L. Harris and E. Gurel (1986) and A. Shleifer (1986) examined changes in the Standard and Poor's list. Both studies presented evidence inconsistent with efficient markets. Looking at newer data and at bond and option prices, the authors find that case against market efficiency is not compelling....

This article does four things: it calls attention to an important phenomenon heretofore unmentioned in the literature, that is, the dividend spread; it presents open-interest and early-exercise d ata for in-the-money calls around ex dividend dates; it demonstrates that previous results concerning...