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The information ratio (IR) and the batting average are two commonly quoted measures of investment success, but these measures have shortcomings: The IR contains no information about higher moments, and the batting average contains only directional information. This article demonstrates how the IR and batting average interact and how they can be usefully combined to allow investors to construct a comprehensive picture of the choices they face. The intriguing result is that large batting averages can result in low IRs and, conversely, impressive IRs can be obtained with low batting averages. Furthermore, in choosing between two managers with equivalent IRs, an investor who is averse to blowups should choose the manager with the lower batting average.
Topical Index Keywords
Performance Measurement and Evaluation
Manager Selection
Performance MeasurementAuthor Information
Neil Constable is vice president of State Street Associates, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Jeremy Armitage, CFA, is managing director and head of research at State Street Global Markets, London.
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Online publication date: 1-Jun-2008.
CrossRef
Forecasting Fund Manager Alphas: The Impossible Just Takes Longer M. Barton Waring and Sunder R. Ramkumar |
Challenges in Quantitative Equity Management (corrected July 2008) |
Does the Measure Matter in the Mutual Fund Industry? Martin Eling |
The Changing Nature and Role of Tactical Asset Allocation Max Darnell |






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Challenges in Quantitative Equity Management (corrected July 2008)