10–27. Suppose the risk-free interest rate is 5%, and the stock market will return either 40% or −20%
each year, with each outcome equally likely. Compare the following two investment strategies:
(1) invest for one year in the risk–free investment, and one year in the market, or (2) invest for
both years in the market.
a. Which strategy has the highest expected final payoff?
b. Which strategy has the highest standard deviation for the final payoff?
c. Does holding stocks for a longer period decrease your risk?
10–28. Download the spreadsheet from MyFinanceLab containing the realized return of the S&P 500
from 1929–2008. Starting in 1929, divide the sample into four periods of 20 years each. For each
20-year period, calculate the final amount an investor would have earned given a $1000 initial
investment. Also express your answer as an annualized return. If risk were eliminated by holding
stocks for 20 years, what would you expect to find? What can you conclude about long-run
diversification?
10–29. What is an efficient portfolio?
10–30. What does the beta of a stock measure?
10–31. You turn on the news and find out the stock market has gone up 10%. Based on the data in
Table 10.6, by how much do you expect each of the following stocks to have gone up or down: (1)
Starbucks, (2) Tiffany & Co., (3) Hershey, and (4) McDonald’s.