PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the association between debt maturity structure an... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the association between debt maturity structure and stock price crash risk in Australia.Design/methodology/approachThe authors employ panel data estimation with industry and year fixed effects. The paper uses a sample of 1,548 publicly listed Australian firms (8,661 firm-year observations) covering the 2000–2015 period.FindingsStock price crash risk is positively and significantly associated with the long-term debt maturity structure of firms. In addition, this positive association is more pronounced for firms with a more opaque information environment.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine stock price crash risk in Australia. The findings are value relevant as it uncovers how debt maturity structure affects shareholders' wealth protection.
We examine whether insider opportunism is reduced by board independence. Using a sample of 18,194... more We examine whether insider opportunism is reduced by board independence. Using a sample of 18,194 firm-year observations over the period 1996–2016, we show that board independence constrains opportunistic insider trading. Our identification strategy uses the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX Act) and associated changes to the listing rules of NYSE/NASDAQ as a source of exogenous shocks in board independence. Our results are economically significant as insider opportunism declines by about 10.5%. We find that insider trading restrictions is the channel through which board independence reduces insider opportunism. Our additional analyses show that in competitive and R&D (research and development) intensive firms, the impact of board independence on opportunism is less pronounced. We also find that board independence constrains opportunism only in less complex firms. However, in co-opted boards, independent directors are less effective. Overall, we support the monitoring channel of board...
We investigate whether CEOs strategically increase information uncertainty surrounding their insi... more We investigate whether CEOs strategically increase information uncertainty surrounding their insider stock purchases. We find that in the month before and during CEO stock purchases, information uncertainty in their news releases increases, which correlates with lower stock prices. This finding is not evident in the month after insider purchases and thus suggests CEOs’ strategic behavior. Our key findings of strategic information uncertainty are confirmed using multi-faceted fixed effects regressions, a quasi-natural experimental design, and numerous other robustness checks.
This study links the readability of 10-K reports to insider trading profitability. Using a sample... more This study links the readability of 10-K reports to insider trading profitability. Using a sample of 102,060 insider transactions in the United States between 1994 and 2016, we empirically demonstrate that less readable 10-K reports increase profitability from insider trading. Consistent with the proprietary cost argument, we also document that readability impacts on insider trading profitability are more pronounced for research and development–intensive firms, for firms facing higher product market competition and trade secrecy, and for firms with lower levels of voluntary management disclosures. Overall, this study supports the proprietary cost and strategic information asymmetry channel of readability and suggests that less readable reports lead to the exploitation of information advantages by insiders. JEL Classification: D4, G14, G34, G40
Abstract We examine whether and how product market competition affects insider trading profitabil... more Abstract We examine whether and how product market competition affects insider trading profitability. We empirically show that the insiders of firms in highly competitive industries make higher abnormal profits. Our identification strategy includes both a quasi-natural experiment setting and an instrumental variable approach to address endogeneity concerns. We also run an extensive array of robustness checks and find that our baseline results remain substantially unchanged. Our cross-sectional analyses show that insider trading profitability is more pronounced for firms with: a higher level of trade secrecy, a higher level of R&D, a lower level of management voluntary disclosures, less readable 10-K reports and highly tone-ambiguous financial disclosures. We also find that our results are robust to the inclusion of corporate governance mechanisms. Overall, this study is consistent with the theoretical predictions that support the information asymmetry and proprietary cost channels of competition and that increases in competition lead insiders to undertake more rent-seeking activity.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the association between debt maturity structure an... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the association between debt maturity structure and stock price crash risk in Australia.Design/methodology/approachThe authors employ panel data estimation with industry and year fixed effects. The paper uses a sample of 1,548 publicly listed Australian firms (8,661 firm-year observations) covering the 2000–2015 period.FindingsStock price crash risk is positively and significantly associated with the long-term debt maturity structure of firms. In addition, this positive association is more pronounced for firms with a more opaque information environment.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine stock price crash risk in Australia. The findings are value relevant as it uncovers how debt maturity structure affects shareholders' wealth protection.
We examine whether insider opportunism is reduced by board independence. Using a sample of 18,194... more We examine whether insider opportunism is reduced by board independence. Using a sample of 18,194 firm-year observations over the period 1996–2016, we show that board independence constrains opportunistic insider trading. Our identification strategy uses the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX Act) and associated changes to the listing rules of NYSE/NASDAQ as a source of exogenous shocks in board independence. Our results are economically significant as insider opportunism declines by about 10.5%. We find that insider trading restrictions is the channel through which board independence reduces insider opportunism. Our additional analyses show that in competitive and R&D (research and development) intensive firms, the impact of board independence on opportunism is less pronounced. We also find that board independence constrains opportunism only in less complex firms. However, in co-opted boards, independent directors are less effective. Overall, we support the monitoring channel of board...
We investigate whether CEOs strategically increase information uncertainty surrounding their insi... more We investigate whether CEOs strategically increase information uncertainty surrounding their insider stock purchases. We find that in the month before and during CEO stock purchases, information uncertainty in their news releases increases, which correlates with lower stock prices. This finding is not evident in the month after insider purchases and thus suggests CEOs’ strategic behavior. Our key findings of strategic information uncertainty are confirmed using multi-faceted fixed effects regressions, a quasi-natural experimental design, and numerous other robustness checks.
This study links the readability of 10-K reports to insider trading profitability. Using a sample... more This study links the readability of 10-K reports to insider trading profitability. Using a sample of 102,060 insider transactions in the United States between 1994 and 2016, we empirically demonstrate that less readable 10-K reports increase profitability from insider trading. Consistent with the proprietary cost argument, we also document that readability impacts on insider trading profitability are more pronounced for research and development–intensive firms, for firms facing higher product market competition and trade secrecy, and for firms with lower levels of voluntary management disclosures. Overall, this study supports the proprietary cost and strategic information asymmetry channel of readability and suggests that less readable reports lead to the exploitation of information advantages by insiders. JEL Classification: D4, G14, G34, G40
Abstract We examine whether and how product market competition affects insider trading profitabil... more Abstract We examine whether and how product market competition affects insider trading profitability. We empirically show that the insiders of firms in highly competitive industries make higher abnormal profits. Our identification strategy includes both a quasi-natural experiment setting and an instrumental variable approach to address endogeneity concerns. We also run an extensive array of robustness checks and find that our baseline results remain substantially unchanged. Our cross-sectional analyses show that insider trading profitability is more pronounced for firms with: a higher level of trade secrecy, a higher level of R&D, a lower level of management voluntary disclosures, less readable 10-K reports and highly tone-ambiguous financial disclosures. We also find that our results are robust to the inclusion of corporate governance mechanisms. Overall, this study is consistent with the theoretical predictions that support the information asymmetry and proprietary cost channels of competition and that increases in competition lead insiders to undertake more rent-seeking activity.
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Papers by Dewan Rahman