Constrained portfolio optimization in a life-cycle model: A deep pricing kernel approach

Abstract

This paper considers the constrained portfolio optimization in a generalized life-cycle model. The individual with a stochastic income manages a portfolio consisting of stocks, a bond, and life insurance to maximize their consumption level, death benefit, and terminal wealth. Meanwhile, the individual faces a convex-set trading constraint, with the non-tradeable asset constraint, no short-selling constraint, and no borrowing constraint as special cases. We build the artificial markets to solve this problem by manipulating the compensated drift terms of the underlying assets to meet the trading constraints. By dual transform, we propose a deep pricing kernel approach to compute tight lower and upper bounds for the primal problem, which can be used when the value function lacks an explicit solution due to the pricing kernel's conditional expectation. Finally, we conclude that when considering the trading constraints, the individual will reduce their consumption, demand for life insurance and annuities, and wealth levels due to the restricted market.