Hedge fund return, volatility asymmetry, and systemic effects: A higher-moment factor-EGARCH model

We investigate whether: (i) co-skewness and co-kurtosis are significant factors in modeling hedge fund (HF) returns, (ii) HF return volatility displays clusters, asymmetry and shock persistence, (iii) volatility clusters of HF styles drive volatility clusters of one another, major asset classes, and major banking organizations, (iv) HF return and volatility patterns changed after the financial crises of 1998 and 2007-2009. A higher-moment EGARCH model and monthly data over January 1993-April 2014 period on 13 HF styles are employed. Out-of-sample forecasts are generated over the period of May 2014-April 2016. Results show: (i) most of the co-skewness and co-kurtosis coefficients are statistically significant, strongly supporting the higher-moment return generating models; (ii) there is strong evidence in favor of EGARCH specification, volatility clustering, asymmetry, and shock persistence; (iii) there were distinct effects on the returns and volatilities of HFs during the 1998 Russian bond crisis, Long-Term Capital Management crisis, and the 2007-2009 financial crisis; and (iv) shocks to volatility clusters of a HF style do spillover to other HF styles, major banking firms, and key asset classes. Our findings have major implications for regulators, investors, HF managers and hedging strategists.