The Journal of Finance

The Journal of Finance publishes leading research across all the major fields of finance. It is one of the most widely cited journals in academic finance, and in all of economics. Each of the six issues per year reaches over 8,000 academics, finance professionals, libraries, and government and financial institutions around the world. The journal is the official publication of The American Finance Association, the premier academic organization devoted to the study and promotion of knowledge about financial economics.

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Search results: 10.

Market Integration and Price Execution for NYSE‐Listed Securities

Published: 07/01/1993   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1993.tb04028.x

CHARLES M. C. LEE

For New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) listed securities, the price execution of seemingly comparable orders differs systematically by location. In general, executions at the Cincinnati, Midwest, and New York stock exchanges are most favorable to trade initiators, while executions at the National Association of Security Dealers (NASD) are least favorable. These intermarket price differences depend on trade size, with the smallest trades exhibiting the biggest per share price difference. Collectively, these results raise questions about the adequacy of the existing intermarket quote system (ITS), the broker's fiduciary responsibility for “best execution,” and the propriety of order flow inducements.


Retail Investor Sentiment and Return Comovements

Published: 09/19/2006   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.2006.01063.x

ALOK KUMAR, CHARLES M.C. LEE

Using a database of more than 1.85 million retail investor transactions over 1991–1996, we show that these trades are systematically correlated—that is, individuals buy (or sell) stocks in concert. Moreover, consistent with noise trader models, we find that systematic retail trading explains return comovements for stocks with high retail concentration (i.e., small‐cap, value, lower institutional ownership, and lower‐priced stocks), especially if these stocks are also costly to arbitrage. Macroeconomic news and analyst earnings forecast revisions do not explain these results. Collectively, our findings support a role for investor sentiment in the formation of returns.


Price Momentum and Trading Volume

Published: 12/17/2002   |   DOI: 10.1111/0022-1082.00280

Charles M.C. Lee, Bhaskaran Swaminathan

This study shows that past trading volume provides an important link between “momentum” and “value” strategies. Specifically, we find that firms with high (low) past turnover ratios exhibit many glamour (value) characteristics, earn lower (higher) future returns, and have consistently more negative (positive) earnings surprises over the next eight quarters. Past trading volume also predicts both the magnitude and persistence of price momentum. Specifically, price momentum effects reverse over the next five years, and high (low) volume winners (losers) experience faster reversals. Collectively, our findings show that past volume helps to reconcile intermediate‐horizon “underreaction” and long‐horizon “overreaction” effects.


Inferring Trade Direction from Intraday Data

Published: 06/01/1991   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1991.tb02683.x

CHARLES M. C. LEE, MARK J. READY

This paper evaluates alternative methods for classifying individual trades as market buy or market sell orders using intraday trade and quote data. We document two potential problems with quote‐based methods of trade classification: quotes may be recorded ahead of trades that triggered them, and trades inside the spread are not readily classifiable. These problems are analyzed in the context of the interaction between exchange floor agents. We then propose and test relatively simple procedures for improving trade classifications.


What is the Intrinsic Value of the Dow?

Published: 12/17/2002   |   DOI: 10.1111/0022-1082.00164

Charles M. C. Lee, James Myers, Bhaskaran Swaminathan

We model the time‐series relation between price and intrinsic value as a cointegrated system, so that price and value are long‐term convergent. In this framework, we compare the performance of alternative estimates of intrinsic value for the Dow 30 stocks. During 1963–1996, traditional market multiples (e.g., B/P, E/P, and D/P ratios) have little predictive power. However, a V/P ratio, where V is based on a residual income valuation model, has statistically reliable predictive power. Further analysis shows time‐varying interest rates and analyst forecasts are important to the success of V. Alternative forecast horizons and risk premia are less important.


Investor Sentiment and the Closed‐End Fund Puzzle

Published: 03/01/1991   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1991.tb03746.x

CHARLES M. C. LEE, ANDREI SHLEIFER, RICHARD H. THALER

This paper examines the proposition that fluctuations in discounts of closed‐end funds are driven by changes in individual investor sentiment. The theory implies that discounts on various funds move together, that new funds get started when seasoned funds sell at a premium or a small discount, and that discounts are correlated with prices of other securities affected by the same investor sentiment. The evidence supports these predictions. In particular, we find that both closed‐end funds and small stocks tend to be held by individual investors, and that the discounts on closed‐end funds narrow when small stocks do well.


Volume, Volatility, and New York Stock Exchange Trading Halts

Published: 03/01/1994   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1994.tb04425.x

CHARLES M. C. LEE, MARK J. READY, PAUL J. SEGUIN

Trading halts increase, rather than reduce, both volume and volatility. Volume (volatility) in the first full trading day after a trading halt is 230 percent (50 to 115 percent) higher than following “pseudohalts”: nonhalt control periods matched on time of day, duration, and absolute net‐of‐market returns. These results are robust over different halt types and news categories. Higher posthalt volume is observed into the third day while higher posthalt volatility decays within hours. The extent of media coverage is a partial determinant of volume and volatility following both halts and pseudohalts, but a separate halt effect remains after controlling for the media effect.


Yes, Discounts on Closed‐End Funds Are a Sentiment Index

Published: 06/01/1993   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1993.tb04742.x

NAVIN CHOPRA, CHARLES M. C. LEE, ANDREI SHLEIFER, RICHARD H. THALER


Summing Up

Published: 06/01/1993   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1993.tb04744.x

Navin Chopra, Charles M. C. Lee, Andrei Shleifer, Richard H. Thaler


Analyzing the Analysts: When Do Recommendations Add Value?

Published: 11/27/2005   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.2004.00657.x

Narasimhan Jegadeesh, Joonghyuk Kim, Susan D. Krische, Charles M. C. Lee

We show that analysts from sell‐side firms generally recommend “glamour” (i.e., positive momentum, high growth, high volume, and relatively expensive) stocks. Naïve adherence to these recommendations can be costly, because the level of the consensus recommendation adds value only among stocks with favorable quantitative characteristics (i.e., value stocks and positive momentum stocks). In fact, among stocks with unfavorable quantitative characteristics, higher consensus recommendations are associated with worse subsequent returns. In contrast, we find that the quarterly change in consensus recommendations is a robust return predictor that appears to contain information orthogonal to a large range of other predictive variables.