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Publications

Publications by Carlos Alves

2011

Does performance explain mutual fund flows in small markets? The case of Portugal

Authors
Alves, C; Mendes, V;

Publication
PORTUGUESE ECONOMIC JOURNAL

Abstract
We study the performance reaction of investors in a specific small market context. Our sample includes all Portuguese open-end equity funds that invested in stocks issued by Portuguese companies in the period December 1993-June 2009. Instead of the convex flow-performance relationship usually documented for the US, we find an absence of reaction to past performance. We find no evidence to support the "smart money effect", given that capital flows do not favour next period performance winners. We also document persistence of fund flows. Our results are consistent with the idea that large financial intermediaries have the capacity "to drive" their customers to funds with larger fees.

2009

Price Discrimination Strategies of Low-cost Carriers

Authors
Alves, CF; Barbot, C;

Publication
JOURNAL OF TRANSPORT ECONOMICS AND POLICY

Abstract
The low-cost carriers' (LCCs) pricing system is characterised by a single class of booking that starts with a Minimum fare and then monotonically increases its value over time. This is a form of price discrimination although markets are not physically or temporally separate. Using game theory techniques, this paper shows that this Lo-Hi (low first and later high) strategy is optimal under certain ranges of fare. The paper also finds that the existence of different probabilities of consuming the good and of different willingness to pay makes it possible to separate markets in time and to profitably price discriminate.

2021

Impact of special regime generation management on electricity prices: the Portuguese case

Authors
Alves, CF; Pinto, PD;

Publication
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY SECTOR MANAGEMENT

Abstract
Purpose - The ex-post literature, which evaluates the real impact of renewable generation, is scarce. Most studies are simulations and therefore are not based on real data. This study aims to further this goal using a unique database of the Portuguese spot market, where there are powerful incentives for renewable electricity. Design/methodology/approach - This paper analyses ex-post the impact of energy produced in special regime on the wholesale hourly spot market prices of Portuguese electricity during the period 2009-2016. This paper uses standard, two stage least squares and generalized method of moments multivariate regressions and other energy econometrics techniques. Findings - It is found that special regime generation has a negative impact on the wholesale price. This impact is higher than that found in other markets. This paper also concludes that using special regime generation to supply the future growth of demand will decrease wholesale electricity spot prices more intensively than using other technologies. Originality/value - This paper uses a unique database based on ex-post for the Portuguese spot market. The Portuguese case is particularly interesting, not only because of its strong incentives policy on renewable energy but also because its spot market is interconnected with the Spanish market. This paper contributes to the debate about the sustainability of current renewable electricity support schemes. The decreasing trend in electricity prices, with the introduction of new renewable capacity, can be incompatible with the required payments for non-renewable producers. This paper also shows that even if the price reduction on spot markets is transferred to final consumers, given that it is relatively small (8% spot price which represents 45% of the final price), compared with the cost of incentives (35% of the final price), consumers probably will not be able to support a new investment pipeline with a similar framework.

2020

Executive compensation, ownership structure and firm performance: An empirical investigation

Authors
Alves, CF; Fontes Filho, JR;

Publication
Proceedings of the 15th European Conference on Management, Leadership and Governance, ECMLG 2019

Abstract
This article aims at identifying the effect of executive compensation, mediated by the nature of the control, on the sustained performance of the company in a defined ownership context, in which a shareholder or group holds more than half of the voting shares. Despite the wide literature on the relationship between executive compensation and performance, there is little evidence of the lagged effect of compensation on future performance and sustainability. This is particularly significant in countries where concentrated ownership structures dominate, where the controller has incentives to control the behavior of executives and may use the negotiation of such remuneration in order to guide management for their interests or as an instrument of expropriation of minority shareholders. The present study advances along this path by including in the analysis the nature of the control and by considering the lagged effects of the vesting period on performance. Based on executive compensation data from a group of listed Brazilian companies, the effect of this remuneration on change in shareholders' wealth in the three-year period is analyzed by means of multiple regression. The results pointed out that the impact of the variable remuneration on future performance depend on the nature of the remuneration, and on the type of ownership control. Effectively, the weight of the bonus in the total remuneration does not show significant effect. However, the weight of the stock-based remuneration is negatively related with the future performance. Moreover, this result applies both to companies with a controller shareholder and to companies with control shared, but not to companies with dispersed ownership, for which there is evidence of a positive relationship between the importance of the stock-based remuneration and the future performance.

2021

The profitability and distance to distress of European banks: do business choices matter?

Authors
Marques, BP; Alves, CF;

Publication
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF FINANCE

Abstract
This paper examines which business choices are more likely to increase the profitability and distance to distress of banks, and whether changing business model pays off. We find that the profitability and distance to distress increase with the use of customer deposits and equity, and decrease with size; also, the top performers tend to have a high relationship banking orientation and/or operate a retail focused business model. Furthermore, we document that income diversification only bears a positive impact on the distance to distress of banks highly focused on relationship banking, and size only bears a negative effect on the profitability of these banks as well; additionally, only banks with a low relationship banking orientation significantly benefit from customer deposits. With respect to the effects of business model changes, we find that shifts from the retail diversified funding model to either the retail focused or the large diversified models improve profitability in the medium term. Finally, we find evidence that large diversified banks benefited from internal capital markets during the twin financial crisis by tapping into low-cost funding from subsidiaries. Our results are robust to changes to our baseline model that account for endogeneity and persistency issues.

2021

Analysis of Bitcoin's Impact on the Efficiency of a Diversified Portfolio for Brazilian Investors

Authors
Batista, DT; Alves, CF;

Publication
RBGN-REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE GESTAO DE NEGOCIOS

Abstract
Purpose - This paper aims to investigate if the inclusion of Bitcoin among the assets available to retail investors in the Brazilian market has an impact on the efficient frontier and, therefore, on the optimal choices of investors. Design/methodology/approach - This study calculates the efficient frontier with and without the inclusion of Bitcoin and estimates optimal portfolios for different criteria and time intervals. The sample period runs from 07/01/2013 to 06/30/2018 and the daily closing values of the selected assets/indices were used. Findings - This study finds evidence that the inclusion of Bitcoin among the investment alternatives would cause a statistically significant positive displacement and an expansion of the efficient frontier of the Brazilian retail market. This would result in a significant increase in the return on the tangency portfolio. In addition to improving the indicators of optimization of the risk-return binomial, the cryptoasset would be included in many optimal portfolios in the 2013Q3-2018Q2 period. Originality/value - The results obtained show that, as reported for more developed markets, Bitcoin has caused an expansion of the efficient frontier of the Brazilian retail market.

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