ASB-3314 / BEHAVIOURAL FINANCE SPRING 2026 COURSEWORK ASSESSMENT

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ASB-3314 / BEHAVIOURAL FINANCE
SPRING 2026 COURSEWORK ASSESSMENT
The due date for the assignment is 23 rd April 2026 at 23:55.

The following should be noted alongside the coursework details overleaf:

• This assignment contributes to 30% of the overall module grade.
• The word limit of this assignment is 2,000 words +/- 10% which does not include referencing and title page. Where an assignment exceeds the stated word limit, the following will apply:
a. Award a mark that reflects deficiencies in the work as submitted, that is in line with explicit marking criteria and is proportionate to the extent to which the word limit is exceeded or
b. Disregard work submitted above the word limit.
• Assignments are to be submitted through Turnitin in Blackboard. You can submit your assignment multiple times up until the deadline. Once the submission date has passed, the system will not allow re-submission.
• Students may request an extension to the stipulated due date. To request an extension, you will need to log into My Bangor https://my.bangor.ac.uk/en/ and locate the request centre from the drop-down list of the Online Services tab.
• Where an assignment is late without an agreed extension, the following rules will apply without prejudice:
a. Submitted up to 7 days after the original submission date - Assignment will be capped at the lowest possible passing grade, which at undergraduate level is 40%.
b. Submitted after 7 days without a valid extension – Assignment will be zero graded.

Before submitting your assignment, please ensure that it is properly referenced to guard against accusations of malpractice. Guidance on referencing can be found at Teaching &

Learning Support Resources Gateway and Referencing for Bangor Business School.
• You are reminded not to copy material from any sources without properly referencing it, as this constitutes plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as using without acknowledgement another person’s words or ideas and submitting them for assessment as though it were one’s own work. This includes copying materials from the internet, unfair use of generative artificial intelligence software such as Chat GPT, rewriting published material without acknowledging the source and the translation of materials using unauthorised methods or essay mills. Cases of plagiarism will be referred to the Business School Academic Integrity Officer for investigation and may be subject to a deduction of marks, which can result in an overall mark of 0%.

You are reminded that the use of such services to generate work in substitute for your original contributions contravenes Bangor’s Academic Integrity policy. Any detected attempt to use such tools will also result in a referral to the Business School Academic Integrity Officer.

Academic Integrity Procedure: https://www.bangor.ac.uk/regulations/procs/proc05.php.en.COURSEWORK DETAILS

According to the Weak-form Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH), it should not be possible to profit systematically by trading on information from past price movements. Many investors, however, claim that it is possible to systematically predict excess returns using technical analysis (see this NPR podcast episode on ‘Reading the stock market tea leaves’).

For this assignment, you are required to conduct an analysis of the profitability of a self chosen trading strategy that employs technical analysis to pick a portfolio of stocks. Assume that you have a notional balance of £250,000 to trade in stocks, but you must endeavour to pick stocks as well as possible using some form of technical analysis (e.g., moving average crossovers, Bollinger bands). You can use the provided Excel template to keep track of your trades, or you can use a suitable alternative such as a free online practice trading account if you wish. Please form your portfolio of stock picks ahead of the workshop on 17 th March, where our attention at that point will turn to evaluating their success. Further guidance on this aspect of the assignment is given below.

The coursework submission will be in the form of an individual report that presents your analysis. Your report should include the following:
i. An abstract that briefly summarises the report, including the nature and purpose of your analysis, and your main conclusion(s) – [150 words].
ii. A summary of debates around the profitability of trading based on technical analysis, contrasting the efficient markets and behavioural perspectives. Ensure that this discussion refers to appropriate academic theory and literature – [750 words].
iii. A brief description of the trading strategy that you have chosen to test, including an explanation of its technical indicators and trading rules. Include an illustrated example of a trade you made based on your trading strategy – [300 words].
iv. An analysis of the performance of your trading strategy, as a whole, reflecting in general on the ability of your strategy to be profitable, on average. Incorporate elements of statistical analysis as appropriate – [300 words].
v. A discussion that critically evaluates the evidence you have gained, and forms conclusions that are set against the theoretical perspectives outlined in (ii). Discuss any caveats you may have, e.g., limitations of your test – [500 words].

Indicative word counts for each report section are given in parentheses, and these indicate the relative weight of each aspect in determining the overall grade.Your report should demonstrate evidence of reading and research beyond the material delivered in lectures. It is important that you draw on insights from relevant and appropriate academic papers and practitioner sources, and references to all sources used MUST be included. A selection of recommended readings to get you started is provided below. A minimum of five references to academic sources is expected.

Guidance on the trading component of the assignment

For the assignment, you are required to identify and track promising stocks to trade based on your application of a chosen trading strategy that must incorporate technical analysis.

1. Conduct a search for popular technical stock trading strategies (e.g., based on moving averages, breakouts, Bollinger Bands, etc.), and identify a strategy which you believe to be promising in terms of its potential for yielding excess returns. While your overall strategy may include other considerations (e.g., screening based on fundamentals), use of technical analysis must be material in your trading  develop clear and consistent rules on how you employ it. This brief guide to technical trading strategies may be useful to start your search.
2. Employ your strategy to decide which stocks to buy or (short-)sell. The platform StockCharts.com is recommended for technical analysis, as it is free and incorporates a broad selection of technical indicators. You are advised to keep screenshots of relevant charts, so that can include for the illustrated example in your report.
3. Record your trading decisions using the provided Excel template or a suitable alternative, such as a free online practice trading account or simulator. Note that you will later need to review the performance of your trades, therefore at minimum you will need to take a record of the share price at which the stock was trading when you make the decision to buy or short-sell (in £’s), and the share price at the time you later decide to close that position, or the last price at the end of the trading period if the position remains open at that time.
4. You should endeavour to form your portfolio of stock picks ahead of the workshop on 17 th March. Plan not to make any further trading decisions after this time and consider your portfolio value to be fixed at this date. This is so that you have enough time to conduct your subsequent analysis. You do not need to have liquidated your positions by the end of the trading period, but if any are still open then you will need to record their ending values. We will look at reviewing performance in the second workshop on 17 th March.Further Information and Advice
• To have sufficient evidence to evaluate, you should decide on at least 20 trades to track. You are able to pick the same stock on multiple occasions, if based on separate trading signals. Short-selling is also permitted.
• Trades can be made at any time during the trading period, though you are advised to trade sooner rather than later, to allow sufficient time for your positions to develop.
• You should assume a notional balance of £250,000 to trade with. There is no limit on the size of each trade. You may wish to vary your stake (trade size) according to your level of confidence, investing more when you have higher confidence that the investment will pay-off.
• Bear in mind that the ‘trading’ period will last only a matter of weeks, and therefore you should seek to implement a short to medium-term trading strategy.
• Note that depending on which markets you chose to invest in, and how you opt to track your trades, you may need impute currency conversion at prevailing exchange rates. There are examples of this in the Excel template, where trades in U.S. stocks (AAPL and NFLX) that are quoted in USD$ are converted to GBP£ at the midpoint USD/GBP quote for the date of the trade. E.g., the formula for cell G2 is the share price in dollars ($557.85) times the exchange rate (£0.7957/$) on that date.
• Your mark for the assignment will be based on the overall standard of your final report. While this will partly depend on how competently you incorporate technical analysis in your trading, and how well you evaluate its usefulness, your mark will NOT be directly affected by investment performance (return on your trades). The report will be judged on the criteria outlined within the undergraduate student handbook.
• Your report will be marked categorically using the Bangor University categorical marking scheme and provided a single overall grade.
Marking rubric
• A high grade can be achieved by reports demonstrating the following:
    • Strong understanding of relevant concepts, theories, and techniques.
    • Evidence of competent choice and application of trading rules and indicators.
    • Capacity for critical reflection and learning from your own experiences.
    • Extensive background study and meaningful engagement in the trading task.
    • Highly focused and well-structured arguments that are logically robust.
    • Good presentation, including appropriate use of headings, figures and tables.Recommended Reading

Hoffmann, A. O., & Shefrin, H. (2014). Technical analysis and individual investors. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 107, 487-511. Link.

Menkhoff, L. (2010). The use of technical analysis by fund managers: International evidence. Journal of Banking & Finance, 34(11), 2573-2586. Link.
Metfgalchi, M., Matcucci, J., & Chang, Y. (2012). Are moving average trading rules profitable?
Evidence from the European stock markets. Applied Economics, 44(12), 1539-1559. Link.
Urquhart, A., Gebka, B., & Hudson, R. (2015). How exactly do markets adapt? Evidence from the moving average rule in three developed markets. Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, 38, 127-147. Link.
Urquhart, A., & Zhang, H. (2019) The performance of technical trading rules in socially responsible investments. International Review of Economics and Finance, 63, 397-411. Link.

2026-04-03