We identify the effect of changes in the brand capital on stock market performance. Using hand-collected data on the red carpet outfits during the Academy Awards ceremonies, we find that companies providing outfits to nominees experience a positive stock market performance with respect to a...

This paper documents that the earnings yield and book-to-price combine to predict equity returns in a way that is consistent with the rational pricing of risk. It is well known that earnings yields predict returns in the cross-section, consistent with standard formulas that show that the...

It is generally acknowledged that one of the risks faced by any company is FX risk, especially when the business operates internationally. For individual companies, exposure to FX risk results in different financial implications, stressing such parameters as the industry affiliation and the...

This article provides estimates of the inflation-adjusted cost of equity for banks in six countries over the period 1990-2009. This cost is estimated using the single-factor capital asset pricing model (CAPM), where expected stock returns are a function of risk-free rates and a bank-specific...

This paper presents a dynamic theory of housing market fluctuations. It develops a life-cycle model where households are heteroeneous with respect to income and preferences and mortgage lending is restricted by a down-payment requirement. The market interaction of young credit-constrained...

The welfare effects of private equity transactions are debated controversially. We analyze the impact of expansion financing and buyouts by private equity investors on investment of portfolio firms in the UK and France - two countries with different financial systems. Unobserved heterogeneity...