The authors use large reductions of import tariffs to examine how incumbent firms modify investment when the threat of entry by foreign rivals intensifies. Incumbents reduce investment by 7.2% of capital in response to higher entry threat. This effect is robust, pervasive, and likely causal....

We build a dynamic model of investment and financing decisions to study the choice between bonds and bank loans in a firm's marginal financing decision and its effects on corporate investment. We show that firms with more growth options, higher bargaining power in default, operating in more...

This paper analyzes changes in firms' cash flows and discount rates around share repurchase announcements. Both cash flow and discount rate volatility decrease significantly after repurchase announcements. The decrease in volatility is smallest for firms that are likely to be underpriced and...

This paper analyzes the effects of loan contract amendments and insider trading on stock returns. Loan renegotiations are frequent and contain potentially relevant information about the financial health of firms. Because managers and officers are better informed about the outcome of such...

Theory has recently shown that corporate policies should depend on firms' exposure to short- and long-lived cash flow shocks and the correlation between these shocks. We provide granular estimates of these parameters for Compustat firms using a new filter that uses only cash flow data and the...

Revaluations of industry peers around horizontal acquisitions are negative when targets are private, but positive when they are public. We posit this “revaluation spread” arises because acquiring managers favor private targets when public firms are overvalued. Targets' ownership status thus...

We analyze a novel data set of corporate contributions to ballot initiatives and referendums at the U.S. state level. Firms make significant contributions to ballot measures in favor of or against specific initiatives. Firms that contribute to successful (failed) direct initiated state...

This paper theoretically and empirically investigates how the debt structure and the strategic interaction between shareholders and debt holders in the event of default affect expected stock returns. The model predicts that expected stock returns are higher for firms that face high debt...

This paper empirically shows that the cost of bank debt is systematically higher for firms that operate in competitive product markets. Using various proxies for product market competition, and reductions of import tariff rates to capture exogenous changes to a firm's competitive environment, I...

This paper empirically shows that the cost of bank debt is systematically higher for firms that operate in competitive product markets. Using various proxies for product market competition, and reductions of import tariffs to capture exogenous changes to a firm's competitive environment, I find...