We show that product differentiation reduces the informativeness of a firm's stock price (or its peers' stock prices) about the value of its growth opportunities. This results in less efficient exercise of a firm's growth options when managers rely on information in stock prices for their...

We show how product variety affects asset prices in a general-equilibrium model. We analytically characterize the unique equilibrium and estimate the model to match asset pricing and product market moments. The equity premium and risk-free rate can be reconciled for risk aversion levels around 4...

Product design has increasingly been recognized as an important source of competitive advantage. This paper empirically estimates the impact of effective design on the market value of the firm. We use a firm's receipt of a product design award as a proxy for its design effectiveness. Based on...