  We propose a novel Bayesian optimisation procedure for outlier detection in
the Capital Asset Pricing Model. We use a parametric product partition model to
robustly estimate the systematic risk of an asset. We assume that the returns
follow independent normal distributions and we impose a partition structure on
the parameters of interest. The partition structure imposed on the parameters
induces a corresponding clustering of the returns. We identify via an
optimisation procedure the partition that best separates standard observations
from the atypical ones. The methodology is illustrated with reference to a real
data set, for which we also provide a microeconomic interpretation of the
detected outliers.
