An earnings manipulation detection model based on forensic accounting principles (Beneish 1999) has substantial out-of-sample ability to predict cross-sectional returns. We show that the model correctly identified, ahead of time, 12 of the 17 highest profile fraud cases in the period 1998-2002....

We document that textual discussions in a sample of 363,952 analyst reports provide information to investors beyond that in the contemporaneously released earnings forecasts, stock recommendations, and target prices, and also assist investors in interpreting these signals. Cross-sectionally, we...

This study examines the relationship between the value of financial analysts' recommendations and the intensity of firms' research and development (R&D) expenditures. We conduct univariate, portfolio and regression analyses using a sample of 8,620 public firms for the period 1993-2004. The...

We synthesize and extend recent research demonstrating that investor recognition is a distinct and significant determinant of stock price movements. Realized stock returns are strongly positively related to changes in investor recognition and expected returns are strongly negatively related to...

In this paper, I empirically test the conservatism effect of Barberis, Shleifer and Vishny (1998). Conditioning on a shock to quarterly earnings, firms ranking in the top (bottom) earnings shock quintile exhibit substantial price momentum over the next three-month periods following the initial...

This paper investigates whether markets for individual stocks lose liquidity when uninformed investors are given options to avoid trading against informed investors. I find a positive association between the percentage of firm shares being held by exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and illiquidity in...

We analyze the earnings information and stock prices of S&P500 firms and find that investors following S&P500 stocks (i) respond more to pro forma earnings than to GAAP earnings, (ii) respond to an emphasis on pro forma earnings, and (iii) are fixated on pro forma earnings. We provide the first...

Motivated by recent controversies on the information role of financial analysts, this study examines whether firm level transparency proxied by accounting quality affects the mix of market/industry-wide vs. firm-specific information provided by analysts. Specifically, we show that better...

We investigate the assertion that fair valuation of financial instruments exacerbated the 2008 financial crisis. We focus on the 4th quarter of 2008 following the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, the Reserve Primary fund “breaking the buck” and other adverse events. Our central finding is that...

This paper examines the impact of expectations manipulation on the usefulness of analyst forecasts in the residual income valuation model. Recognizing that firms may guide down analyst forecast to either truthfully communicate information (legitimate guidance) or mislead analysts to produce...