Applied Asset Management

• Portfolio Construction
& Management
• Positions
• Option Strategies

Applied Analysis
• Sector Studies
• Financial Modelling

PPLIED
level
Mark Meldrum, Ph.D
The markets are not easy, no matter what the Tik-
Tokers tell you. The real world is hard, and it will
always be hard. It is a brutal game we choose to
play. But you can manage the risk, and you can
reduce the complexity, of the game. The playing
field is full of professionals, so you better
know how to know what they know.
about the
PPLIED level:

The Applied Level* is a natural and practical extension to

the CFA program.

CFA program → Study finance

Applied Level → Practice finance

✓ Analysis
Sector Studies + Financial Modelling
✓ Asset Management
Portfolio Construction/ Management + Positions
Options/ Futures/ Options on Futures

CFA Institute allows its members the ability to self-determine and

self-report professional learning (PL) credits earned from
external sources. CFA Institute members are encouraged to self-
document such credits in their online PL tracker. All content
within the ‘Applied level’ series qualifies for professional
learning/continuing education credits.

* The Applied Level is proprietary to MarkMeldrum.com. No other CFA exam prep provider can offer this
program content.
Pathway

1 A.
Applied Analysis
(Aligns well with CFA Levels 1 / 2 )

Sector Studies Consumer Discretionary

Consumer Staples
Financials
B. Financial Modelling
Materials
Real Estate
Healthcare
Energy
Information Technologies
Communication Services
Utilities
Industrials

I want to thank you from all my heart for the brilliant subscription you have created -
The Applied Level!

It has helped me greatly in my professional journey and the value you get out of it is
immensely undervalued compared to what you pay for the course. I would definitely
recommend anyone who is in the finance field to be a happy subscriber of a goldmine.

Kevval Mehta, CFA

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevvalmehta/
Sector Studies

Overview
Sector Studies provides an in-depth analysis of each
sector of the economy and its market performance
across the economic and credit cycle. Every sector
has two or three economic drivers of performance
and identifying these introduces the possibility of
enhancing performance with sector rotation.

Sectors are composed of industries and industries are

composed of sub-industries. Every company is
embedded within a sub-industry, within an industry,
within a sector. A well-informed, bottom-up analysis,
therefore cannot occur without a deep understanding
of the sector, industry, and sub-industry economics.
Sector Studies provides an ongoing ‘Understanding
Industries’ series such as: ‘Understanding Mining’, Every ‘Understanding Industries’ segment uses a
‘Understanding Utilities’, ‘Understanding Banking’. real publicly-traded company as a case study, you
will also learn how to read the SEC 10K/10Q
filings and how to use company presentations to
understand the interaction of the economics of
the industry with the business model of the
company. For example, ‘Understanding Mining’
uses Freeport-McMoRan (FCX). After completing
these segments, you should be in a position to
understand any mining company’s statements
and business model/strategy.

With 163 sub-industries, new content will be

added for years to come.

Fact: Opportunity is everywhere for

the prepared mind.
Estimated Module length: 70+ hours
Find opportunity now.
Financial Modelling

Overview
Institutional-level practical skill
development, a must-know for any
aspiring financial analyst and a powerful
process/tool for professional retail
investors.
➢ 3-statement model including revenue,
expense, debt, lease, depreciation,
working capital, and tax schedules –
no manufactured data here – only the
real world, in all its messiness
The entire process:
Financial Analysis

CFA skill
Output: applied
Assumptions & Drivers

Input

New skill
Financial Modelling
Don’t wait for a job to get hands-on development
experience, show up saying ‘yes’.
Every company is a buy, hold or sell.
✓ Financial Modelling? Yes. There is always an opportunity,
✓ Real company data? Yes.
no time is ever lost.
✓ Valuation? Yes.

Fact: Climbing higher takes effort and time, but it is not crowded at the top.
Don’t outsource your thinking.
Pathway

2A.
Applied Asset
Management
(Aligns well with CFA Levels 2 / 3 )

Option Strategies Basic Strategies

Income Strategies

B. Portfolio Construction Directional Strategies

& Management Volatility Strategies
Risk Management Strategies
C. Positions Options on Futures

Applied Level offers exceptional value for retail investors, serving as a comprehensive
guide to portfolio management. It’s a natural extension of the CFA program, tailored for
practitioners who want to delve deeper into advanced options strategies, detailed sector
analysis, and critical portfolio construction and risk management techniques. Mark’s
outstanding teaching skills, coupled with the practical content of the Applied Level, deliver
unparalleled real-world insight.

Edward Jacoby, CFA

https://www.linkedin.com/in/edjacoby/
Option Strategies

Key Concepts Selected Outcomes

▪ Implied volatility vs historical volatility ▪ Create an income factory
▪ Volatility skew, level, crush, and term structure ▪ Minimize or avoid a loss
▪ Positive/negative convexity ▪ Sell higher/buy lower than market price
▪ Theta decay ▪ Replicate a stock to avoid forex exposure
▪ Gamma risk ▪ Avoid foreign dividend withholding taxes
▪ Dollar-Delta-Beta and Delta Neutrality ▪ Convert all dividends into capital gains
▪ Rolling options up/down/forward ▪ Trade volatility as an asset class
▪ Futures & Options on Futures ▪ Create the same payoff as the underlying with far
less capital
▪ Align option strategies with market conditions

Estimated Module length: 30+ hours

Topics covered:
Basic Strategies

Income Strategies

Directional Strategies

Volatility Strategies

Risk Management Strategies

Options on Futures
Pathway

2 A.
Applied Asset
Management
(Aligns well with CFA Levels 2 / 3 )

Option Strategies
Buy & Hold
Theta Allocation

B. Portfolio Construction
& Management
Carry Trades
Market Neutral
Forex

C. Positions Allocation Strategies

Applied level - a must have for a CFA charterholder

I've been Mark's student since my CFA days and I have benefitted incredibly from his tutelage.
I signed up to his applied series some time ago - despite being employed in a role that forbids
trading without regulatory consent - purely because of the range of coverage and the sector
studies part of the module, beyond his famous series on options strategy. As someone who has
been covering the financial services sector for some time now, I can vouch for how well some
of the esoteric, sector-specific nuances have been dealt in the modules.

In finance, I have found that it is relatively easy to access theory on most concepts if one knows
where to look or enroll into one of the professional certifications (viz., CFA, FRM etc.). What a
student finds hard to do is to locate an avenue that guides her on how to implement the said
theory into practice. Therefore, I cannot overstate how useful Mark's applied level series is
going to be for CFA candidates and charterholders alike.

Naga Subramainian, CFA, FRM

https://www.linkedin.com/in/n%C4%81ga-subramanian-cfa-frm-ba0616a1/
 Portfolio Construction
& Management
(Extended Applied Asset Management Seminar)

This extended series is intended to introduce you Don’t wait for the job to get hands-on
to a variety of trades/positions across a number of experience, show up saying ‘yes’.
asset classes using a number of different securities
(equities, forex, options, futures). The series ✓ Asset Management? Yes.
begins with setting up your system for market ✓ Risk Management? Yes.
monitoring and scanning (screens for rates,
treasuries, key forex rates, commodities, equities,
etc.) along with a statement of your investment
philosophy and the rules by which you will manage Examples of trades
your positions/portfolio. that are explored:
In each video, a new trade setup will be introduced • Buy & Hold with active management
that you can replicate in your paper portfolio. It is • Theta Allocation (income factory)
important to experience how to trade a • Forex - spot and futures
security/basket of securities, how moves in the • Curve Trades
underlying affect your portfolio value, volatility, • Equity Market Neutral (equities or options)
• Momentum
and potential margin requirements. A key exercise
• Allocation strategies (algorithmic)
will involve taking some trades with a high degree
• Portfolio Risk Management
of loss, then using risk management techniques to
nullify the loss. • Synthetic cash/cash equitization
• Hedging
The best method to develop passion for finance • Loss minimization/nullification
and markets is to just jump right in. However, that
can be dangerous with real money. This module
allows you to paper trade your way to experience -
the cheapest tuition of life. Make mistakes here, There are several sources through which you
learn how to salvage a loss here, execute simple to can manage a paper portfolio. I will be
complex trades here. demonstrating system setup, trade execution,
and portfolio risk management using Interactive
The series will introduce both retail and
Brokers - specifically Trader Workstation. You
institutional portfolio strategies and trades from
are free to use whatever system you have
(Buy & Hold) with active management to highly
access to, you need not use IB.
leveraged carry trades to alpha-only portfolio
(equity market neutral).

The market can be a giant money

printing machine, or a giant
Estimated Module length: 20+ hours
money sucking machine.
Don’t end up on the wrong side.
Pathway

2 A.
Applied Asset
Management
(Aligns well with CFA Levels 2 / 3 )

Applied Options

B. Portfolio Construction
& Management

C. Positions

Each week, Dr. Meldrum discloses his portfolio positions

along with his investment thesis.

Each week, changes to positions are updated and

discussed. Also presented are potential investment/trade
positions on watch. These are positions that are not quite
ready to be executed yet but coming into target.

Styles employed:

Macro themes
Most common
Value/Contrarian
Growth/Momentum
 Pricing*

Pathway 1 Pathway 2
Analysis Asset Management

Price 425 USD Price 425 USD

CFA /FRM/ CAIA status - 100 CFA /FRM/ CAIA status - 100
(Any level) (Any level)
325 USD 325 USD
MM.com subscriber - 50 MM.com subscriber - 50
275 USD 275 USD

For markmeldrum.com CFA subscribers, select the “Plus” package to include one
or both of the above Applied Pathways.

* Applied Pathway subscribers receive lifetime access to all content as of the start date of
their subscription plus all new content added for the next year. Nominal recurring monthly
fee beginning in month 13.
biography according to
ChatGPT 3.5
Dr. Mark Meldrum, the visionary founder of
markmeldrum.com, is a distinguished figure in the
world of education and finance. With a Ph.D. awarded
by Case Western Reserve University, he has spent
nearly two decades imparting knowledge and expertise
to students and professionals alike. His journey began
with nine years of teaching at the university level,
where he honed his pedagogical skills and passion for
educating.

Dr. Meldrum possesses a remarkable 25+ years of

experience in the financial markets, making him a true
luminary in the field. His specialization in top-down
macro analysis sets him apart as an authority in the
world of finance. Beyond traditional teaching, he has
also leveraged the power of digital media to share his
insights, serving as the producer of a popular weekly
Market Outlook series on YouTube.

In addition to his expertise in finance, Dr. Meldrum is

recognized for his commitment to excellence in
financial education. He dedicated a decade to teaching
the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) Levels 1 to 3,
equipping countless individuals with the knowledge
and skills needed to succeed in this challenging
profession.
As the Founder and Lead Instructor at
markmeldrum.com, Dr. Meldrum embarked on a
remarkable journey, taking his educational platform
from its inception to become the #2 globally-ranked
resource in the first five years, measured by subscriber
count. His dedication to providing high-quality
educational content and his unique teaching style
resonated with learners around the world.

Mark Meldrum, Ph.D.

Testimonials

My experience with the Applied Level has been transformative; it brings all you
learned in the CFA and prunes the more academic and institutional stuff to directly
teach you the relevant tools and processes to train you as a professional retail
investor. The important word is "process." I learned how to approach daily work as a
finance professional: how to analyze sectors, industries, and single stocks, and how
to manage risk at the portfolio and single position level. The Applied Level has been
a key part of finally being able to work in what I love. It now is like having a job
partner because the sector studies save you a lot of time in the initial steps to follow
a new industry or better understand the context of current developments that are
the market's focus.

Hector Nieva Rollon

www.linkedin.com/in/hector-nieva-rollon

As someone with a strong interest in finance and a basic understanding of the field,
I've always aspired to pursue the CFA designation. However, I hadn't yet found the
right opportunity to begin that journey. When I heard about your Applied Level
course, I realized it was the perfect way to bridge the gap between practice and
theory.

The course provides exceptionally high-quality content, which has significantly

enhanced my experience as an investor. The practical insights I've gained have made a
tremendous difference in my approach to the markets. Now, as I prepare to tackle the
CFA curriculum, I feel more confident in my ability to relate theoretical concepts to
real-world scenarios. For anyone who views finance not just as a profession but as a
passion, this course is invaluable. It’s not just about learning; it’s about deepening
your understanding and love for the game of investment.

Thank you for offering such a valuable resource. I look forward to continuing my
journey with the knowledge and skills I've gained.

Sebastien Doan
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastiendoan/
Testimonials

I didn’t come from a finance background, but with Dr. Mark Meldrum’s help, I managed
to pass all three levels of the CFA exam, even scoring in the 90th percentile for Levels I
and II. When I found out he offered an Applied Level course, I didn’t hesitate for a
second to sign up, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve made in my self-
education journey.

The CFA curriculum gave me a good foundation in finance, but I often felt disconnected
from the real market. The Applied Level course changed that for me—it helped me
understand and integrate my knowledge with real market scenarios. If you’re looking to
deepen your understanding of finance, this course is a must.

Dr. Meldrum is the best mentor you could ask for. It’s not just his extensive knowledge
that stands out, but also his ability to explain complex concepts in a way that’s easy to
grasp. Plus, I really appreciate how reasonably priced all his products are. As a customer,
I often feel like I didn’t pay enough for what I’m getting from him.

Tingling Wei
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tingling-wei-81497a75/

I've been subscribed to Mark Meldrum for over five years and invested in the Applied
Level as soon as it became available because I knew that I would get tremendous value
from the product. It exceeded all my expectations. The Applied Level is must-have for
anybody who has made a commitment to themselves to become a serious investor in
the financial markets. Mark’s technical knowledge and expertise are superlative but
what most separates him from everybody else is that he is also an active and successful
practitioner. Investing in the Applied Level means access to a library of technical
knowledge, a colleague who constructively challenges your ideas, and a mentor.

Goergiy Lytvynenko
https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgiy-lytvynenko-a7454891/
Testimonials

Dr. Mark Meldrum made learning finance easy for me. I passed my CFA Level one
exam using only his video lectures, without even opening the CFA books and will
continue to use his lectures for level 2 and 3!

His applied-level courses are fantastic! Even though I knew nothing about the very
complicated telecommunications industry, I quickly learned the essentials thanks to
his great teaching. His portfolio management package, applied options, and sector
and industry coverages are all outstanding. His tutorials in the applied level series
inspire you to keep going after your goals and dreams.

He’s always there to answer questions and offers great recommendations for
documentaries, books, and online courses on his website. I highly recommend his
CFA and applied-level packages to anyone looking to deepen their understanding of
world of finance and investments.

Samaneh Maram
https://www.linkedin.com/in/samaneh-maram-09439587/