This dissertation consists of three essays on empirical finance. In the first essay, I examine whether firms strategically substitute equity for debt to exploit market mispricing. I argue that previous studies reach conflicting conclusions about equity market timing because they neglect a...

My dissertation focuses on the incentives from executive stock and stock option ownership, how these incentives affect the welfare of firms different stakeholders, and how these stakeholders respond. In the first chapter, I investigate whether CEO stock and stock option ownership affects firms...