CEO internal experience and voluntary disclosure quality: Evidence from management forecasts

Internally‐promoted CEOs should have a deep understanding of their firm's products, supply chain, operations, business climate, corporate culture, and how to navigate among employees to get the information they need. Thus, we argue that internally‐promoted CEOs are likely to produce higher quality disclosure than outsider CEOs. Using a sample of US firms from the S&P1500 index from 2001 to 2011, we hand‐collect whether a CEO is hired from inside the firm and, if so, the number of years they worked at the firm before becoming CEO. We then examine whether managers with more internal experience issue higher quality disclosures and offer three main findings. First, CEOs with more internal experience are more likely to issue voluntary earnings forecasts than those managers with less internal experience as well as those managers hired from outside the firm. Second, CEOs with more internal experience issue more accurate earnings forecasts than those managers with less internal experience as well as those managers hired from outside the firm. Finally, investors react more strongly to forecasts issued by insider CEOs than to those issued by outsider CEOs. In additional analysis, we find no evidence that these results extend to mandatory reporting quality (i.e., accruals quality, restatements, or internal control weaknesses), perhaps because mandatory disclosure is subjected to heavy oversight by the board of directors, auditors, and regulators. Overall, our findings suggest that when managers have work experience with the firm prior to becoming the CEO, the firm's voluntary disclosure is of higher quality.     

Differences Between Short‐ and Long‐Term Risk Aversion: An Optimal Asset Allocation Perspective

This paper studies the long‐term asset allocation problem of an investor with different risk aversion attitudes to the short and the long term. We characterize investor's preferences with a utility function exhibiting a regime shift in risk aversion at some point of the multiperiod investment horizon that is estimated using threshold nonlinearity methods. Our empirical results for a portfolio of cash, bonds and stocks suggest that long‐term risk aversion is higher than short‐term risk aversion and increases with the investment horizon. The exposure of the investment portfolio from stocks to bonds and cash increases with the degree of risk aversion.     

Association Between Independent Auditor Fees and Firm Value： A Study of Brazilian Public Companies

This article investigates the relationship between fees for audit and non-audit services with Tobin＇s Q. Using a sample of Brazilian public companies in the period from 2009 to 2011, we estimate the association between Tobin＇s Q and the auditors＇ remuneration scaled by total assets. Additionally, to strengthen the conclusions, we present a second model with the remuneration of the auditors in absolute terms. The results suggest a significant relationship between Tobin＇s Q and audit and non-audit fees, positive and negative, respectively. Specifically, increases in audit fees and non-audit fees respectively increase and decrease the Tobin＇s Q of the audited company. The results of this study have important implications for those interested in good corporate governance practices. Managers and board members concerned with value carefully evaluate the remuneration and nature of services creation, when engaging independent auditors, should provided.     

Banking Sector Performance in Latin America: Market Power versus Efficiency

Since the mid‐1990s the banking sector in the Latin American emerging markets has experienced profound changes due to financial liberalization, a significant increase in foreign investments, and greater merger activities often occurring following financial crises. The wave of consolidation and the rapid increase in market concentration that took place in most countries has generated concerns about the rise in banks' market power and its potential effects on consumers. This paper advances the existing literature by testing the market power (Structure–Conduct–Performance and Relative Market Power) and efficient structure (X‐ and scale efficiency) hypotheses for a sample of over 2500 bank observations in nine Latin American countries over 1997–2005. We use the Data Envelopment Analysis technique to obtain reliable efficiency measures. We produce evidence supporting the efficient structure hypotheses. The findings are particularly robust for the largest banking markets in the region, namely Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. Finally, capital ratios and bank size seem to be among the most important factors in explaining higher than normal profits for Latin American banks.     

IS A THEORY OF TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY REALLY NEEDED?

This paper addresses the question of whether or not a theory of total factor productivity (TFP) is needed in order to explain the observed large per capita income differences across countries. As the argument that it is needed has been reached by calculating TFP empirically, we show that the way the estimates of TFP have been computed is not an innocuous issue. To illustrate our point, we discuss how two well‐known textbooks on growth theory present the arguments and the problems associated with these expositions. We conclude that the tautological nature of the estimates of TFP lies at the heart of an important question that the empirical literature on economic growth has been dealing with during recent years. Hence, our arguments cast doubt on the need for a theory of TFP.     

Market efficiency in the Spanish derivatives markets: An empirical analysis

This paper analyzes Granger caUSAlity between daily prices of the Spanish stock index (Ibex 35) and its futures contract using Johansen cointegration methodology. The study differentiates between short-run and long-run caUSAlity. The empirical results prove that, in the short run, the futures price causes the spot price. However, the opposite is not true. On the other hand, long-run caUSAlity is embodied in the response of futures prices after deviations from the long-run equilibrium. These results say that during the period of study, the Spanish futures market behaved as an efficient market.     

An Input–Output Analysis of the Philippine BPO Industry

This paper provides a profile of the Philippine business process outsourcing (BPO) sector, makes comparisons with India and other BPO providers, and summarises the results of an input−output analysis of the Philippine BPO industry's inter-sectoral linkages and its potential impact on compensation and employment. The input−output analysis shows that the BPO industry is not a key sector in terms of stimulating production in other sectors of the Philippine economy. Growth in the sector's revenues, however, can have a significant impact on compensation and employment. If appropriate policies are enacted and human capital improved, it is estimated that the Philippine BPO sector may become an important employment-generating sector.     

Government ownership and corporate governance: Evidence from the EU

The ongoing global financial crisis has led to the largest increase in state intervention since the Great Depression. Direct government ownership in publicly-traded corporations has increased dramatically since 2008. How will this increase in public ownership affect the governance of these erstwhile private companies? We examine the impact of government ownership on corporate governance using a sample of firms from the European Union, a region that is relatively familiar with active government participation. Our main finding is that government ownership is associated with lower governance quality. We further show that while government intervention is negatively related to governance quality in civil law countries, it is positively related to governance quality in common law countries. Finally, we find that the preferential voting rights of golden shares are especially damaging to governance quality.     

Collaboration for R&D Projects between the Industry and External Agents: Evidence from Manufacturing Companies in Peru

In this article we use the innovation survey of the manufacturing industry of Peru to identify cooperation behaviors for research and development (R&D) projects among companies and external agents in general. Likewise, we also find cooperation behaviors among the industry and the following external agents: university, technical centers, suppliers, customers, and companies of the same group, competitors, guilds, and consultants. Within the specific agents, the university is considered a cooperation agent for R&D projects. We use the survey of innovation in the manufacturing industry of Peru conducted in 2015, which resulted in 1447 Peruvian companies being surveyed. Evidence was obtained as to the degree of the tie between the industry and external agents for cooperation in R&D projects, giving relevance to variables such as investment, resources, and degree of innovation. Our results show that investment is an important factor for cooperation with external agents. Additionally, companies that have innovated at some point seek to cooperate with external agents. Finally, the importance of the university is demonstrable, thus, companies that invest in R&D seek to cooperate with the university.