Detecting Information from Directors' Trades: Signal Definition and Variable Size Effects

There have been three empirical studies examining the share price reaction following trades by directors of UK companies (King and Poell, 1988; Pope, Morris and Peel, 1990; and Gregory, Matatko, Tonks and Pukiss, 1994). All three of these UK studies used different definitions of 'buy' and 'sell' signals resulting from the transactions of directors and employ different controls to detect the presence of any 'size effects'. We investigate whether the signal definition explains the different conclusions drawn by these earlier studies, and examine whether or not any observed abnormal returns are explicable by the small companies effect. We also investigate trading strategies based on holding a long portfolio of shares purchased or a short portfolio of shares sold by directors held until the end of the study period or until a 'reserving event' (e.g. a sale following a purchase by director[s] is observed).     

证券交易的透明度与信息揭示制度：理论综述

证券交易过程中，交易信息的发布、扩散和传递方式对于各类市场参与者非常重要。目前关于信息揭示制度和交易透明度对市场运行效果的影响尚存在许多争议。本文讨论了交易透明度的含义、研究者和市场机构对于交易透明度的争论、交易透明度与市场绩效的关系，以及不同交易透明性的市场之间的竞争等问题，系统总结了目前与证券交易透明度和交易信息揭示有关的理论观点，以期把握交易信息揭示程度对市场产生的影响，以及由此引起的交易透明度对市场的运行效率产生的影响。     

Directors' Recommendations in Takeovers: An Agency and Governance Analysis

Abstract:   This paper evaluates whether directors of target companies make response recommendations in takeovers which are consistent with the interests of shareholders, by examining the relationship between target director recommendations and associated takeover characteristics and ownership and corporate governance characteristics of target companies. The findings suggest that response recommendations appear to be more closely associated with the self‐interest of directors rather than shareholders' concerns, and that common governance initiatives aimed at aligning the interests of shareholders and managers are ineffective in resolving this agency problem. The results suggest the need for legislative or judicial reforms in Australia to encourage takeover activity and reduce takeover hostility.     

Empirical Evidence on the Role of Trading Suspensions in Disseminating New Information to the Capital Market

Abstract:  This paper examines the effect of temporarily suspending the trading of exchange-listed individual stocks. We evaluate whether regulatory authorities can successfully use the mechanism of trading suspension in forcing companies to disclose new and material information to the capital market. Previous studies on trading suspensions mainly concentrate on North-American stock markets and find conflicting results. This study utilizes a new data set comprising of firms listed on Euronext Brussels – an important segment of Europe's leading cross-border exchange. Our results show that suspension is indeed an effective means of disseminating new information. Stock prices adjust completely and instantaneously to the new information released during trading suspensions. We also observe a significant increase in trading volume with the reinstatement of trading. On the other hand, we do not find support for the claim that trading suspensions increase the volatility of stock prices. Overall, our results show the efficacy of trading suspensions in disseminating new information.     

Sooner or Later: An Analysis of the Delays in Insider Trading Reporting

Abstract:  Until October 2004, corporate insiders in Germany were required to report trades in the shares of their firm 'without delay'. Yet in practice, substantial reporting delays were common. We show that the delays are related systematically to the characteristics of the firm. Delays are longer in firms with dispersed ownership and in firms using German accounting standards. This suggests that managers of these firms are less responsive to the informational requirements of the capital market. We further find that abnormal returns after the reporting date of an insider trade are independent of the reporting delay. This implies that prices are distorted in the period between the insider trading and the reporting date. This is a strong point in favour of regulations that require and enforce the immediate disclosure of insider trades.     

The Dynamics of Security Trades,Quote Revisions,and Market Depths for Actively Traded Stocks

We examine the dynamics of return volatility, trading volume, and depth—in an intraday setting for a sample of actively traded NYSE and NASDAQ stocks. We show that depth is a useful intervening variable and mitigates the impact of trading activity on price volatility. Furthermore, depth is affected by the perception of prevailing information asymmetry between informed and uninformed traders. We demonstrate empirically that the NYSE supplies greater depth under conditions of high, perceived information asymmetry as compared to NASDAQ. NASDAQ makes up for this deficiency by its capability of managing large volume shocks without a major decline in depth.JEL Classification: C32, D82, G10     

The Price Impacts of Open Market Repurchase Trades

Abstract:  This paper analyzes a database of 60,000+ individual repurchase trades from the Toronto Stock Exchange. The average intraday price impact of repurchase trades is negative, since, because of execution rules, 60% are seller-initiated. Prices fall less following repurchase than matched non-repurchase trades—there is an abnormal price impact. We find evidence consistent with two hypotheses: repurchases provide price support, and the market learns that the shares are undervalued. Consistent with the latter, we find that repurchasing companies have superior timing. Share prices show abnormal losses (gains) before (after) the repurchase trades. We find no significant market reaction to the mandatory public disclosure of the trade details.     

Measuring abnormal daily trading volume for samples of NYSE/ASE and NASDAQ securities using parametric and nonparametric test statistics

We extend prior research on the empirical properties of daily trading volume and methods to detect abnormal trading volume in two ways. We compare the performance of a nonparametric test statistic with the parametric test statistic used in prior research and we study samples of NASDAQ securities as well as samples of NYSE/ASE securities. Prior research has focused exclusively on NYSE securities. We find the nonparametric test statistic is more powerful in detecting abnormal trading volume than the parametric test statistic in both samples of NYSE/ASE and NASDAQ securities. We also document that abnormal trading volume will be detected more often in samples of NYSE/ASE securities compared to NASDAQ securities.     

Insider Trades and Private Information: The Special Case of Delayed-Disclosure Trades

In certain circumstances, insider trades such as private transactionsbetween executives and their firms could be disclosed afterthe end of the firm's fiscal year, on a Form-5 filing. We findthat insider sales disclosed in such a delayed manner for largefirms are predictive of negative future returns (–6 to–8 percent), as well as lower future annual earnings relativeto analyst forecasts. These results stand in contrast to existingfindings on the uninformativeness of quickly disclosed open-marketinsider sales. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act curtailed the use of Form5 under the presumption that managers used this vehicle opportunistically.Our systematic evidence supports this presumption.     

Who Trades Around Earnings Announcements? Evidence from TORQ Data

Abstract:  Using TORQ database we investigate the intra-day trading volume reactions to earnings announcements of five trader groups, individuals, institutions, exchange members, program traders, and specialists. The results of this study indicate that institutions are most active in the immediate aftermath of an announcement. Individual investors are slow at the beginning but accumulate heavy volume afterwards and exceed institutional trading volume. We find support for Harris and Raviv (1993) and Admati and Pfleiderer (1988) , who respectively argue that divergence of opinion about a public information and portfolio rebalancing cause surges in pre- and post-announcement trading volume. Further we find evidence of swift and aggressive trading by informed and sophisticated institutions in the immediate aftermath of the announcement, and delayed, aggressive trading volume 'overreaction' by 'slow' and 'overconfident' individual investors as documented by Barber and Odean (2000 and 2002) and Daniel et al. (1998) . NYSE specialists provide the bulk of the liquidity needs around earnings announcements.     

Reporting Frequency, Information Precision and Private Information Acquisition

Abstract:  This study examines whether the choice between quarterly and semiannual reporting affects the precision of investors' information and their private information acquisition activities. In the first part of this study, we show that a firm's reporting frequency has no effect on the average precision of investors' information. However, our analysis of announcement-period price variance and share turnover shows that an increase in reporting frequency does make interim and annual financial reports a more important component of investors' information set, relative to other sources of information. In particular, the results of this analysis suggest that investors of semiannual reporters hold more precise pre-announcement information than investors of quarterly reporters. In the second part of our study, we test one explanation for this finding. We argue that an increase in a firm's reporting frequency reduces investors' incentives to acquire private information between consecutive announcement dates and, consequently, should reduce information asymmetry among investors, increase share liquidity, and stimulate trading. Consistent with this reasoning, we find that quarterly reporters have lower average bid-ask spreads and higher abnormal share turnover than semiannual reporters.     

Asymmetry in Stock Returns Following Block Trades on the Australian Stock Exchange: A Note

A number of recent US. studies have examined the price impact of large (block) trades using intraday data. A major finding is that the price movement following block trades continues upwards following purchases but reverses following sales. This asymmetry in price behaviour, which suggests that block sellers pay a liquidity premium while block buyers do not, has been described as 'intriguing' and a 'key puzzle'. The purpose of this note is to determine whether the phenomenon exists on the Australian Stock Exchange. Evidence consistent with the 'puzzling' asymmetry is shown to exist when returns are measured from the block trade until the close of trade. Contrary to US. findings, which have shown that prices appear to reverse following both block purchases and sales in transaction time analysis, the asymmetry in price behaviour is also demonstrated to exist in transaction returns for the ASX. All results are found to be robust to a number of research design innovations and data partitions.     

我国证券市场内幕交易的法学实证分析——来自31起内幕交易成案的统计分析

内幕交易是证券法学界炙手可热、经久不衰的热门课题,关于内幕交易的各种概念、学说、理论被学术界翻炒得烂熟,解剖个案麻雀的精彩论著也不鲜见,但受制于案例、资料和相关数据的局限,少有学者从实证角度,系统性地研究我国内幕交易成案的总体特征。本文力图在传统证券法学研究途径之外,独辟蹊径,通过运用统计、数量分析等经济学科工具,对证券市场成立以来查处的全部31起内幕交易案件加以实证分析,以期得出我国内幕交易案件的发案特征与规律,为打击和防范内幕交易违法行为,修订内幕交易法制提供数据支持和实证参考。     

The Impact of Information Release on Stock Price Volatility and Trading Volume: The Rights Offering Case

This paper examines whether information released via rights offering announcements induces changes in price volatility and trading volume of underlying stock. The results of this paper provide support for the release of new information via offering announcements and evidence of its effects on price volatility and volume of underlying stock. Specifically, utilization of the announced information by investors is evidenced by greater trading volume following the announcement date than during the pre-announcement period. We interpret this result to mean that informedness dominates consensus. However, stock price volatility decreased from the pre-announcement period to the post-expiration period of rights offerings.     

证券交易所交易信息权利的法律保护研究

证券市场的有效性依赖于及时、准确和完整的交易信息，如何发布和管理交易信息关乎整个证券市场的发展，尤其是对提升证券交易所的核心竞争力至关重要。本报告总结了我国证券市场的实践，分析了交易信息的产生机制，阐释了交易信息的法律属性，总结了国际上对交易信息保护的基本经验，提出了加强我国交易信息权利保护的具体措施，并形成拟提交东亚证券交易所联合会进一步研究、讨论的《关于加强证券交易信息保护的行动纲要（草案）》。     

Institutional Herding in the ADR Market

This study examines institutional herding in the ADR market between 1985 and 1998. We find a significant positive relation between changes in institutional ownership and ADR returns over the same period. The positive relation persists after we control for the momentum effect in the US stock markets. We also find that in the ADR market, past winners (losers) in the herding period continue to be the winners (losers) in the post-herding period. The lack of a returns reversal suggests institutional herding is related to momentum trading. However, the positive relation between institutional ownership changes and ADR returns remains after controlling for momentum trading in the ADR market. Our results also rule out that positive feedback trading is related to institutional herding in the ADR market.     

非对称信息理论与农村信贷市场——兼谈泰国BAAC的经验

从非对称信息理论出发，联系泰国农业合作银行（BAAC）的经营实际，笔者认为非对称信息引起的逆向选择和道德风险，是阻碍正规金融机构在农村开展金融业务的重要原因。解除金融抑制，实现农村利率自由化并不能完全解决农村正规金融弱化的问题，政府介入农村金融市场应该重点采取制度创新方式，帮助解决农村信息不对称问题，激励正规金融部门为农村提供金融服务。     

Upstairs Market for Principal and Agency Trades: Analysis of Adverse Information and Price Effects

This paper directly tests the hypothesis that upstairs intermediation lowers adverse selection cost. We find upstairs market makers effectively screen out information-motivated orders and execute large liquidity-motivated orders at a lower cost than the downstairs market. Upstairs markets do not cannibalize or free ride off the downstairs market. In one-quarter of the trades, the upstairs market offers price improvement over the limit orders available in the consolidated limit order book. Trades are more likely to be executed upstairs at times when liquidity is lower in the downstairs market.