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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A Test of the Relative Pricing Effects of Dividends and Earnings: Evidence from Simultaneous Announcements in Japan

Published: 12/17/2002   |   DOI: 10.1111/0022-1082.00245

Robert M. Conroy, Kenneth M. Eades, Robert S. Harris

We study the pricing effects of dividend and earnings announcements by taking advantage of the unique setting in Japan where managers simultaneously announce the current year's dividends and earnings as well as forecasts of next year's dividends and earnings. Defining surprises as deviations from analysts' forecasts, we find that share price reactions are significantly affected by earnings surprises, especially management forecasts of next year's earnings. The information content of dividends is marginal and is restricted to announcements of next year's dividends. Consistent with Modigliani and Miller's dividend irrelevance proposition, current dividend surprises have no material impact on stock prices in Japan.


The Effects of Stock Splits on Bid‐Ask Spreads

Published: 09/01/1990   |   DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1990.tb02437.x

ROBERT M. CONROY, ROBERT S. HARRIS, BRUCE A. BENET

This paper examines the effects of stock splits on bid‐ask spreads for NYSE‐listed companies. Percentage spreads increase after splits, representing a liquidity cost to investors. These spread increases are directly related to decreases in share prices following splits and can explain part, but not all, of the observed increase in return variability after splits. The evidence thus suggests a liquidity cost of stock splits that must be weighed against any other perceived benefits of splits. Such a liquidity cost may validate that stock splits are a signal of favorable information about the firm.