We examine how CEO birthplace identity affects firm corporate social responsibility (CSR)activities. CEOs heading firms located in their home birth counties are associated with higherlevels of CSR. The relation is more pronounced for CEOs with deeper home connections.Importantly, CSR activities...

This paper analyzes the effect that the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision on Citizens United vs. FEC had on corporate political activism. The decision opened the door for corporate treasuries to engage in independent political spending. Politically connected firms have lower announcement...

Debt-financed share buybacks generate positive short-term and long-run abnormal stock returns. Leveraged buyback firms have more debt capacity, higher marginal tax rate, lower excess cash and lower growth prospects ex ante, increase leverage and reduce investments more sharply ex post than...

Using Internet search volume of dividend-related keywords to measure investor preference for dividends that varies over time and across states, we show that dividend sentiment affects corporate policies and asset prices. Investors search more for dividends when economic conditions are poor, with...

Using policy-related uncertainty as a shock to firms’ internal and external financing frictions, we find significantly lower repurchase likelihood, short-term market reactions, and post-announcement completion rate of open market share repurchases during periods of high policy uncertainty. The...

We document a significant decline in the level of generalized trust among finance professionals relative to the decline of trust in the general U.S. population. This decline occurs across all subsectors and at all hierarchy levels and is unique to the finance industry. It is related to a lack of...

We exploit the staggered introduction of index funds in different segments and countries to study how increased competition from indexing affects the performance-flow relation and incentives of actively managed equity mutual funds. An increase in the market shares of available country-level...

We document a long-lasting association between a common societal phenomenon, early-life family disruption, and investment behavior. Fund managers who experienced the death or divorce of their parents during childhood take lower risk and are more likely to sell their holdings following...