查看更多>>摘要:We find weak evidence suggesting that cities' credit ratings reflect their climate risk exposure. Using a large sample of US cities, we test whether cities with higher exposure to physical or transition risks of climate change have lower credit ratings. We also compare the ratings of coastal and similar noncoastal cities, and run difference‐in‐differences tests around events that raise climate change awareness. Moreover, we study the climate risk effect within cities and at the bond level. We observe a negative association only between the Hallegatte et al. (2013) sea‐level‐rise measure and ratings, and this association is solely driven by New Orleans, which had already experienced a significant climate event.
Biljana AdebamboRobert M. BowenShavin MalhotraPengcheng Zhu...
981-1020页
查看更多>>摘要:We examine whether CEO extraversion, an important personality trait associated with leadership, is associated with firms' expected cost of equity capital. We measure CEO extraversion using CEOs' speech patterns during the unscripted portion of conference calls. After controlling for multiple CEO and firm‐specific variables, we find a strong positive incremental association between CEO extraversion and firms' expected cost of capital. Moreover, cost of equity increases when a more extraverted CEO replaces a less extraverted CEO. In addition, we find that firms with relatively extraverted CEOs take more risk and exhibit lower credit ratings, which is associated with higher cost of equity capital. These results are statistically and economi- cally meaningful and do not appear to be driven by reverse causality, endogenous matching, look‐ahead bias, or bias in analysts' earnings forecast.
查看更多>>摘要:In the US Treasury bond market, the existence of a bond pair (two bonds with the same maturity but different coupons) is shown to allow the computation of the zero‐coupon interest rate for that maturity directly from the bond prices, as well as the zero‐coupon interest rates for adjacent maturity bonds with the same number of coupon payments. Since the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the number of bond pairs has increased, allowing for the direct estimation from bond prices of the zero‐coupon interest rates for an average of 180 individual maturities for bond maturities between 6 months and 30 years. The bond pairs approach outperforms popular yield‐curve‐ fitting models in accurately reproducing original bond prices.
查看更多>>摘要:In this article, we examine the relation between managerial ability and the use of supplier‐provided trade credit. The literature documents the positive effects of high‐ability managers, including more accurate earnings forecasts, improved earnings quality, and overall improvement in corporate disclosure policies. We argue that customers (those seeking trade credit) with high‐ability managers are better able to negotiate with suppliers, provide more transparent disclosure, and maintain strong relationships. Likewise, suppliers are willing to provide more trade credit to customers with high‐ability managers because of reduced information asymmetry, creating an environment of trust and transparency. Our empirical results show that suppliers extend more trade credit to customers with high‐ability managers and that this relation is more pro- nounced for financially constrained firms.
查看更多>>摘要:We examine how firm life cycle affects ratings and costs of debt for public offers. We find that ratings for issuers in the introduction and decline stages are lower than those for growth and mature issuers. A similar U‐shaped relation between life stage and yield spread, after controlling for credit rating, indicates that life stage affects cost of debt through multiple channels. Costs of debt are lower for growth and mature issuers than for introduction and decline issuers. Analyses of high‐yield bonds and term to maturity suggest that the adverse effect on costs of debt for introduction and decline firms is associated with their elevated riskiness and greater information asymmetry.
查看更多>>摘要:In this article, we examine the relation between indepen- dent directors with past military service and merger activity. We find that firms with a greater proportion of independent directors with military experience complete fewer mergers, and the deals are of smaller value. Our results are robust to instrumental variable estimation. The reduction in merger and acquisition activity is concentrated in firms with weak CEOs, suggesting independent directors with military service do not improve firm agency problems.
查看更多>>摘要:We study the effect of social connections between divisional managers and CEO on the scale and success of innovation activities in US diversified conglomerates. Divisional managers who previously worked or studied with the CEO file a greater number of patents during their tenure at the segment. These patents receive more citations in the future and represent a greater scientific and economic value. To provide causal support for our findings, we exploit plausibly exogenous variation in connections caused by CEO nonperformance‐related retirements. The difference‐in‐differences estimation shows that after the CEO leaves the office, connected segments experience a drop in the quantity and quality of innovation activities. The effect of connections to the CEO on innovation outcomes is stronger in firms with high internal information asymmetry. These findings can imply that social connections help to mitigate adverse selection problems associated with risky R&D investments.
查看更多>>摘要:I examine the relation between threats to human capital and corporate financial policy using morbidity and mortality data related to infectious diseases. I observe a strong association between deteriorating health and declines in leverage, which seems to be influenced by increasing human capital costs offsetting debt benefits. Firms consider reducing debt as a strategic response to perceived employee valuation of human capital insurance, which tends to be affected by a disease‐ induced rise in human capital costs. This association appears more pronounced in technology firms, distressed firms, and labor‐intensive firms, and during higher disease‐induced labor uncertainty, with some moderation by labor unions.
查看更多>>摘要:We revisit the tax‐loss selling hypothesis as an explanation for the January effect. We expand on prior empirical evidence from municipal bond closed‐end funds (CEFs) by extending the sample period by 19 years and adding exchange‐traded funds (ETFs). Our sample covers the introduction and rapid growth of municipal bond ETFs, significant changes to municipal bond market structure, and the modernization of tax‐loss selling practices. The January effect in municipal bond CEFs has become stronger in recent years and is consistent with the tax‐loss hypothesis. The January effect in municipal bond ETFs is smaller and cannot be explained by tax‐loss selling.
查看更多>>摘要:In this article I analyze the effect of the sensitivity of firm value on the information available to potential acquirers in common‐value takeover auctions with toeholds. I show that the quality of information does not affect equilibrium when bidders have equal toeholds but has a significant effect when toeholds are different. My article demon- strates that increasing the relative information quality of the bidder with a smaller toehold makes both bidders bid more aggressively and leads to a higher price. I also analyze the combined effect of toeholds and information quality on equilibrium bidding strategies and discuss ways target shareholders can increase the expected final price.