The investment management department of your company has asked you to construct a
speculative trading strategy using options. You have been asked to invest £100,000 in
options trading strategy for a non-bank, non-insurance company’s shares for period between
26th February 2021 and 16th April 2021 (inclusive).
a) For the company whose shares are to be the underlying for your options, set up an
options-based trading strategy given your view of:
• the company
• current market sentiment regarding the segment in which it operates •
likely market movements over the period.
Assessment Brief – Level Five Undergraduate
2
You must support your analysis using real market data (suitably evidenced) as well as
suitable academic literature covering analysis methods such as, for instance, economic,
fundamental, technical etc.
You must include ‘screen shot’ evidence of the source of your options pricing in an
appropriately referenced appendix department.
(1000 Words: 35 Marks)
b) What is the annualised return that you are targeting based on your approach? Assess
the risk that your strategy will not produce the returns you have anticipated. You must
also assess the risks that the use of an options derivative instrument has introduced to
the investment management department.
(500 Words: 10 Marks)
c) Report on the actual profit and loss of your strategy over the period and analyse its
actual performance relative to its forecast performance and analyse why your strategy
achieved the results observed.
(500 Words: 15 Marks)
The assignment should be word processed within the limit of 2,000 words (excluding
appendices, tables, charts and graphs). The word count must be stated in the assignment.
References to relevant academic theory and research findings should be provided and
referenced appropriately.
To complete the assignment, you are required to refer to books and academic journal articles
and authentic sources such as Bloomberg. Do not use wikipedia, investopedia, investorword,
tutor4u and other non-academic sources.
Important note about ARNA regulations
The regulations specify that students must complete every assessment component
contributing to the modules on their programme. This applies to all forms of assessment as
defined in the module descriptor. Please note that:
• if any assessment component is not completed, students will be failed in the module
even if the module pass mark has been achieved;
• if the requirements for referral specified in section 3 of ARNA1 are met, a re-sit
opportunity will be given;
• if unable to complete an assessment component because of extenuating circumstances,
students should follow the procedure described in the Student Guide to Extenuating
Circumstances1
.
This change has applied since September 2013 and was approved by Academic Board in
consultation with the Students’ Union. Students should consult their Programme Leader or
Guidance Tutor if they have any queries. Independent advice and support is also available
from the Students’ Union Advice & Representation Centre ([email protected]) or
from a student adviser in Student Services.
Assessment Brief – Level Five Undergraduate
3
1ARNA and the Student Guide to Extenuating Circumstances Affecting Assessed Work are
available from http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/sd/central/ar/lts/assess/assproc/assdocstud/
Word limits and penalties for assignments
If the assignment is within +10% of the stated word limit no penalty will apply.
The word count is to be declared on the front page of your assignment and the assignment
cover sheet. The word count does not include:
Titles and
Contents Page
Reference List Appendices Tables, Figures
and Illustrations
Glossary Bibliography Quotes from
Interviews and
Focus Groups
Please note, in text citations [e.g. (Smith, 2011)] and direct secondary quotations [e.g.
“dib-dab nonsense analysis” (Smith, 2011 p.123)] are INCLUDED in the word count.
If this word count is falsified, students are reminded that under ARNA page 30 Section
3.4 this will be regarded as academic misconduct.
If the word limit of the full assignment exceeds the +10% limit, 10% of the mark provisionally
awarded to the assignment will be deducted. For example: if the assignment is worth 70 marks
but is above the word limit by more than 10%, a penalty of 7 marks will be imposed, giving a
final mark of 63.
Students are advised that they may be asked to submit an electronic version of their
assignment.
Time limits and penalties for presentations
The time allocated for the presentation must be adhered to. At the end of this time, the
presentation will be stopped and will be marked based on what has been delivered within the
time limit.
Submission of Assessment:
All assignments must be submitted via the Undergraduate Programme Office. Each
assignment must be accompanied by an Assessed Work Form which must be completed in
full. The assignment will not be accepted by the Undergraduate Programme Office unless the
form is completed correctly.
Assessment Brief – Level Five Undergraduate
4
Marked assignments will be returned to students. It is advisable to retain a copy of your
assignment for you own records. Your mark will be returned on the Assessed Work Form via
the Undergraduate Programme Office.
Referencing your work
The APA method of referencing uses the author’s name and the date of the publication. In-text
citations give brief details of the work you are referring to in your text. References are listed at
the end of the text in alphabetical order by the author’s name. The general format of an
electronic journal reference in the APA style is shown below:
Coutu, D. (2009). Why Teams Don’t Work. Harvard Business Review, 87(5), 98-105. Retrieved
29th April 2012 from EBSCO http://searchebscohost.com
Author/s name and initials are listed first, followed by year of publication in brackets. Then
there is the title of article and the journal where the article appears, which is in italics. Then
state the volume and issue number (in brackets) along with the pages where article can be
located. Finally add the date the article was retrieved and then the name of the database,
followed by the web address. Wherever possible use the homepage URL rather than the full
and extended web address.
For further information on why it is important to reference accurately go to the Referencing and
Plagiarism topic in Skills Plus available from the Library website:
www.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus
You will find other useful help guides on Skills Plus to help you with the skills involved in writing
your assessments and preparing for exams.
For further information on the APA style of referencing see the Concise Rules of the APA
Style and the APA website http://www.apastyle.org/
Plagiarism and Cheating
Your attention is drawn to the University’s stated position on plagiarism. THE WORK OF
OTHERS, WHICH IS INCLUDED IN THE ASSIGNMENT MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO ITS
SOURCE (a full bibliography and/or a list of references must be submitted as prescribed in the
assessment brief).
Please note that this is intended to be an individual piece of work. Action will be taken where
a student is suspected of having cheated or engaged in any dishonest practice. Students are
referred to the University regulations on plagiarism and other forms of academic irregularity.
Students must not copy or collude with one another or present any information that they
themselves have not generated.
For further information on Plagiarism, see the Referencing and Plagiarism topic on
Skills Plus. www.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus
Assessment Brief – Level Five Undergraduate
5
Mapping to Programme Goals and Objectives:
This assessment will contribute directly to the following Undergraduate programme goals and
objectives.
- Knowledgeable about the theory and practice of international business and
management
Students will be able to: - Acquire knowledge of functional areas of business and management
- Acquire knowledge of specialist areas of business X
- Apply their knowledge to business and management contexts X
- Conduct contemporary research into business and management X
- Skilful in the use of professional and managerial techniques and processes
Students will be able to: - Provide evidence of self-reflection as a means of informing personal development planning X
- Demonstrate effective interpersonal communication skills and the ability to work in a team
- Demonstrate critical thinking skills X
- Demonstrate problem solving skills X
- Aware of ethical issues impacting on business and professional practice
Students will be able to: - Identify an ethical dilemma in a business situation
- Suggest an ethical solution to the dilemma
- Employable as graduates
Students will be able to: - In the context of securing graduate employment demonstrate the skills of self-presentation
Sample Solution
