Try 10 focused CISI IM questions on Data Analysis, with answers and explanations, then continue with Securities Prep.
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Exam route | CISI IM |
| Issuer | CISI |
| Topic area | Data Analysis |
| Blueprint weight | 13% |
| Page purpose | Focused sample questions before returning to mixed practice |
Use this page to isolate Data Analysis for CISI IM. Work through the 10 questions first, then review the explanations and return to mixed practice in Securities Prep.
| Pass | What to do | What to record |
|---|---|---|
| First attempt | Answer without checking the explanation first. | The fact, rule, calculation, or judgment point that controlled your answer. |
| Review | Read the explanation even when you were correct. | Why the best answer is stronger than the closest distractor. |
| Repair | Repeat only missed or uncertain items after a short break. | The pattern behind misses, not the answer letter. |
| Transfer | Return to mixed practice once the topic feels stable. | Whether the same skill holds up when the topic is no longer obvious. |
Blueprint context: 13% of the practice outline. A focused topic score can overstate readiness if you recognize the pattern too quickly, so use it as repair work before timed mixed sets.
These questions are original Securities Prep practice items aligned to this topic area. They are designed for self-assessment and are not official exam questions.
Topic: Data Analysis
An investment analyst is building a portfolio dashboard and must classify each field correctly before choosing summary statistics and charts. Which classification best fits daily portfolio return, number of separate securities held, and investment style (value, growth, or core)?
Best answer: B
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: The correct classification depends on how each variable is measured. Daily portfolio return can take fractional values, so it is continuous; number of securities held is a whole-number count, so it is discrete; and investment style is a named grouping, so it is categorical.
The core concept is to match each data item to its measurement type before selecting charts, summaries, or statistical methods. Daily portfolio return is continuous because it can take any value within a range, including decimals such as 0.18% or -0.73%. Number of separate securities held is discrete because it is a count and is normally expressed in whole numbers. Investment style is categorical because terms such as value, growth, and core are labels, not measured quantities.
A common mistake is to treat any numeric-looking field as continuous, but counts and labels need different handling.
Portfolio return is measured on a continuum, holdings are counted in whole numbers, and style is a label.
Topic: Data Analysis
A data set of four returns has a mean of 5%, and the sum of squared deviations from the mean is 24. Which pair of variance values is correct?
Best answer: A
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: Population variance divides the sum of squared deviations by the number of observations, while sample variance divides by one less. With four observations and a squared-deviation total of 24, the values are 6 and 8 respectively.
Variance measures dispersion around the mean. If the data represent the whole population, divide the sum of squared deviations by n. If the data are treated as a sample, divide by n - 1 because one degree of freedom is used in estimating the mean. Here, n = 4 and the sum of squared deviations is 24.
So the correct pair is 6 for the population and 8 for the sample. The main trap is reversing the two denominators.
Population variance uses n = 4, while sample variance uses n - 1 = 3, so 24/4 = 6 and 24/3 = 8.
Topic: Data Analysis
To assess the relationship between a fund’s monthly returns and its benchmark’s monthly returns over the last three years, which presentation method is most appropriate?
Best answer: B
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: A scatter plot is best when the aim is to examine the relationship between two variables using paired observations. Here, each point can represent one month’s fund return against the benchmark return, making correlation, clustering, and outliers visible.
The core concept is matching the chart type to the data question being asked. When you want to see how two return series relate to each other, a scatter plot is most suitable because it plots paired observations on two axes. That makes it easier to judge whether fund returns tend to move in line with benchmark returns, and whether the relationship appears strong, weak, or unstable.
A line chart is better for showing how returns change through time. A histogram is better for showing the distribution or frequency of returns. A table gives exact figures, but it is less effective for visualising the relationship between two variables.
The key distinction is relationship between two series, not trend over time or frequency of outcomes.
A scatter plot shows paired return observations and makes the strength and direction of the relationship easiest to see.
Topic: Data Analysis
An analyst applies a three-factor model to a portfolio’s quarterly excess return:
\[ R_p - R_f = \alpha + \beta_M F_M + \beta_S F_S + \beta_V F_V \]Exhibit:
Which interpretation is most accurate?
Best answer: A
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: A multi-factor model decomposes excess return into factor-driven return plus alpha. Here the factor contribution is \(1.1\times4.0\% + (-0.4)\times(-1.5\%) + 0.6\times2.0\% = 6.2\%\), so the portfolio’s actual excess return of 5.9% implies an alpha of -0.3%.
The core use of a multi-factor model is to separate return explained by systematic factor exposures from any residual return, or alpha. In this case, the market factor contributes 4.4%, the size factor contributes 0.6% because a negative exposure multiplied by a negative factor return is positive, and the value factor contributes 1.2%. That gives a total factor-implied excess return of 6.2%.
So the portfolio underperformed what its factor exposures would have predicted. The key limitation is that this conclusion is model-dependent: a different factor set or estimation period could produce a different alpha.
The factor-implied excess return is 6.2%, so alpha is \(5.9\% - 6.2\% = -0.3\%\).
Topic: Data Analysis
An investment analyst drafts the following quarterly report plan.
| Report item | Planned display |
|---|---|
| Monthly benchmark returns, last 36 months | Histogram |
| Distribution of bond trade sizes, 300 deals this quarter | Line chart |
| 25 shares: dividend yield and price-to-book | Scatter plot |
| Portfolio weights at 31 March | Line chart |
Which planned display should be kept unchanged?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: A scatter plot is used to show the relationship between two numerical variables across a set of observations. Dividend yield and price-to-book for 25 shares fit that purpose, while the other items are a time series, a frequency distribution, and a point-in-time snapshot.
The key skill is matching the display to the structure of the data. A scatter plot is the best choice when the objective is to see whether two continuous variables move together across observations, such as dividend yield and price-to-book across 25 shares. Monthly benchmark returns over 36 months are time-series data, so a line chart would normally show trend more clearly than a histogram. A distribution of trade sizes is better shown with a histogram because the aim is to show frequency by size range. Portfolio weights at a single date are point-in-time values, so a table is usually clearer when exact percentages matter.
The correct choice is the only pairing that already matches the data type and analytical purpose.
A scatter plot is appropriate for examining the relationship between two quantitative variables across multiple securities.
Topic: Data Analysis
An investment committee is reviewing whether its manager benchmark matches the mandate.
Exhibit:
Which benchmark approach is most suitable for evaluating the manager against the mandate?
Best answer: B
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: A composite benchmark is more suitable when a portfolio mandate spans several asset classes or regions. Here, a single UK equity index ignores overseas equities, bonds, cash and the GBP-hedged measurement basis, so a weighted multi-index benchmark best reflects the manager’s remit.
A composite or synthetic benchmark combines relevant market indices in preset weights so that performance is judged against the actual mandate rather than one market segment. In the exhibit, the portfolio is not a pure UK equity mandate: it includes UK equities, overseas equities, GBP investment-grade bonds and cash, and the overseas sleeve is assessed on a GBP-hedged basis. FTSE All-Share represents only UK equities, so it cannot fairly support manager evaluation or attribution for the whole portfolio. The most appropriate benchmark is therefore a weighted blend of suitable equity, bond and cash indices aligned to the 40/20/35/5 strategic allocation, with the overseas component measured consistently with the hedged mandate. A single global equity index is closer than FTSE All-Share, but it still ignores the fixed-income and cash exposures.
A weighted composite benchmark reflects the mandate’s multi-asset structure, unlike a single UK equity index.
Topic: Data Analysis
A discretionary manager is preparing a two-year portfolio review. The portfolio returned +40% in year 1 and -20% in year 2. Rounded to one decimal place, which response best gives the average annual return to report if the aim is to show the portfolio’s compounded growth rate over the two years?
Best answer: C
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: The correct measure for average annual compounded growth over multiple periods is the geometric mean, not the arithmetic mean. Here, the portfolio grows by a factor of 1.40 and then 0.80, giving an overall factor of 1.12, so the annualised compounded return is 5.8%.
When a client report needs the annual rate that links the starting value to the ending value over more than one period, the correct return measure is the geometric mean. It captures compounding, whereas the arithmetic mean is just the simple average of periodic returns.
$$\begin{aligned} \text{Geometric mean} &= \left[(1+0.40)(1-0.20)\right]^{1/2}-1 \ &= (1.12)^{1/2}-1 \ &\approx 0.0583 = 5.8% \end{aligned}$$
The arithmetic mean is \((40\%-20\%)/2 = 10.0\%\), but that overstates the annualised growth rate because the 20% loss occurs on a larger capital base after the 40% gain. The key takeaway is that volatility causes the geometric mean to be lower than the arithmetic mean unless returns are identical each period.
For multi-period compounded growth, the geometric mean is \(\sqrt{1.40 \times 0.80}-1=5.8\%\), and it is lower than the arithmetic mean because volatility reduces compound growth.
Topic: Data Analysis
A selector reviews 10 UK smaller-companies funds for the quarter. Nine funds returned between 4.8% and 6.2%, but one fund returned 29.0% after a takeover bid. The peer-group mean return is 7.8% and the median return is 5.6%. A candidate manager returned 6.0%. Which interpretation is best?
Best answer: C
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: The peer-group distribution is positively skewed by one exceptional 29.0% return, so the mean overstates the return achieved by most funds. A 6.0% result is above the 5.6% median, so the manager has outperformed a typical peer even though it is below the 7.8% mean.
When a data set contains a genuine but extreme outlier, the most useful central-tendency measure depends on the question being asked. Here, the question is about the typical peer outcome. The mean includes every observation, but one takeover-driven return of 29.0% pulls it well above the tight cluster of the other funds. The median is less sensitive to that skew and therefore gives a better picture of what a typical fund delivered.
Since the candidate manager returned 6.0%, it is above the peer-group median of 5.6%. That supports the conclusion that the manager beat a typical peer for the quarter. The mean still describes the overall average, but it is not the best guide to the typical manager in this skewed distribution.
The median better represents the typical peer here because a single 29.0% outlier has pulled the mean above the main cluster of returns.
Topic: Data Analysis
A UK balanced fund manager is being reviewed against a benchmark. The pension scheme made a large additional contribution halfway through the quarter, just before a broad market fall. The trustees want a return measure that isolates the manager’s investment performance from the timing of this external cash flow. Which measure is most appropriate?
Best answer: C
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: The key issue is manager appraisal when an external cash flow occurred at a potentially distortive time. Time-weighted return removes the impact of the client’s contribution timing by measuring and linking returns across sub-periods, so it is the best measure of the manager’s underlying performance.
When the objective is to assess manager skill, the preferred measure is the time-weighted rate of return. In this scenario, the large mid-quarter contribution was an external cash flow decided by the client, not by the manager. A time-weighted approach breaks the period around that cash flow and compounds the sub-period returns, so the result is not distorted by the size or timing of the contribution.
Money-weighted return, by contrast, gives weight to when cash enters or leaves the portfolio, so it reflects the investor’s experience rather than the manager’s pure investment performance. That makes it useful for investor-specific outcomes, but not the best tool for manager comparison against a benchmark. The decisive point is that external cash-flow timing should be neutralised here.
It links sub-period returns and neutralises the effect of external cash flows, so it is the standard measure for assessing manager skill.
Topic: Data Analysis
A portfolio analyst is comparing two UK equity mandates over the same 12-month period.
Exhibit:
| Portfolio | Total return | Beta |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio A | 9% | 0.8 |
| Portfolio B | 11% | 1.4 |
Risk-free rate for the period: 3%
Which interpretation is best supported by the exhibit?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Data Analysis
Explanation: The Treynor ratio is excess return divided by beta, so it measures return per unit of systematic risk. Portfolio A has a Treynor ratio of 7.5, while Portfolio B is about 5.7, so Portfolio A used market risk more efficiently over the period.
The core concept is that the Treynor ratio evaluates excess return relative to systematic risk, using beta rather than total volatility. Because both portfolios are measured over the same period and use the same risk-free rate, they can be compared directly.
\[ \begin{aligned} T_A &= \frac{9\%-3\%}{0.8} = 7.5 \\ T_B &= \frac{11\%-3\%}{1.4} \approx 5.7 \end{aligned} \]Although Portfolio B achieved the higher raw return, it took more market risk to generate that return. Portfolio A therefore produced the better Treynor outcome. The key takeaway is that Treynor rewards higher excess return only when it is earned efficiently relative to beta.
Its excess return divided by beta is higher: \((9\%-3\%)/0.8 = 7.5\), versus \((11\%-3\%)/1.4 \approx 5.7\).
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