We propose a “noisy signaling" hypothesis of open market share repurchase (OMSR) programs, where the equity market equilibrium that prevails after OMSR program announcements is a partial pooling rather than a fully separating equilibrium. We argue that two complementary mechanisms, namely,...

We propose and test the hypothesis that overconfident-CEOs, with upwardly-biased estimates of own firm-value, are more predisposed to repurchasing stock. An implication is that the stock-market, recognizing overconfident-CEO behavior, will react less positively to repurchase announcements. The...

Although executives often mention signaling undervaluation as a motivation for accelerated share repurchases (ASRs), managing earnings per share (EPS) has been argued as a key alternative motivation in the financial press. The results reveal that 29 percent of ASR firms (i.e., EPS-suspect firms)...

Using a large sample of US public companies, we find robust evidence that firms' payout policies, i.e., dividends and share repurchases, are significantly influenced by the policies of their industry peers. To overcome endogeneity problems, we employ instrumental variable techniques based on...

Firms avail themselves of external finance to manage obligations to pay dividends, along with other commitments. Indian firms, which have significant ownership concentration, present a unique opportunity for analyzing the influence of promoter holding on financed dividend payouts. This study...

We develop a structural model of the firm that allows after-interest cash to be directed to dividends, buybacks or some combination thereof. We study the effects of dilutions and buybacks on the value of the firm's claimants and on options written on the stock. We distinguish between options on...

Payout flexibility from share repurchases enables firms to reduce dilution and funding cost of stock option grants. Using daily repurchase disclosures, we show that U.K. firms use this flexibility to implement (a) large repurchase payouts, (b) with increased frequency, and (c) with lower daily...

The buyback anomaly survives when using the five factor Fama and French (2015) and the four factor Stambaugh and Yuan (2016) models: buyback announcements are followed by positive long-term excess returns that are positively related to (idiosyncratic) volatility, inconsistent with the low...

Leading up to the implementation of Basel III, European banks needed to substantially increase their capital ratios. To do this, banks made use of Liability Management Exercises (LMEs) in which they repurchased below-par debt securities. Banks are subject to a prudential filter that excludes...

Debt-financed share buybacks generate positive short-term and long-run abnormal stock returns. Leveraged buyback firms have more debt capacity, higher marginal tax rate, lower excess cash and lower growth prospects ex ante, increase leverage and reduce investments more sharply ex post than...