Inga Chira

Reference Point Theory and Pursuit of Deals

Target and bidder reference points have separate and joint effects on merger deals. A firm whose stock price is more distant from its 52-week high reference point is less likely to attract bids but has a greater likelihood of being acquired by its own managers (vs unaffiliated bidders). Firm propensity to submit a bid increases if its prevailing stock price is closer to its 52-week high. When both parties’ reference points are close to their current stock prices, they are more willing to complete a deal. Hostile deals result when the bidders stock price is closer to its reference point.

The valuation effect of LIFO’s repeal on high pricing power firms

Purpose - – The aim of the study is to provides a timely examination of the valuation effect of current initiatives to repeal LIFO by analyzing the valuation impact of the potential repeal of LIFO conditional on the pricing power of the firm. Design/methodology/approach - – Using the methodology from prior research for all LIFO companies, we use price levels regressions to empirically test the potential tax effect of LIFO’s repeal on the value of the firm. To evaluate the robustness of these results, we also use event study methodology to estimate abnormal returns around the House Bill H. R. 3970. Findings - – Results show a favorable (unfavorable) valuation effect for high (low) pricing power firms that are able (unable) to recover tax payments by reducing costs and/or charging higher prices. These findings are robust to alternative measures of valuation (price and returns), as well as long and short event windows and suggest that certain firms may be able to offset post-LIFO repeal increased tax payments by increasing sales-output prices and or decreasing cost-input prices. Originality/value - – The primary contribution of this paper is to provide relevant and new empirical evidence regarding the potential valuation effects of the currently proposed political and regulatory initiatives to abolish LIFO.

Who Is Less Likely to Be Involved in Financial Advisor Misconduct

The authors study two characteristics found to be associated with reduced financial advisor misconduct: gender and professional designations. Their findings suggest that consumer guidelines are helpful in avoiding adverse advisor experiences. These guidelines can be especially valuable given the advisory market’s absence of clear, uniform standards to assess financial advisory professionals. The authors find that female advisors are statistically less likely to engage in misconduct. In addition, they find that female advisors with a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) or Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) designation are less likely to exhibit disclosed misconduct as compared to male and female advisors who have at least one of the CFP, ChFC, or Chartered Financial Analyst designations. Their findings offer another powerful reason why attracting women to the industry is important and why advanced financial planning training may improve consumer outcomes.

Reference points and method of payment in mergers

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the target and bidder reference points on the method of payment in mergers. When considering initial and final results for target and bidder, the target appears to have more negotiating power than the bidder in achieving the financial mix preference that was initially articulated. Design/methodology/approach The authors examine the impact of target and bidder reference points on the consideration sought by the target and the consideration offered by the bidder. The authors test whether the target reference points has an impact on the final method of payment agreed upon by the target and the bidder. Findings The authors find that targets with a longer distance to their respective target reference points prefer to receive cash financing in the consideration sought, while bidders with a longer distance to their respective reference points prefer stock financing in consideration offered. The authors also find evidence that target’s longer distance to its reference point is associated with the use of cash over stock, while the bidder reference point has no impact on the final method of payment used in the merger. Practical implications These insights may be used by the management to formulate the optimal mix of financing in M&A transactions. Originality/value This is an original paper exploring the effect of behavioral finance on corporate decision making.

Choose Wisely: Auction or Negotiation?

We examine the method by which firms are sold, auctions or one-on-one negotiations. We define and describe a subset of transactions that result from auction failure (i.e., target-attempted auctions that secure only one bidder). Controlling for endogeneity, firm, and transaction specific characteristics, we show that failed auctions are associated with lower final premiums and higher acquirer returns compared with both successful auctions and pure negotiations (negotiations with only one bidder from the outset to the conclusion of the transaction). We find that several target, acquirer, and deal-specific characteristics affect the likelihood of auction failure. The loss of latent (perceived) competition that results from a failed auction partially shifts the wealth created by a merger or acquisition from targets’ to acquirers’ shareholders. To maximize shareholders’ wealth, targets should carefully consider the likelihood of auction failure ex ante.