Test Prep CFA Level 2

Glenda Garvey is interning at Samson Securities in the summer to earn money for her last semester of studies for her MBA. She took the Level 3 CFA® exam in

June but has not yet received her score. Garvey's work involves preparing research reports on small companies.

Garvey is at lunch with a group of co-workers. She listens to their conversation about various stocks and takes note of a comment from Tony Topel, a veteran analyst. Topel is talking about Vallo Engineering, a small stock he has tried repeatedly to convince the investment director to add to the monitored list. While the investment director does not like Vallo, Topel has faith in the company and has gradually accumulated 5,000 shares for his own account. Another analyst, Mary

Kennedy, tells the group about Koral Koatings, a paint and sealant manufacturer. Kennedy has spent most of the last week at the office doing research on Koral.

She has concluded that the stock is undervalued and consensus earnings estimates are conservative. However, she has not filed a report for Samson, nor does she intend to. She said she has purchased the stock for herself and advises her colleagues to do the same. After she gets back to the office, Garvey purchases 25 shares of Vallo and 50 shares of Koral for herself.

Samson pays its interns very little, and Garvey works as a waitress at a diner in the financial district to supplement her income. The dinner crowd includes many analysts and brokers who work at nearby businesses. While waiting tables that night, Garvey hears two employees of a major brokerage house discussing

Metrona, a nanotechnology company. The restaurant patrons say that the broker's star analyst has issued a report with a buy rating on Metrona that morning. The diners plans to buy the stock the next morning. After Garvey finishes her shift, restaurant manager Mandy Jones, a longtime Samson client, asks to speak with her. Jones commends Garvey for her hard work at the restaurant, praising her punctuality and positive attitude, and offers her two tickets to a Yankees game as a bonus.

The next morning, Garvey buys 40 shares of Metrona for her own account at the market open. Soon afterward, she receives a call from Harold Koons, one of

Samson's largest money-management clients. Koons says he got Garvey's name from Bertha Witt, who manages the Koons' account. Koons wanted to reward the analyst who discovered Anvil Hammers, a machine-tool company whose stock soared soon after it was added to his portfolio. Garvey prepared the original report on Anvil Hammers. Koons offers Garvey two free round-trip tickets to the city of her choice. Garvey thanks Koons, then asks her immediate supervisor, Karl

May, about the gift from Koons but does not mention the gift from Jones. May approves the Koons' gift.

After talking with May, Garvey starts a research project on Zenith Enterprises, a frozen-juice maker. Garvey's gathers quarterly data on the company's sales and profits over the past two years. Garvey uses a simple linear regression to estimate the relationship between GDP growth and Zenith's sales growth. Next she uses a consensus GDP estimate from a well-known economic data reporting service and her regression model to extrapolate growth rates for the next three years.

Later that afternoon, Garvey attends a company meeting on the ethics of money management. She listens to a lecture in which John Bloomquist, a veteran portfolio manager, talks about his job responsibilities. Garvey takes notes that include the following three statements made by Bloomquist:

Statement 1: I'm not a bond expert, and I've turned to a colleague for advice on how to manage the fixed-income portion of client portfolios.

Statement 2: I strive not to favor either the remaindermen or the current-income beneficiaries, instead I work to serve both of their interests.

Statement 3: All of my portfolios have target growth rates sufficient to keep ahead of inflation.

Garvey is not working at the diner that night, so she goes home to work on her biography for an online placement service. In it she makes the following two statements:

Statement 1: I'm a CFA Level 3 candidate, and I expect to receive my charter this fall. The CFA program is a grueling, 3-part, graduate-level course, and passage requires an expertise in a variety of financial instruments as well as knowledge of the forces that drive our economy and financial markets.

Statement 1: I expect to graduate with my MBA from Braxton College at the end of the fall semester. As both an MBA and a CFA, I'll be in high demand. Hire me now while you still have the chance.

During the lunch conversation, which CFA Institute Standard of Professional Conduct was most likely violated?

Glenda Garvey is interning at Samson Securities in the summer to earn money for her last semester of studies for her MBA. She took the Level 3 CFA® exam in

June but has not yet received her score. Garvey's work involves preparing research reports on small companies.

Garvey is at lunch with a group of co-workers. She listens to their conversation about various stocks and takes note of a comment from Tony Topel, a veteran analyst. Topel is talking about Vallo Engineering, a small stock he has tried repeatedly to convince the investment director to add to the monitored list. While the investment director does not like Vallo, Topel has faith in the company and has gradually accumulated 5,000 shares for his own account. Another analyst, Mary

Kennedy, tells the group about Koral Koatings, a paint and sealant manufacturer. Kennedy has spent most of the last week at the office doing research on Koral.

She has concluded that the stock is undervalued and consensus earnings estimates are conservative. However, she has not filed a report for Samson, nor does she intend to. She said she has purchased the stock for herself and advises her colleagues to do the same. After she gets back to the office, Garvey purchases 25 shares of Vallo and 50 shares of Koral for herself.

Samson pays its interns very little, and Garvey works as a waitress at a diner in the financial district to supplement her income. The dinner crowd includes many analysts and brokers who work at nearby businesses. While waiting tables that night, Garvey hears two employees of a major brokerage house discussing

Metrona, a nanotechnology company. The restaurant patrons say that the broker's star analyst has issued a report with a buy rating on Metrona that morning. The diners plans to buy the stock the next morning. After Garvey finishes her shift, restaurant manager Mandy Jones, a longtime Samson client, asks to speak with her. Jones commends Garvey for her hard work at the restaurant, praising her punctuality and positive attitude, and offers her two tickets to a Yankees game as a bonus.

The next morning, Garvey buys 40 shares of Metrona for her own account at the market open. Soon afterward, she receives a call from Harold Koons, one of

Samson's largest money-management clients. Koons says he got Garvey's name from Bertha Witt, who manages the Koons' account. Koons wanted to reward the analyst who discovered Anvil Hammers, a machine-tool company whose stock soared soon after it was added to his portfolio. Garvey prepared the original report on Anvil Hammers. Koons offers Garvey two free round-trip tickets to the city of her choice. Garvey thanks Koons, then asks her immediate supervisor, Karl

May, about the gift from Koons but does not mention the gift from Jones. May approves the Koons' gift.

After talking with May, Garvey starts a research project on Zenith Enterprises, a frozen-juice maker. Garvey's gathers quarterly data on the company's sales and profits over the past two years. Garvey uses a simple linear regression to estimate the relationship between GDP growth and Zenith's sales growth. Next she uses a consensus GDP estimate from a well-known economic data reporting service and her regression model to extrapolate growth rates for the next three years.

Later that afternoon, Garvey attends a company meeting on the ethics of money management. She listens to a lecture in which John Bloomquist, a veteran portfolio manager, talks about his job responsibilities. Garvey takes notes that include the following three statements made by Bloomquist:

1. Statement 1: I'm not a bond expert, and I've turned to a colleague for advice on how to manage the fixed-income portion of client portfolios.
2. Statement 2: I strive not to favor either the remaindermen or the current-income beneficiaries, instead I work to serve both of their interests.
3. Statement 3: All of my portfolios have target growth rates sufficient to keep ahead of inflation.

Garvey is not working at the diner that night, so she goes home to work on her biography for an online placement service. In it she makes the following two statements:

1. Statement 1: I'm a CFA Level 3 candidate, and I expect to receive my charter this fall. The CFA program is a grueling, 3-part, graduate-level course, and passage requires an expertise in a variety of financial instruments as well as knowledge of the forces that drive our economy and financial markets.
2. Statement 1: I expect to graduate with my MBA from Braxton College at the end of the fall semester. As both an MBA and a CFA, I'll be in high demand. Hire me now while you still have the chance.

Does Garvey's acceptance of the gifts from Koons and Jones violate Standard 1(B) Independence and Objectivity?

Pat Wilson, CFA, is the chief compliance officer for Excess Investments, a global asset management and investment banking services company. Wilson is reviewing two investment reports written by Peter Holly, CFA, an analyst and portfolio manager who has worked for Excess for four years. Holly's first report under compliance review is a strong buy recommendation for BlueNote Inc., a musical instrument manufacturer. The report states that the buy recommendation is applicable for the next 6 to 12 months with an average level of risk and a sustainable price target of $24 for the entire time period. At the bottom of the report, an e- mail address is given for investors who wish to obtain a complete description of the firm's rating system. Among other reasons supporting the recommendation,

Holly's report states that expected increases in profitability as well as increased supply chain efficiency provide compelling support for purchasing BlueNote.

Holly informs Wilson that he determined his conclusions primarily from an intensive review of BlueNote's filings with the SEC but also from a call to one of

BlueNote's suppliers who informed Holly that their new inventory processing system would allow for more efficiency in supplying BlueNote with raw materials.

Holly explains to Wilson that he is the only analyst covering BlueNote who is aware of this information and that he believes the new inventory processing system will allow BlueNote to reduce costs and increase overall profitability for several years to come.

Wilson must also review Holly's report on BigTirae Inc., a musical promotions and distribution company. In the report, Holly provides a very optimistic analysis of

BigTime's fundamentals. The analysis supports a buy recommendation for the company. Wilson finds one problem with Holly's report on BigTime related to Holly's former business relationship with BigTime Inc. Two years before joining Excess, Holly worked as an investment banker and received 1,000 restricted shares of

BigTime as a result of his participation in taking the company public. These facts are not disclosed in the report but are disclosed on Excess Investment's Web site. Wilson decides, however, that the timeliness of the information in the report warrants overlooking this issue so that the report can be distributed.

Just before the report is issued. Holly mentions to Wilson that BigTime unknowingly disclosed to him and a few other analysts who were wailing for a conference call to begin that the company is planning to restructure both its sales staff and sales strategy and may sell one of its poorly performing business units next year.

Three days after issuing his report on BigTime, which caused a substantial rise in the price of BigTime shares, Holly sells all of the BigTirne shares out of both his performance fee-based accounts and asset-based accounts and then proceeds to sell all of the BigTime shares out of his own account on the following day. Holly obtained approval from Wilson before making the trades.

Just after selling his shares in BigTime, Holly receives a call from the CEO of BlueNote who wants to see if Holly received the desk pen engraved with the

BlueNote company logo that he sent last week and also to offer two front row tickets plus limousine service to a sold-out concert for a popular band that uses

BlueNote's instruments. Holly confirms that the desk pen arrived and thanks the CEO for the gift and tells him that before he accepts the concert tickets, he will have to check his calendar to see if he will be able to attend. Holly declines the use of the limousine service should he decide to attend the concert.

After speaking with the CEO of BlucNote, Holly constructs a letter that he plans to send by e-mail to all of his clients and prospects with e-mail addresses and by regular mail to all of his clients and prospects without e-mail addresses. The letter details changes to an equity valuation model that Holly and several other analysts at Excess use to analyze potential investment recommendations. Holly's letter explains that the new model, which will be put into use next month, will utilize Monte Carlo simulations to create a distribution of stock values, a sharp contrast to the existing model which uses static valuations combined with sensitivity analysis. Relevant details of the new model are included in the letter, but similar details about the existing model are not included. The letter also explains that management at Excess has decided to exclude alcohol and tobacco company securities from the research coverage universe. Holly's letter concludes by stating that no other significant changes that would affect the investment recommendation process have occurred or are expected to occur in the near future.

In his letter to clients explaining the change in the valuation model, did Holly violate anv CFA Institute Standards of Professional Conduct?

Tom Vadney, CFA, is president and CEO of Vadney Research and Advisors (VRA), a large equity research firm that specializes in providing international investment and advisory services to global portfolio managers. He has a staff of five junior analysts and three senior analysts covering industries and firms across the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions.

In a recent meeting with an institutional portfolio manager, Vadney is asked to review the differences between U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting

Standards (IFRS) as well as provide a comprehensive industry analysis for the telecommunications sector in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Vadney asks

Maria Mnoyan, a senior analyst covering the sector, to research the requested information for the client meeting.

Prior to the meeting, Vadney and Mnoyan meet to prepare for the client presentation. They first discuss differences between U.S. GAAP and IFRS. Mnoyan states that although there will be increasing convergence between the two accounting standards, one major difference currently is that IFRS permits either the "partial goodwill" or "full goodwill" method to value the goodwill and the noncontrolling interest under the acquisition method. U.S. GAAP requires the full goodwill method.

Vadney adds that U.S. GAAP requires equity method accounting for joint ventures, while under IFRS, proportionate consolidation is preferred, but the equity method is permitted.

Vadney then asks Mnoyan to share her findings on the telecommunications sector. Mnoyan first presents an overview of the competitive forces that characterize the sector in the two regions. In particular, she notes that the sector in both regions is characterized by high switching costs. Vadney asks how high switching costs would affect the bargaining power of buyers and suppliers.

Mnoyan firmly believes that investing in companies located in developing countries provides strong growth potential through technological change and increases in capital, labor, and savings that contribute to higher dividend levels, even if the dividend growth rate is unaffected.

In her research report Mnoyan identifies several countries and industries with attractive investment potential. She notices that the telecommunications sector in one of the countries is characterized by a duopoly. The $50 billion telecom industry in another country in her analysis is dominated by h\e firms with market shares of $10 billion each.

Finally, Vadney and Mnoyan discuss investment opportunities in specific firms. Mnoyan values firms using both the discounted cash flow model and the franchise value method. She makes the following statements on the franchise value method:

Statement 1: A higher asset turnover ratio increases the franchise P/E ratio, one of the components of the intrinsic P/E value.

Statement 2: When firms pay out profits as dividends at a higher rate, a firm's intrinsic P/E value decreases.

The three-firm concentration ratio of the $50 billion telecom sector, and the level of the industry's concentration, respectively, is:

Tamara Ogle, C FA, and Isaac Segovia, C AIA, are portfolio managers for Luca's Investment Management (Luca's). Ogle and Segovia both manage large institutional investment portfolios for Luca's and are researching portfolio optimization strategies.

Ogle and Segovia begin by researching the merits of active versus passive portfolio management. Ogle advocates a passive approach, pointing out that on a risk- adjusted basis, most managers cannot beat a passive index strategy. Segovia points out that there will always be a need for active portfolio managers because as prices deviate from fair value, active managers will bring prices back into equilibrium. They determine that Treynor-Black models permit active management within the context of normally efficient markets.

Ogle decides to implement Treynor-Black models in her practice and starts the implementation process. In conversations with her largest client's risk manager, Jim King, FRM, she is asked about separation theorem in relation to active portfolio management. She responds that separation theorem more properly relates to asset prices deviating from and gravitating toward their theoretical fair price. King next asks Ogle about the differences between the Sharpe ratio and the information ratio and the difference between the security market line (SML) and the capital market line (CML).

After reallocating her client portfolios based on using the Treynor-Black model, Ogle discusses the results with Segovia. Ogle states that she is satisfied with the current methodology, but given her preference for passive management, she is still concerned about relying on analyst's forecasts. Segovia tells Ogle that he will research methods for modifying the Treynor-Black model to account for analyst forecasts.

Which of the following is MOST accurate regarding the separation theorem?