Professor, Finance
Additional Roles: Co-Founder & Director of the GMU Student Managed Investment Fund, Director of Financial Planning & Wealth Management Concentration
Contact Information
Email: dhorstme@gmu.edu
Phone: (703) 993-9761
Office Location: Enterprise Hall, Room 333
Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.; and by appointment
Personal Websites
Biography
Derek Horstmeyer is a Professor of Finance for the Costello College of Business, whose research focuses on boards/directors, ETF & mutual fund performance, and hedge fund activism. He writes a monthly column for the Wall Street Journal and has published in the Quarterly Journal of Finance, Managerial Finance, and other mainstream business publications. His work has been cited in Forbes, Bloomberg, CNBC, the PBS Newshour, Fox Business, NY Post, the Washington Post, LA Times, and other news outlets. He also co-founded and currently leads the first student-managed investment fund at GMU, and currently serves as director of the new Financial Planning & Wealth Management degree at Mason.
Research Interests
- Mergers & Acquisitions
- Executive Compensation
- Corporate Governance
- Board of Directors
- Hedge Fund Activism
- Mutual Fund and ETF Performance
Education
- PhD - Finance & Business Economics, University of Southern California
- MS - Financial Mathematics, Stanford University
- BS - Mathematics with Specialization in Economics, University of Chicago
Research and Awards
- Dean’s Award for Outstanding Professor in Finance 2020
- Presented at Portfolio Summits Institutional Convention, “Combating COVID-19’s Effects on Institutional Assets” 2020
- Presented at the DCMV Private Equity Summit 2019, "Macro Economic Projections and Fed Policy"
- Presented at the Board of Directors Meeting for Plan Sponsor Council of America, "Behavioral Finance & Investment Transparency"
- Recieved OSCAR Mentoring Excellence Award from George Mason University in 2019.
- Named Dean's Faculty Fellow, 2019
- Presented at DCMV Private Equity Summit, "The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director," 2018
- Presented at the Financial Management Association Annual Meeting, "The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director," 2018
- Presented at the Southern Finance Association Annual Meeting, "The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director," 2018
- Presented at The Federal Reserve - Washington DC, "The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director," 2017
- Presented at the International Conference on Economics, Finance and Management, "The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director," 2017
- Presented at American University, "The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director," 2017
- Presented at European Accounting Association, "When Do Governance Mechanisms Matter Most?," 2016
- Received a Summer Research Award from George Mason University School of Business.
- Received a Teaching Award from George Mason University School of Business in 2015.
- Received a University Service Award from George Mason University in 2015.
- Recipient of GMU Summer Research Grant Award (one of six each 10K), 2015
- Dean's Award for Outstanding Professor in Finance, 2015
- Dean's Award for Outstanding Teaching in Finance, 2014
Media Clippings
- August 4, 2024 - The Wall Street Journal
In Investing, Does It Pay to Follow the Money? - July 28, 2024 - NewsNation
Will the Federal Reserve finally lower interest rates? - July 17, 2024 - ABC News
Momentum grows for interest rate cuts in 2024. Experts explain why. - July 3, 2024 - The Wall Street Journal
The S&P 500 Isn’t as Diverse as It Used to Be. Here’s Why That Matters. - June 14, 2024 - MarketWatch
Why Roaring Kitty is a GameStop ‘true believer’ - April 1, 2024 - USA Today
DJT stock hits turbulence: More volatility ahead for Trump's high-flying Truth Social - March 28, 2024 - USA Today
DJT had a good first day: Trump's Truth Social media stock price saw rapid rise - March 27, 2024 - USA Today
Truth Social’s stock price is soaring. It’s not just Trump supporters buying in. - February 2, 2024 - The Wall Street Journal
All Money-Market Funds Have the Same Yield, Right? Not Even Close - January 15, 2024 - Financial Times
The noisiness of financial factors - January 4, 2024 - The Wall Street Journal
Hedge Funds for the Masses Deliver Ho-Hum Returns—and Have High Costs - January 2, 2024 - USA Today
S&P 500 (SPX) today: Bristol-Myers opens as the top mover, up 4% - December 15, 2023 - ABC News
Interest rate cuts may come soon. Here's what that means for your finances. - December 5, 2023 - USA Today
S&P 500 December 5, 2023 - December 3, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
How to Use Industry ETFs to Ride Waves of Momentum - November 20, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 High-Yield ETFs for Income Investors - November 5, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
If Interest Rates Are Peaking, What Investments Are Likely to Do Best? - October 28, 2023 - ABC News
Mortgage rates are at a 20-year high. Here's what that means for monthly payments. - October 5, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Factor ETFs Fail to Deliver Their Promised Outsize Returns - September 18, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
How Do Performance Metrics Correlate? Might Fund Managers Cherry-Pick? - September 2, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Are Leveraged ETFs Worth the Costs and Risk? - August 30, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 Best Consumer and Retail ETFs to Buy Now - August 21, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 Small-Cap Value ETFs to Buy in 2023 - August 4, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Do Commodities Provide a Hedge Against Recessions? We Ran the Numbers - July 6, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Complex Fund Names May Be a Warning Sign for Investors - June 9, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
A US GDP-Weighted Index? - June 1, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Active vs. Passive ETFs: How They Stack Up - May 25, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
Do Sentiment Metrics Matter to the Markets? - May 5, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
When Investors Do the Most Harm With Market Timing - May 3, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 ETFs to Buy as Interest Rates Rise - April 27, 2023 - Zacks
Tax Efficiency & Trading Tips with ETFs - April 20, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 of the Best High-Dividend ETFs - April 18, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
Do the Best Equity Fund Managers Follow the Bond Market? - April 7, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Beware, Options Investors: You Pay a High Trading Price Compared With Stocks - April 5, 2023 - San Francisco Examiner
Ripple rips SEC boss as SF crypto giant braces for make-or-break ruling - March 28, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 Preferred Stock ETFs to Buy Now - March 20, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 ETFs to Bet on a Banking Sector Rebound - March 17, 2023 - International Business Times
What Wall Street Is Missing About Apple And Google Stocks - March 14, 2023 - American Banker
The Fed has a lot of options for adjusting midtier bank regulation - March 3, 2023 - U.S. News & World Report
7 High-Yield ETFs for Income Investors - March 2, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Does a Valuation-Based Portfolio Beat a ‘Lazy’ One? - February 17, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
Can Tracking Error Boost Index Funds’ After-Tax Returns? - February 8, 2023 - Fortune
Mutual funds vs. ETFs: A side-by-side comparison - February 4, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
How Much More Tax-Wise Are ETFs vs. Mutual Funds? - January 31, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
Bitcoin Mining and Local Stock Market Performance Correlations - January 19, 2023 - TheStreet.com
What Is the 2022 IRA Contribution Deadline? Everything You Need to Know - January 7, 2023 - The Wall Street Journal
Which Mutual Funds Are Good for Your Taxes? - January 6, 2023 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
Short Squeezes: A Four-Factor Model - December 15, 2022 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
What Can AI Do for Investment Portfolios? A Case Study - December 11, 2022 - Markets Insider
Tech stocks may pull out of their nosedive, but the sector won't return to its pandemic-era highs even when the Fed eases rate hikes - December 3, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
What Types of Bonds Deliver the Best Returns? - October 28, 2022 - ABC News
Mortgage rates are at a 20-year high. Here's what that means for monthly payments - October 7, 2022 - CFA Institute's Enterprising Investor Blog
Growth, Value, and Skewness: Are Growth Stocks a Lottery-Like Bet? - October 5, 2022 - Insider
Elon Musk stands to be the biggest loser in his Twitter deal - October 3, 2022 - International Banker
How to Invest During a Recession - September 13, 2022 - International Business Times
Inflation, Strong Dollar, Turn Risk Off On Wall Street - August 23, 2022 - Capital.com
Here comes the sun: Solar stocks are heating up as Enphase Energy (ENPH) cracks top-10 gainers among S&P 500 stocks - August 19, 2022 - Capital.com
Royal Caribbean Cruises liquidity squeeze: Can RCL afford to pay 11.6% interest on its growing $1.25bn debt pile? - August 10, 2022 - Clarín
Bajó la Inflación en Estados Unidos: un alivio para los consumidores y un respiro para Joe Biden - August 2, 2022 - Capital.com
Target, Walmart price cuts? Bullwhip effect predicts deflation as retailers’ inventories rise - July 27, 2022 - VettaFi
Single-Stock Leveraged ETFs are Here, What Does it Mean for Crypto & Other Investors? - July 21, 2022 - Capital.com
Growth stock: Is it time to buy the dip? - July 13, 2022 - Business Insider
In Elon Musk's court battle with Twitter, nearly everyone's a loser - July 12, 2022 - CFA Institute
Digital Gold or Fool’s Gold: Is Crypto Really a Hedge against Equity Risk? - July 2, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
When the ‘Barbell’ Investment Strategy Does—and Doesn’t—Work - June 28, 2022 - Capital.com
Utilities stocks a ‘must own’ for traders during economic recession - June 17, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
Which Stocks Perform Best Amid High Inflation? - June 16, 2022 - Zacks.com
- Which Stocks & ETFs Do Best When Inflation Spikes?
- June 15, 2022 - Go Banking Rates
Where the Stock Market Is Headed in Summer 2022, According to Money Experts - June 5, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
Which Stocks Do Best During High Inflation? - June 3, 2022 - The CFA Institute
How Sharp Is the Sharpe Ratio? An Analysis of Global Stock Indices - May 6, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
Which Investments Do Best When Real Interest Rates Are Negative? - May 4, 2022 - Business Insider
- Hostile Takeovers: Seizing a Company Against the Will of its Board of Directors
- May 3, 2022- The Financial Times
US Regulatory Scrutiny of ‘Complex’ ETFs Prompts Fears of Crackdown - May 3, 2022 - Business Insider
The Poison Pill Defense: A Tactic Employed by Companies to Defend Against a Hostile Takeover - April 11, 2022 - CFA Institute
Portfolio Diversification: Harder Than It Used to Be? - April 5, 2022 - ETF.com
Issuers Balk At FINRA 'Complex' Proposal - April 1, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
As the Fed Raises Interest Rates, and Other Central Banks Don’t, What Will That Mean for U.S. Stocks? - March 9, 2022 - CFA Institute
Options Markets: How Far Have Implied Transaction Costs Fallen? - March 4, 2022 - Capital.com
War in Europe Clouds Fed’s Potential Rate Hike - February 8, 2022 - CFA Institute
Technical Analysis Revisited: Moving Averages = Above Average Returns? - February 4, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
Investing in a Global Stock Fund? Find Out Where the Fund Manager Is From - February 4, 2022 - The Conversation
Want to Master Wordle? Here’s the Best Strategy for your First Guess - January 30, 2022 - International Business Times
Sorry Reddit, We Do Need To Short Stocks - January 10, 2022 - CFA Institute
Fama and French: The Five-Factor Model Revisited - January 8, 2022 - The Wall Street Journal
The ‘January Effect’ Doesn’t Hold Up With Stocks. But Bonds Are a Different Story. - December 30, 2021 - ETF Trends
What Can Buffered ETFs Do for Your Portfolio? - December 8, 2021 - GO Banking Rates
Why ETFs Might Not Be Such a Great Idea — Experts Weigh in on 2 Key Factors - December 7, 2021 - S&P Global
November Marks Slowest Month for US Corporate Bankruptcies in 2021 - December 4, 2021- The Wall Street Journal
Just How Valuable Is Tax-Loss Harvesting? - November 5, 2021 - The Wall Street Journal
Should You Invest With Fund Managers Who Have Lots of Experience? - November 2, 2021 - CFA Institute
Chinese and World Stock Market Co-Movements: Two Findings - November 1, 2021 - ETF Database
How Covered Call ETFs Can Help for Your Portfolio - October 29, 2021 - Virginia Business
SPAC-ulative Finance: Blank-Check Deals Come Down to Earth - October 2, 2021 - The Wall Street Journal
Should Investors Create Their Own Target-Date Fund? - September 27, 2021 - Fortune
Robinhood Should Empower Young Investors, Not Take Advantage of Them - September 24, 2021 - Fortune
Correction Protection: Surprising Ways to Cushion a Portfolio During a Downturn - September 16, 2021 - The Wall Street Journal
The Surprising Risks of Investing in ESG Funds - September 15, 2021 - WhatsNew2Day
6 Best High Dividend Mutual Funds And ETFs - September 1, 2021 - CFA Institute
Revisiting Beta: How Well Has Beta Predicted Returns? - August 28, 2021 - Markets Insider
Why Meme Stocks AMC and GameStop Made a Comeback and Spiced up a Dull Week for Markets - August 9, 2021 - CFA Institute
Meme Stocks and Systematic Risk - August 5, 2021 - U.S. News & World Report
Economies of Scale: 3 Industries That Benefit Most - July 13, 2021- CFA Institute
Low- or High-Volatility: Which Wins the Return Battle? - July 8, 2021-MoneyGeek
How to Start Saving and Investing - July 6, 2021-Pierpoint Financial Consulting
Securities Lending as an indicator of fund underperformance - July 3, 2021-The Wall Street Journal
Your Fund Manager Is Lending Out Your Holdings. Should You Be Worried? - June 30, 2021-The Street
Advisers Can Add Social Security to Their Arsenal to Fight Inflation - June 11, 2021-CFA Institute
Fixed-Income Allocations: Where To? - June 7, 2021 - The Wall Street Journal
What Should You Keep in a Market Correction: Winners or Losers? - May 7, 2021 - The Wall Street Journal
Convertible-Debt Funds: Are They Good Investments? - May 6-CFA Institute
Peak Diversification: How Many Stocks Best Diversify an Equity Portfolio? - April 27, 2021 - City A.M.
Trading at all Hours: The Portfolio Implications - April 26-CFA Institute
SPACs: An Uncorrelated Asset Class? - April 1, 2021 - Forbes
Grow Your Portfolio With Growth Stocks - March 26, 2021 - CFA Institute
Trading at All Hours: The Portfolio Implications - March 22, 2021 - MarketWatch
Google, Facebook Undertake Appeasement Campaigns Before Thursday CEO Showdown in House - March 18, 2021 - U.S. News & World Report
The Difference Between ETFs and Mutual Funds - March 1, 2021 - CFA Institute
How Long Does Competitive Advantage Last? A Sector Analysis - February 28, 2021 - Morning Star
The Risky Hunt for Yield - February 4,, 2021 - CNET
GameStop Stock Crashed, but Reddit still Wants to Send it to the Moon: How and What's Next - February 1, 2021 - CNN
Gamestop Proves the Death of the Individual Investor was Greatly Exaggerated
Working Papers
- The Career Consequences of Being a Dissident Director, 2018 (R&R at JFQA)
- Beyond Independence: CEO Influence and the Internal Operations of the Board, 2018 (forthcoming at Quarterly Journal of Finance)
- A Dissident in our Midst, 2018