Over the 1993-2000 period, a majority of U.S. venture-backed IPOs have venture backing by financial institutions. Each class of financial institutions has its own asset expertise, investment criteria and access to proprietary information on private firms, which we exploit evaluating whether...

We examine the properties of firms' forecasting records and whether the accuracy of their prior earnings forecasts affects investor response to their subsequent forecasts. Within the context of a Bayesian model of investor learning, we find that the stock price response to management forecast...

This paper empirically examines the determinants of the choice between private and public offerings and expected price discounts by using a new database, which details the buyers and contracts of private placements in high-technology industries between 1986 and 1997. The estimates indicate that...

In this study, I examine the association between the credibility of the financial reporting system and the quality of governance mechanisms. I use a sample of 87 firms identified by the SEC as fraudulently manipulating their financial statements. Consistent with prior research, results indicate...

We examine a comprehensive sample of going-dark deregistrations where companies cease SEC reporting, but continue to trade publicly. We document a spike in going dark that is largely attributable to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Firms experience large negative abnormal returns when going dark. We find...

Extant research finds mixed empirical results regarding whether private placement firms are undervalued. Hertzel and Smith (1993) suggest that private placements are undervalued. On the other hand, Krishnamurthy et al. (2004) and Hertzel et al. (2002) show that, similar to public offering firms,...

This paper analyzes the impact of Regulation FD on the accuracy and dispersion of earnings forecasts made by sell-side equity analysts. Using a large sample of forecasts made over a nearly ten-year period surrounding FD's adoption, we uncover two main sets of findings. First, earnings forecasts...

In this study, I examine the association between the credibility of the financial reporting system and the quality of governance mechanisms. I use a sample of 87 firms identified by the SEC as fraudulently manipulating their financial statements. Consistent with prior research, results indicate...

How can boards be chosen through a process partially controlled by the CEO, yet, in many instances, still be effective monitors of him? We offer an answer based on a model in which board effectiveness is a function of its independence. This, in turn, is a function of negotiations (implicit or...