The effect of information releases on the pricing and timing of equity issues

With time-varying adverse selection in the market for new equityissues, firms will prefer to issue equity when the market ismost informed about the quality of the firm. This implies thatequity issues tend to follow credible information releases.In addition, if the asymmetric in information increases overtime between information releases, the price drop at the announcementof an equity issue should increase in the time since the lastinformation release. Using earning releases as a proxy for informativeevents, we find evidence supporting these propositions.     

Entering the Minds of Serial Murderers: The Application of Forensic Leisure Science to Homicide Research

ABSTRACT

Years ago, a small handful of leisure scholars suggested that serial murder may be a form of leisure. However, to date this possibility remains virtually unexplored. This article draws from recent research to share reflections and rich, new insights on how leisure science may provide important contributions to serial homicide researchers and law enforcement personnel. At the same time, exploring such intersections offers leisure scholars new ways of understanding familiar concepts and theories. Possibilities for future research are discussed.     

Block trading and information revelation around quarterly earnings announcements

I investigate the empirical importance of information revelationin the pricing of block trades. In particular, I examine whetherblock prices are correlated with the unexpected part of firms'quarterly earnings. For my sample of block trades, informationrevelation does indeed appear to be a significant factor shortlybefore earnings announcements.     

Adjustment dynamics and the natural rate: an account of UK unemployment

This paper challenges what is the standard account of UK employment,namely that the major swings in unemployment over the past 25years are due predominantly to movements in the underlying empiricalnatural rate of unemployment (NRU). Our analysis suggests thatthe UK NRU has remained reasonably stable through time and thatthe medium-run swings in unemployment are due, instead, to veryprolonged after-effects of persistent (transitory but long-lasting)shocks. We argue that (i) past UK labour market shocks haveprolonged after-effects on unemployment due to interactionsamong different lagged adjustment processes in the labour market;(ii) many of the important shocks that have hit the UK labourmarket over the past 25 years have been persistent; and (iii)the persistence of the shocks is complementary to the persistenceof the lagged adjustment processes in generating movements ofUK employment.     

Improving Tests of Abnormal Returns by Bootstrapping the Multivariate Regression Model with Event Parameters

Parametric dummy variable-based tests for event studies usingmultivariate regression are not robust to nonnormality of theresidual, even for arbitrarily large sample sizes. Bootstrapalternatives are described, investigated, and compared for caseswhere there are nonnormalities, and cross-sectional and time-seriesdependencies. Independent bootstrapping of residual vectorsfrom the multivariate regression model controls type I errorrates in the presence of cross-sectional correlation, and surprisingly,even in the presence of time-series dependence structures. Theproposed methods not only improve upon parametric methods, butalso allow development of new and powerful event study testsfor which there is no parametric counterpart.     

Cost-effectiveness of a chronic pain intervention for people living with HIV (PLWH)

Background: Chronic pain is a common, disabling, and costly comorbidity, particularly in people living with HIV (PLWH). This study developed and pilot tested a pain self-management intervention for chronic pain tailored to PLWH called Skills TO Manage Pain (STOMP).

Objectives: Given the additional resources needed to deliver STOMP in HIV clinical settings, an important objective of the pilot study was to assess not only STOMP’s preliminary efficacy, but also its cost-effectiveness.

Research design and subjects: The present study draws from a 44-participant, 2-arm randomized pilot trial of the STOMP intervention vs usual care among PLWH and at least moderate chronic pain (Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02824562). Cost-effectiveness is presented as the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Costs were considered from the clinic perspective over a 1-year time horizon using real costs from the pilot trial. It was conservatively assumed there would be no costs savings. The Standard Gamble (SG) method was used to directly measure utilities.

Results: Thirty-six participants met inclusion criteria for the present analyses. Mean age was 52 years; 61% were female and 86% were black. The total cost of STOMP was $483.83 per person. Using the SG method, the change in QALYs was 0.15, corresponding to an ICER of $3,225.

Conclusions: STOMP’s cost/QALY is substantially lower than the $50,000 to $100,000/QALY benchmark often used to indicate cost-effectiveness. Although based on a pilot trial and, therefore, preliminary, these findings are promising, and suggest the importance of cost analyses in future STOMP trials.     

Existence level differences and spatial industrial restructuring in South Africa: RDP imperatives

The change of government in South Africa and the subsequent implementation of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) has necessitated afresh look at the spatial‐economic development policies of the past. Recently, an attempt was made to measure differences in existence level in South Africa using a combination of First and Third World criteria. In this paper these differences are related to general trends in population redistribution in the country since 1960 in an effort to assess the probable impact of existence level difference and migration on urbanisation in South Africa in the long run. On the basis of these assessments, expected trends in urban development in South Africa are compared with previous industrial development policies in an effort to determine RDP imperatives for the future.     

Post-socialist financial fragility: the case of Albania

The 1997 collapse of the Albanian economy caused by the collapseof economy-wide Ponzi schemes contrasts sharply to its successstatus as a post-Socialist transition country in the years 1992-1996.In this paper, an attempt is made to explain this 'AlbanianParadox'. The specific Albanian conditions for the growth ofPonzi schemes are identified. Theoretically, the Albanian Paradoxcan be interpreted as one version of the 'Financial InstabilityHypothesis' suggested by Minsky. Investigation of the underlyingfactors that render financial markets fragile suggest that theAlbanian case is extreme but not unique in the region. It isemphasised that sustainable growth is predicted on the qualityof government, on proper financial-sector regulation, on actualmicroeconomic restructuring and on the development of marketinstitutions through which adequate market information is disseminated.     

Managed indemnity insurance--a clear choice for health plan sponsors

HOMs will undoubtedly remain the primary health plan choice for a significant portion of the nation's employers. However, some employers may find that managed indemnity insurance is more effective in meeting their needs and those of their employees.     

Liquidity provision with limit orders and a strategic specialist

This article presents a microstructure model of liquidity provisionin which a specialist with market power competes against a competitivelimit order book. General solutions, comparative statics andexamples are provided first with un-informative orders and thenwhen order flows are informative. The model is also used toaddress two optimal market design issues. The first is the effectof 'tick' size - for example, eighths versus decimal pricing- on market liquidity. Institutions trading large blocks havea larger optimal tick size than small retail investors, butboth prefer a tick size strictly greater than zero. Second,a hybrid specialist/limit order market (like the NYSE) providesbetter liquidity to small retail and institutional trades, buta pure limit order market (like the Paris Bourse) may offerbetter liquidity on mid-size orders.