We document a significant but declining size effect and cyclicality in sales growth within U.S. public firms, including the COVID crisis. The patterns differ significantly from those documented in prior studies which focus on samples dominated by private firms. Small public firms grow faster...

Firms' sensitivities to business cycles differ by size and age. The differences are large: "young and small firms" are more cyclical than large firms, whereas "old and small" firms are closer to acyclical. A heterogeneous-firm model with heterogeneous returns to scale can replicate these...