We investigate the risk-sharing implications of taxation associated with the option to convert a traditional IRA to Roth IRA. Although the conversion option may create value for savers by potentially reducing their tax burdens, the risk profile of their holdings may change. Delaying payment of...

In this paper, we investigate the impact of the interactions between presidential cycle and political environment on stock returns. We find that neither presidential cycle nor political environment has a significant impact on big firms. In contrast, we find that small firms perform significantly...

This paper investigates the effect of organizational capital, typified by various management practices within a firm, on the cost of external debt financing. Using a sample of medium-sized manufacturing firms in the U.S., we find that better management practices enhance a firm's external...

Using comprehensive bank-loan contract information, we show that the power of a firm relative to its suppliers eases its terms of bank financing, specifically through lower loan prices and less restrictive non-price contract terms. Our results are robust to controlling for product-market...

Many financial economists are puzzled by the fact that stock returns are higher under Democratic than Republican presidencies. In this paper, we test whether this return differential is explained by risk using a conditional version of the Fama and French (1993) model that allows risk to vary...

A hotly debated question in finance is whether the higher stock returns under Democratic presidencies relative to Republican presidencies represent abnormal return, risk premium, or mere statistical fluke. This paper investigates whether this presidential premium is due to spurious-regression...

Most working adults have access to a taxable brokerage account (TBA) and a tax deferred retirement account (TDRA). According to the existing literature, taxable bonds should be located in the TDRA, while equities should be located in the TBA due to the tax treatments of these accounts. If...

The COVID-19 pandemic has reignited interest in trust in public institutions as the efficacy of public health interventions is predicated on trust in the institutions (different levels of government and health authorities). Using a unique micro-level dataset, I assess trust of Canadians in...

In this study, we find some evidence in favor of systematic risk being priced in the cross-section of stock returns when the effects of presidential cycles and political environments are taken into account. During Democratic presidencies or harmonious political environments, beta has a positive...