Areas of Expertise (4)
Behavioral Economics
Empirical Asset Pricing
Experimental Economics
Labor and Finance
About
Anastassia Fedyk is an Assistant Professor of finance at the Haas School of Business. Her research focuses on behavioral biases in individual and group decision-making, particularly concerning information and belief formation. She studies how information from a variety of sources, including financial news and individual employment records, influences asset prices. Fedyk holds a PhD in Business Economics from Harvard University and a BA in Mathematics with honors from Princeton University. Prior to pursuing her academic career, she was a researcher and portfolio manager at Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
Education (2)
Harvard University: PhD, Business Economics
Princeton University: BA, Mathematics
Links (3)
Honors & Awards (11)
Hillcrest Behavioral Finance Award, Finalist
Paper: When Can the Market Identify Stale News? 2019
Northern Finance Association, Best Paper on Market Microstructure
Paper: Disagreement after News: Gradual Information Diffusion or Differences of Opinion? 2019
Carlsberg Foundation Special Prize for Young Scholar at the NCBEE, Winner
Paper: Asymmetric Naivete: Beliefs about Self-Control 2018
Northern Finance Association, Best Paper on Long-Term Investments
Paper: Trading on Talent: Human Capital and Firm Performance 2018
FMA Napa Conference, Best Paper Award
Paper: Front Page News: The Effect of News Positioning on Financial Markets 2018
Jack Treynor Prize from the Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance
Paper: Trading on Talent: Human Capital and Firm Performance 2017
European Finance Association, Best Ph.D. Paper Award
Paper: Front Page News: The Effect of News Positioning on Financial Markets 2017
PanAgora Asset Management Dr. Richard A. Crowell Memorial Prize, 2nd place
Paper: Trading on Talent: Human Capital and Firm Performance 2017
WFA Cubist Systematic Strategies PhD Candidate Award for Outstanding Research
2017
Hillcrest Behavioral Finance Award, Finalist
Paper: Front Page News: The Effect of News Positioning on Financial Markets 2016
World Finance Conference, Top 3 Best Paper Award
Paper: News Consumption: From Information to Returns 2016
Positions Held (1)
At Haas since 2018
2018 - present, Assistant Professor, Haas Finance Group
Media Appearances (10)
FLASHPOINT UKRAINE: Chernihiv pounded as Russian attacks continue
Voice of America online
2022-03-31
Russia is becoming increasingly reliant on China and India to sustain its economy in the face of sanctions, said Assistant Professor Anastassia Fedyk. “The role of China for Russia as a trading partner is indispensable,” she said. Russia is also trying to prop up the ruble as much as possible by working with those countries. But “in the long term I think the damage to the Russian economy is clear,” she said.
Biden pledges drones, anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine's President in Russia war
FOX KTVU online
2022-03-17
Assistant Professor Anastassia Fedyk said that economic sanctions are good but not enough to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin. She says NATO countries should not underestimate the resolve of the Russian people to endure economic hardship if they feel that their country is under threat, a message which Putin is emphasizing in state propaganda, while silencing the Russian opposition press.
Stop imagining Putin’s overthrow. Fantasies won’t help Ukraine.
The Washington Post online
2022-03-16
In a co-authored op-ed, Assistant Professor Anastassia Fedyk argued that we can't hold out hope that Russia's war on Ukraine will be resolved by somehow getting rid of President Vladimir Putin. “As Ukrainian American economists with close ties and expertise in the region, we want to be clear: It is extremely unlikely that Russians will get rid of Putin in the near future. We need to let go of these fantasies and think through other options instead.”
The Stock Market Is Still Weird From GameStop
Slate online
2021-08-12
A few weeks into 2021, the share price of a flagging brick-and-mortar video game chain exploded, creating the wildest stock market story in years. According to Asst. Prof. Anastassia Fedyk, capitalizing on short-term stock movements is quite difficult for firms. But GameStop and AMC both went ahead and did it. In the second quarter of 2021, AMC reported raising more than $1 billion via new share offerings, and GameStop did the same.
How Do Career Disruptions Affect Elite White-Collar Workers?
Forbes online
2021-07-22
In the wake of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, Asst. Prof. Anastassia Fedyk found that junior employees were less affected than senior employees. But in general, highly skilled workers don't have to worry as much about unexpected jolts to their careers, as evidence suggests most bounce back.
The economic ROI of automation
Workflow online
2021-03-20
Research co-authored by Asst. Prof. Anastassia Fedyk measured how AI technology affected productivity, sales, and employment at publicly traded companies. The study’s conclusion: “Firms that invest in AI grow more.”
GameStop stocks are the internet's main character this week
Bustle online
2021-01-28
This week users of the discussion forum site Reddit foiled hedge funds and other big investors who had shorted the stock of GameStop, a computer game retailer. In this article, Asst. Prof. Anastassia Fedyk explained the "short squeeze" phenomenon. An investor who shorts a stock—or borrows stock and sells it with the expectation of buying it back at a lower price and pocketing the difference—can get in trouble quickly when the price goes up instead of down. In order to not lose their investment, the original investor has to buy even more of that stock they had hoped was going to lose big.
All the ways the GameStop roller coaster could end
Slate online
2021-01-27
Short sellers on GameStop, a struggling computer game retailer, had lost $24 billion by trading’s close on Wednesday. By the company’s underlying numbers, the stock shouldn’t be worth nearly what it is now. But assets can trade durably above where they “should” for long stretches. One reason it happens is “the presence of noise traders in the market,” said Anastassia Fedyk.
Automation, covid and the future of work
Forbes online
2020-10-16
Research by Assist. Prof. Anastassia Fedyk has shown that firms that invest in AI see faster growth in sales that translates into growth at the industry level as well. But that growth isn't at the expense of jobs. Companies actually grew their workforces after investing in AI.
Investing in AI boosts firm growth—and increases market dominance, study finds
Berkeley Haas News online
2020-10-13
Large companies with their greater resources have a natural advantage when it comes to investing in artificial intelligence. Those investments, in turn, help those large companies to grow even larger—creating a virtuous circle that leads to even greater market dominance. In short, AI has helped “superstar” firms such as Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, and UnitedHealth, get even bigger, according to a new paper co-authored by Berkeley Haas Assistant Professor Anastassia Fedyk.
Working Papers (6)
Front Page News: The Effect of News Positioning on Financial Markets
July 2020 Anastassia Fedyk Revise and Resubmit (second round), Journal of Finance Best Paper Award, 2018 FMA Napa Conference on Financial Markets Research Best Ph.D. Paper Award, 2017 European Finance Association 2017 WFA Cubist Systematic Strategies PhD Candidate Award for Outstanding Research Finalist, 2016 Hillcrest Behavioral Finance Award
Trading on Talent: Human Capital and Firm Performance
December 2020. Revise and Resubmit, Review of Finance. Anastassia Fedyk and James Hodson Best Paper on Long-Term Investments, 2018 Northern Finance Association Winner, 2017 Jack Treynor Prize from the Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance Second Place, 2017 PanAgora Asset Management Dr. Richard A. Crowell Memorial Prize
When Can the Market Identify Old News?
November 2020 Anastassia Fedyk and James Hodson Finalist, 2019 Hillcrest Behavioral Finance Award
Artificial Intelligence, Firm Growth, and Industry Concentration
November 2020 Anastassia Fedyk, Tania Babina, Alex He, and James Hodson
Managerial Structure and Performance-Induced Trading
March 2020 Anastassia Fedyk, Saurin Patel, and Sergei Sarkissian
Asymmetric Naïveté: Beliefs about Self-Control.
Internet Appendix
September 2018 Anastassia Fedyk Winner, Carlsberg Foundation Special Prize for Young Scholar at the 2018 NCBEE
Selected Papers & Publications (4)
Disagreement after News: Gradual Information Diffusion or Differences of Opinion?
Review of Asset Pricing Studies (forthcoming)
Anastassia Fedyk
November 2020 Best Paper on Market Microstructure, 2019 Northern Finance Association Also circulated under the title of "News-Driven Trading: Who Reads the News and When?"
Can Machine Learning Solve Your Business Problem?
HBR Guide to Data Analytics Basics for Managers
Anastassia Fedyk
(pp. 111-119) Harvard Business Review Press, 2018
How to Tell If Machine Learning Can Solve Your Business Problem
Harvard Business Review
Anastassia Fedyk
November 2016
Research: How Investors’ Reading Habits Influence Stock Prices
Harvard Business Review
Anastassia Fedyk
September 2016
Teaching (1)
Core Finance
MBA-203 & EWMBA-203
Social