The Alternative Three-Factor Model: Evidence from the German Stock Market

Abstract

This article applies the alternative three-factor model introduced by Chen/Novy-Marx/Zhang (2010) to the German stock market for the sample period of 2004 through 2015. We construct two new factors INV (“investment”) and ROA (“return on assets”) for companies listed on the highest segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, and examine whether they can explain various stock market anomalies using linear time series regressions. Our results reveal that the theoretical assumptions of the model are valid for the German stock market. Firms with higher investments generally exhibit lower returns, while more profitable firms exhibit higher returns. However, we find that the alternative three-factor model does not explain capital market anomalies in the German market better than the factors of the traditional Fama/French (1993) three-factor model.