Finance

• QST FE 730: Economics and Management Decisions
  The aim of the course is to present many of the decision problems managers face and to present the economic analysis they need to guide these decisions. In the first half of the course, microeconomic tools are used to structure complicated decision problems about production, pricing, investment, and other strategic issues, address uncertainty through probabilistic forecasts and sequential decisions. An additional goal is to distinguish different market structures and apply competitive strategies using game theory. In the second half, the focus shifts to the study of the national and global economic environments within which companies operate. We identify the drivers of fluctuations in GDP, inflation, interest and exchange rates, and other key features of the economies. Since governments play key roles in determining the fate of economies and companies, the final theme is the rationale for and efficacy of government policy tools.
• QST FE 810: Finance 2
  This course extends fundamental concepts of corporate finance and asset pricing introduced in the core. Corporate finance concepts covered are capital structure decisions, payout policy decisions, and real options. Asset pricing topics include market efficiency, multi-factor models for the risk and return, arbitrage pricing theory and contingent claim analysis and its use in valuation and risk management. The concepts are illustrated in practical examples that prepare students for their summer internships.
• QST FE 820: Corporate Financial Management
  This course provides an in-depth analysis of financial considerations relating to corporate growth. It addresses the setting of financial and corporate goals in terms of maximizing shareholder wealth and relationships among working capital, debt levels, capital costs, dividend policy, growth and the value of the firm. It also considers the requisite financial analysis associated with mergers and acquisitions and bankruptcy.
• QST FE 822: Fixed Income Markets
  This is a course primarily on fixed-income debt securities and markets. Emphasis is placed on the factors that determine bond yields, factors such as the coupon and maturity structure, liquidity, credit risk, and tax status of the security, and on measures of return and risk, statistics such as the yield to maturity, horizon yield, duration, and convexity. We will cover government debt (Treasuries and municipals), corporate bonds (investment-grade and high-yield), agency (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) and mortgage-backed debt created via securitization (i.e., collateralized mortgage obligations). We will emphasize how interest rate and credit derivatives are used to manage portfolios of fixed-income securities.
• QST FE 823: Investments
  Introduction to the investment management process. Defining investment objectives and constraints. Introduction to Modern Portfolio Theory, CAPM, Fama- French factors, APT, efficient markets, stock, bond and option valuation models. Immunizing interest-rate risk. Active and passive investment strategies, fundamental analysis, trading practices, and performance evaluation. Introduction to the role of futures and options in hedging and speculation. Arbitrage and hedge fund strategies. Understanding the assumptions underlying the different approaches and their limitations. Topics related to current events and the recent financial crisis.
• QST FE 825: Advanced Topics in Investments
  This course is designed for students seeking to work as quants in a quantitative finance investments group. It covers utility theory, portfolio optimization, asset pricing, and some aspects of factor models, incorporating the impact of parameter uncertainty. The course does not cover risk management or fixed income instruments, nor does it describe how the financial services industry works. Rather, it teaches how a quant should optimize a portfolio. The course makes extensive use of R (Excel or VBA are not substitutes), optimization theory, statistics, regression theory (OLS, GLS, testing theory), and matrix algebra. Students should be very comfortable with these concepts before taking the course; further, students should already have taken a finance course covering expected returns models (CAPM), options and futures. The course emphasizes the ability to prove theoretical results and their validity, an essential trait for investments quants. Students who are not mathematically ready or want a wider and more general coverage of the topics of Investments should enroll in FE823.
• QST FE 827: International Financial Management
  This course analyzes corporations' exposures to financial risks in the global economy. It discusses national currency systems and currency volatility, and how corporations identify, measure and deal with exposure to such volatility. It introduces students to foreign currency markets, currency derivatives markets, and international financing markets that help corporations deal with the various risks they face and take advantage of opportunities that arise in foreign markets.
• QST FE 829: Futures, Options and Financial Risk Management
  Futures and stock options are recognized as important tools of investment and risk reduction. This course covers the theory of futures and option pricing and develops a framework for analyzing hedging and investment decisions using futures and options. Attention is paid to practical considerations in the use of these investments, tax and accounting issues and the institutional features of the market in which the various instruments are traded.
• QST FE 850: Private Equity: Leveraged Buyouts
  Private Equity (PE) is a major force in the capital markets, acquiring household names such as Dell, Toys R Us, Neilson, Nieman Marcus, and many more. This course exposes students to, and de-mystifies, the PE world. The focus is centered on LBOs and their position in the alternative asset class. Students learn about the activities of PE firms including formation, fundraising, investing (deal structure, terms, due diligence, governance) and exiting. We also discuss how other industry sectors serve or are affected by PE and who the players are. This is a capstone course that integrates marketing, strategy and finance to further the understanding of business evaluation. Case study and class participation are the primary modes of learning. Course offered jointly with undergraduate course SMG FE 450.
• QST FE 854: Entrepreneurial Finance
  The focus of FE854 is on the development of financial and business skills to identify, evaluate, start and manage new ventures. A comprehensive understanding of finance is an essential ingredient in the "recipe" for business success. No longer can the assumptions underlying financial projections be treated as "black boxes." In many cases, the answer is less important than the analytical process used to calculate it. Readings for the course will primarily be in the form of case studies, and will be supplemented by guest speakers, presentations, and readings from academia and industry.
• QST FE 870: Analysis and Management of Financial Risk
  This course introduces the analysis and management of risk in the context of financial institutions. The objective of the course is to provide a conceptual framework for thinking about financial risk, covering both theoretical background and practical implementation
• QST FE 898: Directed Study: Finance
  Graduate-level directed study in Finance. 1, 2, or 3 cr. Application available on the Graduate Center website.
• QST FE 899: Directed Study: Finance
  Graduate-level directed study in Finance. 1, 2, or 3 cr. Application available on the Graduate Center website.
• QST FE 918: Doctoral Seminar in Finance
  This doctoral course, is designed to provide students with an introduction to financial economics. This lecture-based course will cover no arbitrage conditions, preferences and risk aversion, portfolio selection, the capital asset pricing model, asset pricing and dynamic asset pricing. In addition to lectures, this class will include readings and assignments. Open to MBA students with faculty member's permission. Must have strong quantitative background and several courses in finance or economics.
• QST FE 920: Advanced Capital Markets
  This course provides a comprehensive and in-depth treatment of modern asset pricing theories. Extensive use is made of continuous time stochastic processes, stochastic calculus and optimal control. In particular, martingale methods are employed to address the following topics: (i) optimal consumption-portfolio policies and (ii) asset pricing in general equilibrium models. Recent advances involving nonseparable preferences, incomplete information, incomplete markets, constraints and agents diversity will be discussed.
• QST FE 990: Current Topics Seminar
  For PhD students in the Finance department. Registered by permission only.
• QST FE 998: Directed Study: Finance
  PhD-level directed study in Finance. 1, 2, or 3 cr. Application available on the Graduate Center website.
• QST FE 999: Directed Study: Finance
  PhD-level directed study in Finance. 1, 2, or 3 cr. Application available on the Graduate Center website.

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