
What is the difference between SML and CML in finance?
SML and CML are two very crucial concepts in finance. SML stands for Security Market Line, while CML’s full form is Capital Market Line. Both SML and CML relate to the risk and return in investment.
What does SML stand for?
Security Market Line(SML) 1. Capital Market Line(CML) is the graphical representation of CAPM which shows the relationship between the expected return on efficient portfolio and their total risk.
What is the difference between capital market line (CML) and security market line?
While the Capital Market Line graphs define efficient portfolios, the Security Market Line graphs define both efficient and non-efficient portfolios. While calculating the returns, the expected return of the portfolio for CML is shown along the Y- axis.
What is the difference between SML and the characteristic line?
In SML, only risk measure taken along x axis is Beta. It is measured as covariance of an asset to variance of market variance. So characteristic line explains risk of an asset and risk of a market. Therefore, SML and characteristic line are same.

What are the similarities and differences between the CML and SML as models of the risk/return trade off?
Answer : The CML and SML both show trade off between risk and expected return . The difference between the two is CML measure the risk by standard deviation which consist systematic and unsystematic risk whereas SML only takes systematic risk into consideration .
Which is better CML or SML?
SML determines only all the security-related factors or the risk or return for individual stocks. On the other hand, CML determines market portfolio and risk-free assets, or the risk or return for efficient portfolios.
What is the SML used for?
The security market line is commonly used by money managers and investors to evaluate an investment product that they're thinking of including in a portfolio. The SML is useful in determining whether the security offers a favorable expected return compared to its level of risk.
Is SCL and SML same?
Security characteristic line is a time series graph (observations collected at usually discrete and equally spaced time intervals). SML graphs beta versus expected return. SCL graphs time series of security returns versus Index returns.
What is the difference between Cal and SML?
CAL shows the risk and reward tradeoff of a portfolio. SML, in contrast, shows the risk and reward tradeoff of security. Market risk premium helps to determine the slope of the SML. This means more the market risk premium, the steeper the slope is.
Does CML always have positive slope?
IV) The CML always has a positive slope.
What is the slope of the CML?
The slope of the CML is the Sharpe Ratio for the market portfolio. The Security Market line is constructed by calculating the line of Risk Premium over CAPM. beta . For the benchmark asset this will be 1 over the risk premium of the benchmark asset.
What is SML equation?
Security Market Line Equation The Equation is as follows: SML: E(Ri) = Rf + βi [E(RM) – Rf] In the above security market line formula: E(Ri) is the expected return on the security. Rf is the risk-free rate and represents the y-intercept of the SML.
What is the slope of SML?
The slope of the security market line represents the market risk premium, i.e. the excess return over the market return. The market risk premium compensates for the additional systematic risk associated with the security.
Security Market Line Assumptions
The Capital Market Line
- Capital Market Line (CML) represents the portfolios that accurately combine both risk and return. It is a graphical representation that shows s a portfolio’s expected return based on a particular level of risk given. The portfolios on the CML optimize the risk and return relationship. it maximizes the performance. The slope CML is called the Sharpe Ratio of the portfolio. It is usua…
Drawbacks of CML
- Presence of friction− CML considers that there is always some friction in the market irrespective of the volume and size.
- Taxes and transaction costs− Taxes and transaction costs are needed to be paid by the investors and these costs can vary from person to person and also in different geographies.
- The difference in investors worldwide− In the practical world, all investors do not have acces…
- Presence of friction− CML considers that there is always some friction in the market irrespective of the volume and size.
- Taxes and transaction costs− Taxes and transaction costs are needed to be paid by the investors and these costs can vary from person to person and also in different geographies.
- The difference in investors worldwide− In the practical world, all investors do not have access to all the information required to make a good investment decision Moreover, CML takes into considera...
- Absence of risk-free asset− The CML concept is built on the principle of the existence of risk-free assets. In reality, there is hardly any asset that is a risk-free asset.
Difference Between Sml and CML
- The security line is derived from the capital market line. CML is used to see a specific portfolio’s rate of return while the SML shows a market risk and a given time’s return. SML also shows the anticipated returns of individual assets. CML shows the total risk and measures it in terms of the SML (beta or systematic risk). Fair-priced securities a...