means have become much more common. One of such is passively managed index funds which does not only use index as a benchmark but also trade the stocks in the index. Thus, guaranteeing the fund a return equal to the market return and to a lower cost than an equally good actively managed fund. Index funds have in recent times increased in popularity, which has left its mark. The price of the stocks included to and excluded from an index has been observed to respectively increase and decrease in value.   Research on the price effects caused by index revision, or the effects that inclusion and exclusion have on the price of underlying shares, has been around since the 1980s. In the literature, it is generally accepted that inclusion to an index results in a positive price development, while exclusion results in a negative price development. However, the literature does not agree on whether the price effects are long-term or short-term. The disagreement began with the first studies in the field, where one author found that the price effects were long-lasting, even permanent. The others, on the other hand, found that the price effects were short-lived and returned to their original value when the trading ceased. Subsequent research is equally inconsistent. Some studies have found temporary changes, and some have found permanent ones. In this uncertainty, different theories of explanation have also been presented for the different outcomes, but these do not agree either. Objectives. To bring some clarity to the problems within the literature, the purpose of this study is to investigate the stock price effects from the reconstruction of a Swedish market index, with consideration of whether the effects are temporary or permanent. Methods. This study applied the event study methodology and the market model to examine the abnormal return found around the announcement day and the changing day. The study is based on 195 stocks that were included to and excluded from the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Index between the years 2009 and 2019.  Results. This study did not find any statistically significant price change in the period before the announcement date. However, there were indications that the announcement day did have a positive effect on the included stocks and a negative effect on the excluded stocks. But the time after the announcement day and prior to the changing day did not show any statistically significant price changes. The changing day and the period after were both found to be negatively significant for inclusions. Thus, indicating a negative price effect on the day of inclusion and the period that followed. These results are consistent with previous studies that have found a price drop on the changing day and the following period. A further test of the relationship between the abnormal return found on the announcement day and the changing day revealed that the price increase was concentrated to the announcement day. A possible explanation for this outcome may be that index funds that trade on the Swedish exchange have recognized the opportunity to trade closer to the announcement day without incurring any losses and acted accordingly. Regarding the exclusions, the changing days were not found to be statistically significant. Neither did the period following the changing day show any statistical significance. This result could be due to a delayed reaction to the changing day, given that this group showed a slow reaction to the announcement day as well. Both the announcement day and the day after the announcement day were statistically significant at the 1% level. Other possible causes for the deviating results are errors in execution or data. Conclusions. The result of this study is consistent with other studies that find a temporary price reaction to the index reconstruction.

iiABSTRACTBehavioral finance has been a popular research subject for a while and therefore the understanding of human behavior when it comes to private financial investments has increased. When comparing human behavior to the financial theories one can conclude thatthe assumption of perfect and efficient markets with fully informed and rational investors is not realistic. This study has therefore looked at the investor rationality when choosing which index fund to invest in. Index funds are to a large degree used asa savings tool for either pensions or other specific purposes. It was therefore interesting to look at the behavior of Swedish investors buyingthe Swedishindex funds available in Sweden with a quantitative analysis of the relationship between flow and other features of index funds. The dependent variable reflecting rationality was the fund flow and the independent variables were return, tracking error, size, fee and risk. No previous studies have been made on the investor rationality regarding index funds in the Swedish market, although similar studies havebeen done on the American S&P 500 investors. 17 index funds were included in this study, which is the whole population of index funds following Swedish indices available in Sweden at the point of time when this study was conducted. From this population funds that had been available for more than 3 years was chosen since we wanted to look at the behavior based on a longer time span than one year. In the end, 17index funds with 51observations was included in the study.Five hypotheses were created and tested of whichtwowereaccepted. From the regression model we found that return and standard deviation (SD) weresignificant andhadpositiverelationshipswith the fund flow. This implies that Swedish investors are rational to some degree but not fully rational since they are not taking any of the other variables into account which a rational investor ought to consider. It is therefore useful information for both investors and fund companies to see which factors weight in the most and how rational the behavior is. Conclusions from this study is that Swedish investors are subject to the index fund rationality paradox to some degree and the rational choice theory applies to some extent. One has to fully consider the outcomes of an action and base the decisionon utility maximization that the outcome will give one. To act fully rational is hard even for the most aware investor and even harder for an ordinary investor with gaps in knowledge and limited resources to information.

Private equity (PE) has consistently delivered robust financial returns relative to the public stock market, therefore attracting significant interest from institutional and private investors alike. Private equity performance is generally benchmarked against the public stock market with the help of the Public Market Equivalent (PME) framework. However, a common criticism is that very broad indices, not reflecting the characteristics of private equity investments, are generally used in this framework. This thesis explores the application of tailored indices in the PME framework, designed to more closely mirror the specific characteristics of PE investments, such as sector and geographical composition, and thus providing a more realistic picture of PE performance. The research adopts a quantitative approach and through comprehensive data collection of cash flows, valuations, composition and index data the authors construct two Excel models: one assessing the performance of the PE market and the other analyzing a Fund of Funds (FoF) actor's underlying funds. The findings indicate that using tailored indices generally reduces the outperformance of PE investments compared to the public market. Specifically, PE funds with vintages from 2004 to 2018 experience a 2% to 3.5% decrease in yearly excess return when benchmarked against a tailored index rather than the MSCI World index. A significant factor contributing to this trend is the PE market's concentration on high-performing sectors in America. These findings highlight the critical role of benchmark selection in assessing PE performance. Additionally, funds with a specific investment focus, known as specialist funds, are more accurately benchmarked against tailored indices that reflect their focus. Conversely, generalist funds can be effectively benchmarked against a broad index.

Background: In Sweden one of the most common ways of saving money is through funds and investors have many options to choose between. It depends on the risks you are willing to take, the expected return and size of management fees. The fees charged by the management company varies a lot depending on if the funds are managed actively or passively. During the recent years there have been discussions about which type of fund management will be the most profitable in relation to the fee. Actively managed funds are in general more expensive than passively managed. Object: The purpose of this study is to analyze if there is any relationship between the fee and the return while considering the risk. Furthermore, it will be analyzed if actively or passively managed funds generate higher return considering the fees, and if the actively managed funds succeedtheir benchmark index or not. The aim is to find out which type of fund management is the most appropriate to receive the highest return on the investment. Delimitation: The study is limited to Swedish funds that have been on the Stockholm Stock Exchange for at least 10 years and at least 90 % of the fund’s holdings must be invested in Swedish companies. Actively managed funds and index funds are analyzed and the other funds are excluded. Method: The study extends between the years 2011-2015. A correlation analysis has been made to see if there is a relationship between management fees and the return on investment. To get the best possible result,calculations and analysis have been made on both risk and performance measurements. Conclusion: It is more profitable to invest in index funds than actively managed funds. Actively managed funds does not generate a higher return on investment than indexfunds but they have a higher management fee. There is no relationship between the fee charged by the mangementcompanies and what return you get in the funds. / Bakgrund:Fonder ären vanlig sparmetod i Sverige och vid val av fond finns det många möjligheter för investerare. Detta beroende på vilken risk man är villig att ta, hur hög avkastning man förväntar sig samt hur hög fondens avgift är. Förvaltningsavgiften är den kostnad som betalas till fondbolagen för det förvaltningsarbete som utförs. Avgiften varierar beroende på om fonden förvaltas aktivt eller passivt. Under de senaste åren har det förekommit diskussioner kring vilken fondförvaltning som är bäst att välja i förhållande till avkastning och avgift, eftersom priserna för de aktivt och passivt förvaltade fonderna ofta skiljer sig åt. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att undersöka om det finns något samband mellan avgift och avkastning i förhållande till tagen risk för de aktivt och passivt förvaltade fonderna. Vidare kommer undersökas om aktiv eller passiv fondförvaltning genererar högre avkastning i förhållande till avgift, samt om de aktivt förvaltade fonderna överträffar sitt jämförelseindex eller inte. Avsikten är att få svar på vilken fondförvaltning som ger bättre resultat och därmed är bäst att investera i. Avgränsning: Studien avgränsas till svenska fonder som funnits på Stockholmsbörsen i minst 10 år och har minst 90 % av innehavet i svenska företag. Aktiv förvaltade aktiefonder och indexfonder undersöks, övriga fonder exkluderas. Metod: Tidsperioden som undersöks är fem år, 2011-2015. En korrelationsanalys utförs för att se samband mellan avgift och avkastning. Även relevanta risk-och prestationsmått räknas på och analyseras för att få svar på vilken fondförvaltning som är bäst att välja för bästa resultat. Slutsats: Det är mer lönsamt att investera i indexfonder med lägre avgift än att betala en hög fondavgift för aktiv fondförvaltning. Aktivt förvaltade fonder lyckas oftast inte slå sitt jämförelseindex och genererar inte en högre avkastning i genomsnitt än indexfonder, som har lägre avgift. Det finns inget samband mellan avgift och avkastning för de undersökta fonderna.

Syftet med detta arbete är att undersöka hur överavkastning på aktiebörsen kan uppnås, genom att applicera investeringsstrategier som utgår ifrån portföljanalys. Studien inriktar sig på fastighetsbolag där svenska, europeiska och amerikanska bolag ingår. Metoden utgår ifrån att vikta innehaven i portföljerna genom användningen av finansiella nyckeltal. De beaktade nyckeltalen utgörs av P/E, EV/S, ROIC och soliditet. Portföljerna viktas periodvis utefter ett antal hypoteser som tagits fram. Hypoteserna berör vilka värden på respektive nyckeltal som anses vara mest fördelaktiga ur ett investeringsperspektiv. Studien syftar till att ta fram vilka nyckeltal som är kritiska för en överavkastning i fastighetsaktier. Utfallet av undersökningen visade på en överavkastning i åtta av elva portföljer, vilket togs fram genom användandet av jämförelseindex. Studien ledde fram till slutsatsen att en av fyra hypoteser inte kunde förkastas, medan övriga förkastades med bakgrund av det kvantitativa resultatet. Genom tillämpning av den kvantitativa metod som genomförs i vår studie påvisas att EV/S är det enda nyckeltalet, av urvalet, som en investeringsstrategi kan baseras på för att uppnå en överavkastning gentemot ett relevant index. / This study revolves around reaching high returns on the stock exchange by applying investment strategies based on portfolio analysis. The research focuses on real estate companies within the Swedish, European and American stock exchange. By using financial ratios, P/E, EV/S, ROIC and Equity Ratio, the portfolios and its returns are optimized by a method of weighing. The shares within the portfolios are weighed periodically depending on a variety of hypotheses regarding the financial ratios and its values. The hypotheses have been developed to maximize the returns from an investment perspective. The study is trying to reach a consensus of which financial ratios are crucial within real estate companies to reach a high return. By using different indexes, the result showed that eight out of eleven portfolios reached an excess return. A conclusion was reached; one of four financial ratios are of great importance when trying to reach an excess return by investing in real estate companies. By applying the study’s quantitative method, it is shown that EV/S is the only financial ratio out of the selected that can be used in this investment strategy to achieve excess return, when compared to relevant indexes.

Valet mellan aktiv respektive passiv fondförvaltning har sedan länge varit en omdiskuterad fråga inom privata fondsparandet. På senare tid har frågan kommit att återaktualiserat efter att de aktivt förvaltade storfonderna Allemansfond komplett och Kapitalinvest anklagats för vilseledande marknadsföring, då de inte har generat en högre avkastning än den generella marknaden. Inom den akademiska världen har erkända forskare och sedermera pristagare av Sveriges Riksbanks pris i ekonomisk vetenskap till Alfred Nobels minne, påvisat att aktivt förvaltade fonder inte kan generera en högre avkastning med hänsyn till förvaltningsavgifterna. Utifrån förvaltningsavgifterna påvisade betydelse har vi valt att studera effekten av de rabatterade förvaltningsavgifterna, inom Premiepensionssystemet. Studiens syfte är således att under tidsperioden, 1 januari 2004 till 31 december 2013, analysera om aktiv förvaltade fonder har genererat en högre riskjusterad avkastning än passivt förvaltade fonder, då hänsyn tagits till de rabatterade förvaltningsavgifterna. Studien baserades på dagliga marknadsnoteringar av 174 aktivt förvaltade premiepensionsfonder och årliga förvaltningsavgifter.  Vidare använde vi oss av ett globalt aktiemarknadsindex, MSCI World, som utifrån definitionen av passivt förvaltade fonder var synonymt med studiens jämförelseindex. I enlighet med studiens syfte använde vi oss av det riskjusterade avkastningsmåttet Sharpekvot för att kunna besvara studiens frågeställning.  Resultatet av studien påvisade att aktivt förvaltade fonder har genererat en högre avkastning än passivt förvaltade fonder då hänsyn tagits till förvaltningsavgifter. Då även fondernas risktagande togs i anspråk blev resultatet det motsatta och vi kan därigenom konstatera att aktivt förvaltade fonder har generat en lägre riskjusterad avkastning är passivt förvaltade fonder. Vidare har vi även kunnat konstatera att aktivt förvaltade fonder med låga förvaltningsavgifter har generat en högre såväl avkastning som riskjusterad avkastning än aktivt förvaltade fonder med höga förvaltningsavgifter. / The choice between active and passive fund management has long been a contentious issue within the private mutual fund investments. Lately, the issue has been widely discussed since the actively managed funds Allemansfond komplett and Kapitalinvest was accused of misleading marketing, since their performance has not overachieved the return of the general market. In the academic world, recognized scholars and later Laureate of the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, has demonstrated that actively managed funds cannot generate a higher return with regard to management fees. Based on the importance of the management fees, we have chosen to study the effect of the discount management fees, within the Premiepensionssystemet. Therefore the study's objective is to analyse whether active managed funds have generated higher risk-adjusted returns than passively managed funds, reduced for the discounted management fees. The study will be limited to analyse the period between the 1st January 2004 to 31th December 20103 The study was based on daily market quotations of 174 actively managed Premiepensionsfonder and annual management fees. Furthermore, we used a global stock market index, MSCI World, by the definition of passively managed funds that was synonymous with the study's benchmark. In accordance with the study’s purpose, we used the risk-adjusted performance measure Sharpe ratio in order to answer the research question. The results of this study demonstrated that actively managed funds have generated higher returns than passively managed funds, reduced for the discounted management fees. When the funds' risk taking was committed, the result is the opposite, and we can thus conclude that actively managed funds have yield a lower risk-adjusted returns than passively managed funds. Furthermore, we also noted that actively managed funds with low management fees has generated higher returns as well as risk-adjusted returns than actively managed funds with high management fees.