Aggregate Market Reaction to Earnings Announcements

This paper identifies a distinct immediate announcement period negative relation between earnings announcement surprises and aggregate market returns. Such a relation implies that market participants use earnings information in forming expectations about expected aggregate discount rates and, specifically, that good earnings news is associated with a positive shock to required returns. We also find some evidence that this negative relation persists well beyond the immediate announcement period, suggesting that market participants do not immediately fully impound these future market return implications of aggregate earnings news