We analyze the changes in cash holding policies of S&P 500 firms before and after their inclusion in the index. One year after inclusion, the mean industry-adjusted cash holdings of these firms decline by nearly 32% from the year before inclusion. Several factors explain this decline. The...

A two-stage stock-financed merger occurs when an acquiring firm first issues shares, and then engages in a cash acquisition shortly afterward. Such deals allow us to test two important hypotheses derived from decoupling: by clienteles via segmentation and by time. The acquirer's value is...

We develop a model in which time-varying real investment opportunities lead to time-varying adverse selection in the market for initial public offerings. The model is consistent with several stylized facts known about the IPO market: economic expansions are associated with a dramatic increase in...

We examine whether spin-offs or divestitures cause improvements in conglomerate investment efficiency. At issue are endogeneity of these restructuring decisions and correct measurement of investment efficiency. Endogeneity is a problem because the factors that induce firms to spin off or divest...

IPO firms with high-powered CEO incentive contracts have lower failure rates in the aftermarket. Economically, an interquartile change in the distribution of CEO pay translates in a reduction of the failure risk probability by approximately 21%. The Pay Gap between the CEO and its subordinate...

At any point in time a firm faces three restructuring choices: diversify, refocus, or do nothing. This study analyzes the causes and the consequences of these actions in a unified framework using the appropriate methodologies. Various factors, such as firm's characteristics and multinational...