r-REFA

A robust alternative to the traditional principal component estimator is proposed within the framework of factor models, known as Robust Exponential Factor Analysis, specifically designed for the modeling of high-dimensional datasets with heavy-tailed distributions. The algorithm estimates the latent factors and the loading by minimizing the exponential squared loss function. To determine the appropriate number of factors, we propose a modified rank minimization technique, which has been shown to significantly enhance finite-sample performance.