Description

As of December 4, 2019, Viacom Inc. was acquired by CBS Corporation. Viacom Inc. operates media brands that create entertainment content worldwide. It operates in two segments, Media Networks and Filmed Entertainment. The Media Networks segment offers entertainment content, services, and related branded products to advertisers, content distributors, and retailers through approximately 320 locally programmed and operated television channels, including Nickelodeon, MTV, BET, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Nick Jr., VH1, TV Land, CMT, Logo, Channel 5, Milkshake!, Telefe, COLORS, Paramount Channel, TeenNick, Nicktoons, Nick Music, MTV2, MTV Classic, MTV Live, BET Her, BET Gospel, and BET Hip Hop, as well as through online, mobile, and apps. The Filmed Entertainment segment develops, produces, finances, acquires, and distributes films, television programming, and other entertainment content under the Paramount Pictures, Paramount Players, Paramount Animation, Paramount Television, Nickelodeon Movies, MTV Films, and BET Films brands. This segment exhibits films theatrically through home entertainment, licensing to television and digital platforms, and ancillary activities. The company releases its content through DVDs, Blu-ray discs, syndication and transactional video-on-demand, subscription video-on-demand, over-the-top distributors, pay television, cable television, free television, and free video-on-demand, as well as airlines and hotels. Viacom Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Statistics (YTD)

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TotalReturn:

'Total return, when measuring performance, is the actual rate of return of an investment or a pool of investments over a given evaluation period. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends and distributions realized over a given period of time. Total return accounts for two categories of return: income including interest paid by fixed-income investments, distributions or dividends and capital appreciation, representing the change in the market price of an asset.'

Using this definition on our asset we see for example:
  • The total return, or performance over 5 years of Viacom is -67.3%, which is lower, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (80.1%) in the same period.
  • Compared with SPY (30.8%) in the period of the last 3 years, the total return, or performance of -33.7% is lower, thus worse.

CAGR:

'Compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is a business and investing specific term for the geometric progression ratio that provides a constant rate of return over the time period. CAGR is not an accounting term, but it is often used to describe some element of the business, for example revenue, units delivered, registered users, etc. CAGR dampens the effect of volatility of periodic returns that can render arithmetic means irrelevant. It is particularly useful to compare growth rates from various data sets of common domain such as revenue growth of companies in the same industry.'

Which means for our asset as example:
  • Compared with the benchmark SPY (12.5%) in the period of the last 5 years, the annual return (CAGR) of -20.1% of Viacom is smaller, thus worse.
  • Looking at annual return (CAGR) in of -12.8% in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively lower, thus worse in comparison to SPY (9.4%).

Volatility:

'Volatility is a statistical measure of the dispersion of returns for a given security or market index. Volatility can either be measured by using the standard deviation or variance between returns from that same security or market index. Commonly, the higher the volatility, the riskier the security. In the securities markets, volatility is often associated with big swings in either direction. For example, when the stock market rises and falls more than one percent over a sustained period of time, it is called a 'volatile' market.'

Which means for our asset as example:
  • Looking at the volatility of 34.9% in the last 5 years of Viacom, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (21.3%)
  • Compared with SPY (17.6%) in the period of the last 3 years, the 30 days standard deviation of 32.4% is larger, thus worse.

DownVol:

'The downside volatility is similar to the volatility, or standard deviation, but only takes losing/negative periods into account.'

Applying this definition to our asset in some examples:
  • The downside deviation over 5 years of Viacom is 26.6%, which is greater, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (15.3%) in the same period.
  • During the last 3 years, the downside deviation is 23.8%, which is higher, thus worse than the value of 12.3% from the benchmark.

Sharpe:

'The Sharpe ratio is the measure of risk-adjusted return of a financial portfolio. Sharpe ratio is a measure of excess portfolio return over the risk-free rate relative to its standard deviation. Normally, the 90-day Treasury bill rate is taken as the proxy for risk-free rate. A portfolio with a higher Sharpe ratio is considered superior relative to its peers. The measure was named after William F Sharpe, a Nobel laureate and professor of finance, emeritus at Stanford University.'

Which means for our asset as example:
  • The risk / return profile (Sharpe) over 5 years of Viacom is -0.65, which is lower, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (0.47) in the same period.
  • During the last 3 years, the ratio of return and volatility (Sharpe) is -0.47, which is smaller, thus worse than the value of 0.39 from the benchmark.

Sortino:

'The Sortino ratio measures the risk-adjusted return of an investment asset, portfolio, or strategy. It is a modification of the Sharpe ratio but penalizes only those returns falling below a user-specified target or required rate of return, while the Sharpe ratio penalizes both upside and downside volatility equally. Though both ratios measure an investment's risk-adjusted return, they do so in significantly different ways that will frequently lead to differing conclusions as to the true nature of the investment's return-generating efficiency. The Sortino ratio is used as a way to compare the risk-adjusted performance of programs with differing risk and return profiles. In general, risk-adjusted returns seek to normalize the risk across programs and then see which has the higher return unit per risk.'

Applying this definition to our asset in some examples:
  • Looking at the downside risk / excess return profile of -0.85 in the last 5 years of Viacom, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (0.66)
  • Compared with SPY (0.56) in the period of the last 3 years, the downside risk / excess return profile of -0.64 is lower, thus worse.

Ulcer:

'Ulcer Index is a method for measuring investment risk that addresses the real concerns of investors, unlike the widely used standard deviation of return. UI is a measure of the depth and duration of drawdowns in prices from earlier highs. Using Ulcer Index instead of standard deviation can lead to very different conclusions about investment risk and risk-adjusted return, especially when evaluating strategies that seek to avoid major declines in portfolio value (market timing, dynamic asset allocation, hedge funds, etc.). The Ulcer Index was originally developed in 1987. Since then, it has been widely recognized and adopted by the investment community. According to Nelson Freeburg, editor of Formula Research, Ulcer Index is “perhaps the most fully realized statistical portrait of risk there is.'

Using this definition on our asset we see for example:
  • Compared with the benchmark SPY (9.43 ) in the period of the last 5 years, the Downside risk index of 52 of Viacom is greater, thus worse.
  • Compared with SPY (10 ) in the period of the last 3 years, the Downside risk index of 35 is larger, thus worse.

MaxDD:

'Maximum drawdown measures the loss in any losing period during a fund’s investment record. It is defined as the percent retrenchment from a fund’s peak value to the fund’s valley value. The drawdown is in effect from the time the fund’s retrenchment begins until a new fund high is reached. The maximum drawdown encompasses both the period from the fund’s peak to the fund’s valley (length), and the time from the fund’s valley to a new fund high (recovery). It measures the largest percentage drawdown that has occurred in any fund’s data record.'

Using this definition on our asset we see for example:
  • Compared with the benchmark SPY (-33.7 days) in the period of the last 5 years, the maximum reduction from previous high of -72.4 days of Viacom is smaller, thus worse.
  • Looking at maximum drop from peak to valley in of -54.5 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively smaller, thus worse in comparison to SPY (-24.5 days).

MaxDuration:

'The Maximum Drawdown Duration is an extension of the Maximum Drawdown. However, this metric does not explain the drawdown in dollars or percentages, rather in days, weeks, or months. It is the length of time the account was in the Max Drawdown. A Max Drawdown measures a retrenchment from when an equity curve reaches a new high. It’s the maximum an account lost during that retrenchment. This method is applied because a valley can’t be measured until a new high occurs. Once the new high is reached, the percentage change from the old high to the bottom of the largest trough is recorded.'

Using this definition on our asset we see for example:
  • The maximum days under water over 5 years of Viacom is 1245 days, which is higher, thus worse compared to the benchmark SPY (478 days) in the same period.
  • Looking at maximum days below previous high in of 674 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively higher, thus worse in comparison to SPY (478 days).

AveDuration:

'The Drawdown Duration is the length of any peak to peak period, or the time between new equity highs. The Avg Drawdown Duration is the average amount of time an investment has seen between peaks (equity highs), or in other terms the average of time under water of all drawdowns. So in contrast to the Maximum duration it does not measure only one drawdown event but calculates the average of all.'

Using this definition on our asset we see for example:
  • Looking at the average days under water of 618 days in the last 5 years of Viacom, we see it is relatively higher, thus worse in comparison to the benchmark SPY (118 days)
  • Looking at average days under water in of 310 days in the period of the last 3 years, we see it is relatively greater, thus worse in comparison to SPY (173 days).

Performance (YTD)

Historical returns have been extended using synthetic data.

Allocations ()

Allocations

Returns (%)

  • Note that yearly returns do not equal the sum of monthly returns due to compounding.
  • Performance results of Viacom are hypothetical, do not account for slippage, fees or taxes, and are based on backtesting, which has many inherent limitations, some of which are described in our Terms of Use.