We theoretically and empirically investigate the role of information on the cross section of stock returns and firms' cost of capital when investors face estimation risk and learn from noisy signals of uncertain quality. The resultant equilibrium is an information-dependent conditional CAPM. We...

We theoretically and empirically investigate the role of information on the cross-section of stock returns and firms' cost of capital when investors face estimation risk and learn from noisy signals of uncertain quality. The resultant equilibrium is an information-dependent conditional CAPM. We...

We derive a conditional CAPM in a general equilibrium model where investors face estimation-risk on mean returns, and learn from information of uncertain quality or precision. In equilibrium, the loading on market risk augments the standard beta with the random or information-dependent...

Merton (1987) predicts that idiosyncratic risk should be priced when investors hold sub-optimally diversified portfolios, but empirical research has not been supportive of the theory. An overlooked assumption in Merton (1987) is that the predictions are predicated on frictionless markets, and in...