Ike Mathur

The Conditional Relation between Beta and Returns

Unlike previous studies, this paper finds a consistent and highly significant relationship between beta and cross-sectional portfolio returns. The key distinction between our tests and previous tests is the recognition that the positive relationship between returns and beta predicted by the Sharpe-Lintner-Black model is based on expected rather than realized returns. In periods where excess market returns are negative, an inverse relationship between beta and portfolio returns should exist. When we adjust for the expectations concerning negative market excess returns, we find a consistent and significant relationship between beta and returns for the entire sample, for subsample periods, and for data divided by months in a year. Separately, we find support for a positive payment for beta risk.

The Interrelationship between Culture, Capital Structure, and Performance: Evidence from European Retailers

Abstract Research has shown that capital structure influences firm performance. It is generally accepted that variables other than capital structure also influence corporate performance. While this line of research has been extended to an international setting, research on the influence of national culture on capital structure is rather sparse, an issue addressed in this article. Using data from retailers in 14 European countries, which are grouped into four cultural clusters, it is shown that capital structures for retailers vary by cultural clusters. This result holds in the presence of control variables. Using both financial and operational measures of performance, it is shown that capital structure influences financial performance, although not exclusively. A negative relationship between capital structure and performance suggests that agency issues may lead to use of higher than appropriate levels of debt in the capital structure, thereby producing lower performance.

Price transmission dynamics between ADRs and their underlying foreign securities

Abstract This paper extends previous research by considering three pricing factors for American Depository Receipts (ADRs): the price of the underlying shares in the local currency, the relevant exchange rate, and the US market index. Using both a vector autoregressive (VAR) model with a cointegration constraint and a seemingly-unrelated regression (SUR) approach, we examine the relative importance of, and the speed of adjustment of ADR prices to, these underlying factors. Our results show that while the price of the underlying shares is most important, the exchange rate and the US market also have an impact on ADR prices. While the bulk of the shocks to the pricing factors are reflected in the ADRs within the same calendar day, there are indications that the adjustments are not completed until the following day. Curiously, the ADRs appear to initially overreact to the US market index but underreact to changes in underlying share prices and exchange rates.

An Analysis of the Wealth Effects of Green Marketing Strategies

Abstract Event study methodology is used to examine the wealth effects, or stock price reactions, to corporate announcements of green marketing activities. Two procedures for measuring stock price reactions and two different tests of significance are used in the study. The results for the sample of 73 firms show that the market value for the average firm in the sample declines by 3.14% during the period from 10 days prior to 10 days after the news is announced. Announcements related to green products, recycling efforts, and appointments of environmental policy managers result in insignificant stock price reactions. However, announcements for green promotional efforts produce significantly negative stock price reactions. Sampling by financial and operational characteristics shows that firms with higher growth in earnings, larger firms, and firms with higher advertising-to-sales ratios experience relatively less negative stock price reactions. Managerial implications of the results and directions for future research are also presented.

Central bank intervention and trading rule profits in foreign exchange markets

Abstract Moving average trading rules are utilized in both futures and spot foreign currency markets to show that significant, positive profits can be earned in four of five currencies examined. The results are consistent for both in-sample and forward simulation tests. Regression results demonstrate that central bank intervention is strongly associated with the profitability of trading returns for the three major currencies (DM, Yen and Pound), and partially explains returns for the SF and CD. Consistent with conjectures in previous studies that ‘news’ concerning intervention tends to be revealed over weekends, we find that moving average trading rule returns are significantly positive on Fridays and Mondays, and not significantly different from zero in the middle of the week.

Trading rule profits in european currency spot cross-rates

Abstract The moving average (MA) trading rule is applied to six European spot cross-rates — JY/BP, DM/BP, JY/DM, SF/DM, SF/BP, and JY/SF — to see if opportunities for profitable trading exist. The results suggest that MA trading rules are marginally profitable only for the JY/DM and the JY/SF cross-rates, while trading rules are not profitable for the other four cross-rates. Bootstrapping and out-of-sample tests provide similar results. Examination of subsamples characterized by central bank intervention do not produce different results. Computation of Box-Pierce statistics adjusted for heteroscedasticity show that daily returns for all six cross-rates are serially uncorrelated. Overall, the results suggests that cross-rates are sufficiently transparent to eliminate MA trading rule profit.

Payment For Risk: Constant Beta Vs. Dual-Beta Models

Fama and Frenchs (1992) assertion that investors receive premium payments for risk associated with the book value to market price (BE/ME) and size and not for holding beta risk has sparked a lively debate concerning risk factors that are priced in the market. Howton and Peterson (1998) use a dual-beta model to test the Fama and French conclusions. They conclude that the significant relationship between beta and returns depends on the use of the dual-beta model. This work, however, ignores the results reported by Pettengill, Sundaram, and Mathur (PSM, 1995). PSM find a significant relation between a constant risk beta and returns when data are segmented between up and down markets, but do not consider the impact of size and BE/ME. In this paper we show that the PSM (1995) market segmentation procedure alone provides a sufficient condition to identify a significant relation between beta and returns in the presence of size and BE/ME. Dual market betas may be relevant in explaining risk and return. However, the market segmentation procedure of PSM (1995) is the critical condition for finding a significant relationship between returns and betas. Copyright 2002 by the Eastern Finance Association.

The impact of high-quality firm achievements on shareholder value: Focus on Malcolm Baldrige and J. D. Power and associates awards

Marketing managers face increasing pressure to justify any strategic action with financial metrics that facilitate comparative evaluations with alternative options. Using event study method, the authors focus attention on the impact of high-profile quality achievement awards on the stock prices of the award-winning firms. Two types of awards are investigated: the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) and J. D. Power and Associates Awards (JDPAA). Previous event studies found no major impact of MBNQA announcements on the stock price of MBNQA winners; in contrast, this study’s results show that these awards generate significant shareholder value for MBNQA winners. With respect to the JDPAA, the authors— analyses did notfind any such impact in the Automotive, Travel, and Finance categories. Multiple regression analyses suggest that firms with higher amounts of intangible assets are more likely to create shareholder value. Implications of the results for different decision horizon perspectives are derived.

Trading rule profits in Latin American currency spot rates

Abstract The efficiency of foreign exchange markets has received extensive attention in the literature in recent years, especially with regard to technical trading. We extend the existing evidence on this topic by applying the moving average (MA) and channel (CH) trading rules to 13 Latin currencies to see if opportunities for profitable trading exist. Our results show that although not all of the Latin American currencies can be exploited through the use of trading rules that we use, there are some that appear amenable to our technical analysis. Specifically, the results suggest that MA trading rules are profitable for four currencies, namely the Brazilian real, the Mexican peso, the Peruvian new sol, and the Venezuelan bolivar. We further find that CH rules are profitable for the Brazilian real, the Mexican peso, and the Venezuelan bolivar. Our results suggest that due to differences in the statistical properties of exchange rates, some trading rules may be more suitable for certain types of currencies.

Does Corporate Diversification Exacerbate or Mitigate Earnings Management? An Empirical Analysis

The purpose of this study is to determine whether earning management is exacerbated or alleviated in diversified firms. An explicit distinction is made between industrial and geographic diversification. The empirical evidence shows that earnings management is mitigated by 1.8% in industrially diversified firms. The evidence also shows that a combination of industrial and global diversification helps alleviate earnings management by 2.5%. Global diversification alone, however, does not appear to impact earnings management. We argue that diversified firms derive their cash flows from disparate business divisions. The accruals generated by these business divisions are imperfectly correlated and, hence, tend to offset each other at the entire firms level, making it difficult for managers to manage earnings considerably in either direction. Finally, our results show that diversified firms do not suffer more severe informational asymmetry, which may explain why earnings management does not occur to a greater extent in diversified firms.