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1 Map the research design used by Donato’s for new product development.
2 Evaluate the Wassup meetings as an exploratory methodology to help define the
research question.
3 Evaluate the test market Donatos used. What were its advantages and
disadvantages?
4 What measurement scales would you have used on the survey that was part of the
in-restaurant product tests?
This is a complete written report of your portfolio formation in a Word document. Your historical data and relevant derived values in tables can be pasted from your previous calculations in the Excel spreadsheet. Please provide explanations of all calculations and the justifications in Word format. Make sure to also paste all underlying Excel formulae that you used for calculations in the Word document.
Once again, provide the data that you presented in answering Part 2 of Professional Assignment 2.
Calculate the mean, variance, and the standard deviation of each security’s annual rate of return.
Calculate the correlation coefficient between every possible pair of securities’ annual rates of return.
Choose percentages of your initial investment that you want to allocate amongst the five (5) securities (weights in the portfolio).
Create embedded formulae which generate statistical properties of the portfolio upon insertion of the weights.
Observe the mean, the standard deviation, and the CV of the annual rate of return of the portfolio.
Find the combination of the weights that minimizes CV of the portfolio.
How does the CV of the optimal portfolio compare with the CVs of its constituents?
What is the expected rate of return and standard deviation of the rate of return of the portfolio?
Choose different values within the range of the standard deviation of the portfolio, and for each chosen value, locate the corresponding point on the efficient frontier by finding the weights that maximize the expected rate of return of the portfolio.
Subsequently, construct the efficient frontier of your portfolio.
Assume that you initially invested $1,000,000 in the portfolio and that the distribution of the annual rate of return of the portfolio is normal.
What is the distribution of the return of the portfolio 20 years after its formation?
Provide the graph of the distribution of the return of the portfolio.
Provide your explanations and definitions in detail and be precise. Comment on your findings. Provide references for content when necessary.
After you graduate from college and start your professional career, you will need to consider investing for your retirement. A 401(k) plan is a retirement plan offered by many companies. Such plans are tax-deferred savings vehicles, meaning that any deposits you make into the plan are deducted from your current pretax income, so no current taxes are paid on the money. For example, assume your salary will be $50,000 per year. If you contribute $3,000 to the 401(k) plan, you will pay taxes on only $47,000 in income. There are also no taxes paid on any capital gains or income while you are invested in the plan, but you do pay taxes when you withdraw money at retirement. As is fairly common, the company also has a 5% match. This means that the company will match your contribution up to 5% of your salary, but you must contribute the amount that you want matched, up to the maximum.
The 401(k) plan has several options for investments, most of which are mutual funds. A mutual fund is a portfolio of assets. When you purchase shares in a mutual fund, you are actually purchasing partial ownership of the fund’s assets. The return of the fund is the weighted average of the return of the assets owned by the fund, minus any expenses. The largest expense is typically the management fee, paid to the fund manager. The management fee is compensation for the manager, who makes all of the investment decisions for the fund.
Consider the following questions based on the history of capital markets.
What advantages do mutual funds offer compared to the company stock?
Assume that you invest 5 percent of your salary and receive the full 5 percent match from your employer. What EAR do you earn from the match? What conclusions do you draw about matching plans?
In a 400-700-word APA-formatted analysis, discuss monetary policy and its effect on macroeconomic factors such as GDP, unemployment, inflation, and interest rates.
a. Explain how money is created
b. What are the tools used by the Federal Reserve to control the money supply?
c. How do these tools influence the money supply and in turn affect macroeconomic factors
d. Which combinations of monetary policy help you to best achieve a balance between economic growth, low inflation, and a reasonable rate of unemployment?
Define the concept of elasticity.
Explain how a higher price and a lower price affect consumers and producers.
Share how the changes of price for an elastic good and an inelastic good you use regularly has affected your purchasing and lifestyle.
Millennials are renting offices sharing costs to reduce their overhead expenditures and overall efficiency. What are the disadvantages and advantages of economies of scales? Give examples of your local establishments that use shared locations to decrease costs, i.e., Taco Bell and KFC. Include a minimum of one reference.
Every decision has an Opportunity Cost due to the nature of scarcity, there is always a better alternative not chosen, therefore, there is always an opportunity cost. “The opportunity cost of an alternative is what you give up to pursue it” (Froeb, McCann,Shor & Ward, 2016). When you go to a Maroon 5 concert, you give up $100 of benefits you would have received if you had gone to a Beyoncé concert. Also, you would also avoid $80 of cost for the Beyoncé concert. According to the definition below, the opportunity cost of seeing Maroon 5 concert is $100 – $80 = $20. Please delve into the statement there are always opportunity costs. How can an individual make the best decision? Is there a best decision? Would one miss an opportunity not attending one of the concerts? Include a minimum of one reference.
The USA has had a significant current account deficit for several decades now. Explain why this may be the case for the last two decades and explain the consequences for the USA of this current account deficit.
Describe two forms of private spending that represent consumption. The national income accounts include tuition as part of the consumer spending. In your opinion, are the resources you devote to your education a form of consumption or a form of investment. Explain.
Many factors affect the demand for a product, which is a concern for management and the decision-making process. To correctly assess the demand for their products, managers must determine the effect of all relevant variables. Select a particular industry or product and define the following variables:
Inferior versus normal goods
Substitution and income effects
Derived demand
Changes in real and projected incomes
Discuss how these variables can affect the demand for your product or industry and what methods could be used to estimate the effect of these variables. Justify your answer.