This paper examines means of payment in over 2,500 acquisitions in the UK and US over the period 1955 to 1985. Data on financing proportions, bid premia and postmerger performance are used to test the validity of tax and information hypotheses. It is difficult to explain many of the results in...

Using expectational data from financial analysts, we estimate a market risk premium for US stocks. Using the Samp;P 500 as a proxy for the market portfolio, the average market risk premium is found to be 7.14% above yields on long-term US government bonds over the period 1982-1998. This risk...

Our empirical investigation of announced split factors, split announcement returns, and revisions of analysts' earnings forecasts shows that a firm's past history of stock splits plays a crucial role in both the design and effect of current splits. Managers appear to design splits to return...

This paper examines private equity (both buyout and venture funds) performance around the globe using four data sets from leading commercial sources. For North American funds, our results echo recent research findings: buyout funds have outperformed public equities over long periods of time; in...

This paper examines private equity (both buyout and venture funds) performance around the globe using four data sets from leading commercial sources. For North American funds, our results echo recent research findings: buyout funds have outperformed public equities over long periods of time; in...

This paper provides evidence that the equity market risk premium is not constant and draws implications for estimating the cost of capital. Using data from US markets, we demonstrate that the equity market risk premium varies substantially over time. Moreover, these variations are linked to...

Theories on cost of capital have been around for decades. Unfortunately for practice, the academic discussions typically stop at a high level of generality, leaving important questions for application unanswered. Recent upheavals in financial markets have only made the practitioner's task more...

Based on interviews with major investment banks, we report how these leading practitioners apply discounted cash flow (DCF) techniques to value business enterprises. We find considerable alignment among the advisors and between practice and academic advice on major themes, including assessments...

Private equity performance, both for buyouts and venture capital, has been highly cyclical: periods of high fundraising have been followed by periods of low performance. Despite this seemingly predictable variation, we find modest gains, at best, to pursuing realistic, investable strategies that...

We examine the link between endowment investment performance and human capital. Harnessing detailed information on endowments in higher education, their in-house investment staff, and their trustees, we find that expertise in alternative assets and larger professional networks are associated...