Sky Blog
Shareholder activists are often accused of having short investment horizons and thus pushing companies to increase their stock prices at the expense of long-term shareholder value (“short-termism”). These accusations have prompted extensive research on interventions by hedge funds. In a …
In a new paper, I add to the debate over hedge fund regulation by introducing empirical evidence that hedge fund registration requirements reduce misreporting. Using three alternating changes in hedge fund regulation, my study finds consistent evidence that registration reduces …
Hedge fund activism has generated a large amount of public debate. On one side, the hedge fund activists and their academic cheerleaders argue that hedge fund activism is good for shareholders and society at large. On the other side, potential …
A hot topic in corporate governance is the so-called short-termism of publicly held companies. In response to actual and anticipated pressure from activist hedge funds, companies are, some say, focusing too much on short-term gains by, for instance, shunning research …
Regardless of industry, size or performance, no company should consider itself immune from hedge fund activism. No company is too large, too popular, too new or too successful. Even companies that are respected industry leaders and have outperformed the market …
What is the opportunity cost of private benefits of control? Using dollar cost of corporate giving to measure private benefits of control, we show in a recent study that (i) the consumption of private benefits creates a managerial aversion to …
The rise of shareholder activism, and its recent international expansion, have led researchers to look at many aspects of hedge fund activism. Academic papers have almost exclusively focused on the effects on firms targeted in activist campaigns. But the intense …
A number of recent news stories have recounted the quick and dramatic changes that activist hedge funds trigger in the companies they target. In the Atlantic magazine, for example, a 2016 article describes DuPont’s decision to cut 10 percent of …
October 2018 ended with the hedge fund industry suffering its worst monthly decline since September 2011, according to the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index. Some commentators are predicting that 2018 will end with the hedge fund industry experiencing its worst …
Our new academic study examines the long-term effects of interventions by activist hedge funds. Prior studies document positive equal-weighted long-term returns and operating performance improvements following activist interventions, and typically conclude that activism is beneficial to shareholders. We challenge and …
As we approach the 2019 proxy season, developments since September 2017 prompt a brief updated review of the state of play.
Hedge fund activists are technically just minority shareholders, yet they exert enormous influence, often forcing companies to undertake fundamental restructuring and substantially increase stock buybacks and dividends. For instance, Third Point Management and Trian Fund Management, holding only 2 percent …
There are now more than twice as many entities formed in Delaware as LLCs and other alternative entities as are formed as corporations. Private equity funds and hedge funds often are formed as LLCs or limited partnerships to take advantage …
The chief executive officer (CEO) and the top management team are typically viewed as critical to the success or failure of companies. As it is not uncommon for top executives to make value-destroying decisions, the role of internal control mechanisms, …
Beyond the cacophonous din of voices calling for companies to serve a “social purpose,” adopt a variety of governance proposals, achieve quarterly performance targets, and listen to (and indeed even “think like”) activists, there is now, most promisingly, a call …
In 2010, Roger Carr, then-chairman of British confectionery Cadbury, waged a grueling five-month battle before losing control of the company to Kraft Foods. “At the end of the day,” he said, “there were simply not enough shareholders prepared to take …
After over a year of work, which included the review of some 635,450 Form 8-Ks filed by 7,799 public companies from January 1, 2000, to September 30, 2016, we think we know at least one answer to the question in …
In the controversial practice of appraisal arbitrage, activist investors buy shares of a corporation to be acquired by merger so as to assert appraisal rights challenging the merger price – which may already have been approved by the target’s stockholders. …
As we have previously observed, private fund advisers face a difficult challenge when SEC guidance (in the form of a speech or a public enforcement order) indicates that certain long-standing practices may be contrary to the securities laws. What does …