We examine geographical peer effects on firms’ corporate payout decisions. We hypothesize that the geographical interconnections between firms, as well as the characteristics of the local dividend markets in which they operate, influence their dividend decisions. Using data on US public firms,...

Using a large sample of US listed firms, we examine how firms’ dividend payout decisions are influenced by the decisions of their local peers. We show that the decision to increase, initiate and decrease dividends are all influenced by the dividend decisions of local peers. We find local peer...