The disappearing profitability of volatility-managed equity factors

Abstract

Our evidence suggests that the profitability of volatility timing strategies applied to equity factor portfolios disappeared when changes in the trading and information environment in the U.S. in the early 2000s made arbitrage less costly. The reduction of volatility timing alphas is greater for factor portfolios based on small-capitalization stocks, which are less liquid, more costly to trade, and more expensive to short than portfolios based on large-capitalization stocks. The evidence holds for 11 factor portfolios and a broader sample of 110 anomaly portfolios in the U.S. Our research highlights the importance of frictions in the profitability of investment strategies.