Predicting Risk & Returns Using Google Search Volume: Evidence from the Dow 30

This project looks to generate forecasting models that can help investors better quantify the risk and reward trade-off associated with trading stocks. Specifically, it looks at how data from Google Trends can be used as a proxy for information flow to investors. The idea behind the project is that higher levels of information flow leads to bigger changes in the price of a stock. To conduct this study we look at the companies listed in the Dow 30 as of September 2015. Although this type of research is relatively new, it is not a completely new field of study. Some hedge funds and investment managers have already launched funds that invest based upon trends and data from Twitter, Google, and other online trends