Research Methods Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Research Methods - Assignment Example The study below details a research conducted on a number of stock exchange items with graphical representation of their performance in price changes and volumes to aid indicate to the investors different items on the various counters and stock markets. Analyzing the stock market requires the application of technical skills that one may need for close monitoring the movements of a stock on daily basis to capture all the changes and use them to make investment decisions or advice the different stakeholders about the stock. Looking at the historic data of a security allows one to better understand its behavior and therefore make it easier to predict the next movement in prices. The prediction may never prove 100% unless if one predicted that the market will move up, come back down and eventually stagnate at one time. It is therefore vital to follow up on the daily movements of a stock in order to present a relatively close prediction of the price movements and the volumes traded. The percentage change of a stock aids in understanding the volatility of the stock, which plays a major role in comparing with a benchmark period, or stock. Looking at the volumes that a stock is able to trade in a day reflects the momentum of the market, which displays the actual movement of the stock within a specified period and hence dictating the efficient nature of the market (Singal, 2006, p.1). These may reflect a week, a day, a month or on yearly basis. The analysis below is based on the stock prices and considered on volumes traded on a weekly basis for different indices over a period of a year each and the detailed explanation of their meaning to an investor. Download the weekly data of the index for the calendar year 2009 and make a time plot of the data. Comment on the variability of the index looking at the plot. Report the standard deviation