This paper is about shareholder value. We examine whether welfare considerations justify that target and whether competitive markets force firms to pursue it. We also argue that shareholder value is strictly an ill-defined goal. We report evidence from a large sample of listed firms across the...

"We rely on a survey of Swiss firms to document deviation from first-best for reasons of internal 'fairness' when allocating resources. This 'socialist' practice is more widespread in smaller than in larger firms. It ignores the reputation and past performance of the managers who apply for...

We rely on a survey of Swiss firms to document deviation from first-best for reasons of internal quot;fairnessquot; when allocating resources. This quot;socialistquot; practice is more widespread in smaller than in larger firms. It ignores the reputation and past performance of the managers who...

This paper examines whether Swiss firms maximize shareholder value. To find out, we survey the goals of 313 listed and unlisted firms. We then examine whether managers' decisions are consistent with their goals and analyze whether performance corresponds to intentions. Our results show that most...