There is a curvilinear relation between credit ratings and acquisitions. Non-investment grade firms make more acquisitions as their ratings improve, consistent with the relaxation of financial constraints. However, this pattern reverses for investment grade firms, supporting the view that such...

This paper examines the relationship between asymmetric information and target returns in M&As. We argue that if managers possess favorable (unfavorable) asymmetric information, they will offer, ceteris paribus, high (low) premia, affecting target returns accordingly. We propose several proxies...