Prem G. Mathew

The Efficiency of International Information Flow: Evidence from the ETF and CEF Prices

While similar in their trading and organization, closed-end funds (CEFs) and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) differ in their liquidity and ease of arbitrage. We compare their price transmission dynamics using a sample of funds that invest in foreign securities and are most likely to show the deficiencies in the manner in which they process information. Our analysis shows that ETF returns are more closely related to their portfolio returns than are CEF returns. However, both fund types underreact to portfolio returns but overreact to domestic stock market returns. A simple trading strategy using these results is profitable with roundtrip trading costs less than 1.38% for CEFs and 0.71% for ETFs.

Long-horizon seasoned equity offerings performance in Pacific Rim markets

Abstract Previous studies of firms that issue seasoned equity in the US and Japan have found that these firms significantly underperform over the long-run subsequent to the issue. I offer further evidence of this by examining Japanese seasoned offerings (SEOs) from 1975 to 1992. I find similar results for firms issuing seasoned equity in Hong Kong. However, I also find that Korean SEOs generate insignificant abnormal returns over a 36-month period following the issue. These results suggest that the asymmetric information argument offered for the US and Japanese markets do not always hold, especially in markets where the regulatory and market structures vary greatly. Cross-sectional results suggest that younger firms tend to perform worse than older firms.

Does director affiliation lead to analyst bias

This study examines the ability of security analysts to provide objective earnings forecasts for firms with which the analyst’s brokerage firm has a director affiliation. The affiliation that we examine is where the brokerage firm has, on its board of directors, a director or an upper management individual from the firm which an analyst at the brokerage firm provides coverage. We find that affiliated analysts tend to provide earnings forecasts that are insignificantly different from unaffiliated analysts in terms of accuracy. However, we also find that forecasts provided by affiliated analysts tend to be significantly more pessimistic than those provided by their unaffiliated counterparts. This pessimistic bias in their earnings forecast will more easily allow the covered firm to beat earnings expectations when earnings are realized. We find that this bias surfaced after the Global Settlement decision, an enforcement agreement between large investment banks and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding issues surrounding conflicts of interest.

The value of stability ratings to the Canadian income trust market

The Canadian income trust market has witnessed phenomenal growth over the past few years. Limited institutional investment and analyst coverage in these securities creates an asset class with little monitoring or unbiased evaluation. Stability ratings, therefore, become crucial in providing information to investors about the quality of trusts. We find that ratings in the oil and gas and utility sectors provide a credible signal of quality. However, in the business trust sector, with the greatest diversity of underlying operating companies and need for evaluation, stability ratings are not as useful in providing a separating equilibrium between the rated and unrated trusts. We also find that market participants’ reactions to new information releases in this sector tend to be greater for unrated trusts.