We find that the presence of independent directors who are blockholders (IDBs) in firms promotes better CEO contracting and monitoring, and higher firm valuation. Using a panel of about 11,500 firm-years with a unique, hand-collected dataset on IDB-identity and a novel instrument, we find that...

We examine open market stock trades by registered insiders in about 3,700 targets of takeovers announced during 1988-2006 and in a control sample of non-targets, both during an ‘informed' and a control period. Using difference-in-differences regressions of several insider trading measures, we...

We examine insider trading in about 3,700 targets of takeovers announced during 1988-2006 and in a control sample of non-targets, both during an ‘informed' and a control period. Using difference-in-differences regressions of several insider trading measures, we find no evidence that insiders...

We document evidence that mutual funds, on average, are averse to investing in tax-avoiding firms, which seems anomalous given the potential for two likely motives. Mutual fund managers' compensation incentives may lead them to prefer tax-avoiding firms, or the fact that mutual funds are...

We examine whether corporate tax avoidance impacts the investment decisions of socially responsible investment (SRI) mutual funds. After controlling for corporate social responsibility (CSR) constructs, we find that investment by SRI funds is positively associated with paying corporate taxes....

One of the primary goals of a firm going public is to create a greater visibility to investors in general. Using a sample of 809 IPOs from 2001-2010, we empirically examine and find that multiple lead underwriters (MLUs) have greater visibility through our five pre- and post-IPO visibility...

We examine whether corporate tax avoidance impacts the investment decisions of socially responsible investment (SRI) mutual funds. After controlling for corporate social responsibility (CSR) constructs, we find that investment by SRI funds is positively associated with paying corporate taxes....

This paper provides evidence consistent with retail investors experiencing choice overload when presented with an increasing number of IPOs to choose from. We find that both the average first day return and trading volume are lower in weeks with higher number of IPOs. However, with more IPOs,...

We document evidence that mutual funds, on average, are averse to investing in tax-avoiding firms, which seems anomalous given mutual fund managers' incentive structure. Our results remain unchanged when we address endogeneity concerns using several methods, including identification through...

One of the main goals of a firm going public is to create a greater visibility to investors in general. Using a sample of 809 IPOs from 2001-2010, we empirically examine and find that multiple lead underwriters (MLUs) have greater visibility through our five pre- and post-IPO visibility...