DC plan members may be unwell ready to meet retirement-spending needs. We assessed four equity-allocation situations — including an equity multifactor allocation and integration of ESG views — to see which performed greatest. While many shares had been within the pink in mid-March, as COVID-19 and oil-market shocks took hold, some were “redder” than others. We study international markets to better perceive the characteristics of the more resilient shares throughout this period. Though holdings information is limited, and delayed, we gained insights into their reaction by analyzing the change in hedge-fund portfolios between the end of January and end of February. Using natural language processing strategies, we constructed a sentiment factor that quantifies modifications in the tone and content of firm filings, and may be an indicator of future risks dealing with an organization.
