AN ALGORITHM FOR DETERMINING UNIQUE NONNEGATIVE INTERNAL RATES OF RETURN

The problem of determining an internal rate of return of a given sequence of cash flows is equivalent to solving a polynomial equation. Although Sturm's theorem determines the exact number of roots of a polynomial in a given interval, its application can be long and tedious. For this reason it has not been particularly popular with non-mathematical practitioners. Recently, considerable effort has been devoted to finding tests or algorithms which are easier to apply. This paper introduces an old but useful theorem on the location of roots of a polynomial, elucidates recent results due to Clarke and others, and also offers some improvements.     

Insider trading as a vehicle to appropriate rent from R&D

While most insider trading is routine and legal, investors still treat it as new information about the firm's prospects—they assume that trades reflect managers' attempts to profit from their private information. This article explores insider trading as a mechanism to appropriate rent from R&D advances. We analyze stock price reactions to over 134,000 insider‐trading events and find that insider purchases generate larger positive stock price reactions for R&D‐intensive firms. Investors seem to assume that managers use insider trading to appropriate rent from R&D breakthroughs. We discuss how shareholders may prefer this rent appropriation mechanism over other forms of compensation that directly reduce the firm's income. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Juridical Perceptions of the Relevance of Accounting Data in Wage Fixation

Major Australian wage fixation tribunal cases since 1900 have considered the significance and admissibility of accounting data. There is no evident juridical, employer or trade union perception that data drawn from conventionally prepared (historic cost-based) accounting reports are technically unserviceable for determining either capacity or incapacity to pay money wages. The implied acceptance of the serviceability of published accounting data in countries with a tradition of collective bargaining suggests that considerable damage may have occurred already. Reassessment is long overdue.     

Workplace Europe: new forms of bargaining and participation

There are conflicting tendencies among recent developments in bargaining and participation at the workplace level in Europe. While there is an emphasis on decentralisation of bargaining structures in many countries, there is considerable variance. Similarly, there is a diversity of approaches to both direct and indirect forms of participation. Despite attempts by the European Community to integrate policies on these matters among member countries, external influences such as the globalisation of economies and technologies are leading to diverse outcomes.     

M-form organization and firm profitability

Theoretical discussions of internal organization stress the importance of organization for firm success and profitability. The Williamsonian hypothesis that firms organized using M-form should be more profitable than firms organized using U-form or other organizational structures is the focus of empirical testing in this paper. Pairs of firms are observed over two periods of time. In the first period, the principal firm adopts M-form while the control firm is organized with a non-M-form structure. In the second period, the control firm adopts the M-form structure. Using this matched firm technique across a number of industries, we find the adoption of M-form leads to statistically significant increases in return on asset and return on equity measures.     

the coming boom

Russell Lewis, features editor of Economic Affairs , confounds the doom merchants with an explanation of why the world economy can expect a long-run boom.     

Adjustments For 'Extraordinary Items'In Smoothing Reported Profits of Listed Australian Companies: Some Empirical Evidence

Nothing is more likely to undermine the credibility of financial reporting than the suspicion that the results reported were predetermined and that the accounting methods used were selected to produce the results desired by the preparers of the report', Solomons (1983).