Företags finansiella offentliggöranden når ofta endast ett begränsat antal investerare, vilket resulterar i ökad informationsasymmetri och som ett resultat lägre aktielikviditet. Detta är särskilt framträdande för företag som är mindre till storleken, eftersom dessa företag tenderar att få mindre täckning av traditionella kanaler såsom pressnyheter och analytiker. Samtidigt har företag i allt större utsträckning börjat använda Twitter som en del av sin strategi för investerarrelationer, där Twitter skiljer sig från traditionella investerarrelationer genom att information kan distribueras snabbare och blir mer lättillgängligt. Syftet med denna studie är således att testa om offentliggöranden och ökad spridning av finansiell information på Twitter kan minska informationsasymmetrier och därmed göra marknader mer effektiva för att allokera kapital från investerare till företag. Tidigare studier har studerat sambandet mellan ökad spridning av företagsinformation och dess påverkan på företags finansiella prestation och har funnit att spridning av finansiell information via Twitter påverkar informationsasymmetrin i företagsaktier. Genom att studera svenska små och medelstora företag (SME:s) fyller denna studie ett tidigare forskningsgap där vikten ligger i att studera vilken påverkan Twitter har på mindre företag som är mindre synliga i traditionell media och hos analytiker. Undersökningen har baserats på historiska aktiekurser från Nasdaq som sträcker sig över tidsperioden 2020 till 2022. Företagen som ingick i studien var listade på Nasdaqs First North Growth Market, för vilka datamaterial i form av börsdata och frekvens av Twitter-inlägg har samlats in. För att kvantifiera informationsasymmetri och aktielikviditet används avvikande bid-ask spread (eng. Abnormal bid-ask spread) och Amivest likviditetsratio. Studien har använt en kvantitativ forskningsansats för att visa hur sambandet ser ut mot Twitter och utifrån regressionsanalyser, där ett antal Twittervariabler inkluderats, har frågeställning kunnat studeras. Med hjälp av statistiska hypotesetester och en analys av den teoretiska referensramen med intressentmodellen, effektiva marknadshypoteser och investor recognition hypotheses försöker studien förklara hur informationsasymmetrier påverkar effektiviteten hos den finansiella marknaden och hur det kan motverkas genom ökad synlighet. Studien kunde inte hitta något signifikant samband mellan spridning av finansiell information på Twitter och en minskad informationsasymmetri eller ökad aktielikviditet. Resultatet indikerar att större företag som är mer synliga i medier och därmed har en högre grad av investor recognition har en lägre informationsasymmetri. I resultatet är det tydligt att det är få företag i populationen som använder Twitter aktivt för att sprida finansiell information, och de företag som gör det är inte konsekventa, vilket kan innebära att intressenter söker sig till andra mer pålitliga kanaler under rapportperioder. Slutsatsen lyder att företag inte kan ompaketera information och distribuera den via Twitter för att minska informationsasymmetri, då marknaden redan effektivt har tagit informationen i beaktelse på annat håll. Denna studie är ändå relevant för flertalet intressenter som studerar eller arbetar med investerarrelationer, då den bidrar med intressant information inom området.

This study examines asymmetric information content of REIT IPOs as compared to that of industrial IPOs matched by similar asset size, underwriter reputation ranking, and partial adjustment of the offer-price from the midpoint of the original file range. The asymmetric information level is proxied by the relative bid-ask spread (RELSPREAD), adverse selection component of Glosten and Harris (GH, 1988), and the adverse selection component of Lin, Sanger, and Booth (LSB, 1995). All three measures are estimated over 45- and 60-day windows. Using a sample of 78 equity REIT IPOs and 123 Industrial IPOs for the period of January 1, 1993 to December 31, 2007, the results indicate that REIT IPOs have less asymmetric information content as compared to mature industrial firms. All results control for leverage, beginning assets size, issue proceeds, underpricing, partial adjustment, number of IPOs within the same year, venture capital backing, underwriter reputation, average daily volume, average daily price, specialist’s inventory risk, and the turnover ratio. The results also control for the Nasdaq and NYSE rule change of minimum tick increments from 1/8th to 1/16th on June 2, 1997, and June 24, 1997, respectively. The findings provide strong support for the hypothesis that REIT IPOs have less asymmetric information content than non-REIT IPOs.

This dissertation consists of two essays. The first essay develops a new methodology for estimating the probability of informed trading from the observed quotes and depths, by extending the Copeland and Galai (1983) model. This measure (PROBINF) can be computed for each quote and it represents the specialist's ex-ante estimate of the probability of informed trading. I show that PROBINF exhibits a strong and robust relationship with the observed level of insider trading and with measures of the price impact of trades (ë) estimated based on the models of Glosten and Harris (1988), Madhavan and Smidt (1991) and Foster and Viswanathan (1993). In contrast, the alternative measure of the probability of informed trading (PIN) developed by Easley, Kiefer, O'Hara and Paperman (1996) exhibits a weaker and less robust relationship with insider trading and price impact of trades. The time series pattern of PROBINF in an intra-day analysis around earnings announcement is consistent with previous findings regarding informed trading. An important advantage of PROBINF over PIN and other measures of information asymmetry such as price impact of trades and adverse selection component of the spread is that, unlike these measures, it can be estimated for each quote, and thus can also be used to measure intra-day changes in informed trading and information asymmetry. In the second essay, I examine whether the underwriting syndicate composition influences the secondary market liquidity for initial public offerings (IPOs). Specifically, I argue that co-managers improve the liquidity of IPOs through the other services they provide, besides market making. Using a comprehensive sample of initial public offerings completed between January 1993 and December 2005, I find that IPOs with a high number of co-managers in their syndicates have lower spreads and a lower level of information asymmetry in the aftermarket. I argue that the information produced during the premarket and the analyst coverage in the aftermarket are the main channels through which co-managers mitigate the information asymmetry risk in the secondary market. / Ph. D.

Yes / The study examines the impact of liquidity risk on freight derivatives returns. The Amihud liquidity ratio and bid–ask spreads are utilized to assess the existence of liquidity risk in the freight derivatives market. Other macroeconomic variables are used to control for market risk. Results indicate that liquidity risk is priced and both liquidity measures have a significant role in determining freight derivatives returns. Consistent with expectations, both liquidity measures are found to have positive and significant effects on the returns of freight derivatives. The results have important implications for modeling freight derivatives, and consequently, for trading and risk management purposes.

The first chapter of this dissertation estimates the relative contributions of two major exchanges on crude oil futures to the price discovery process-- Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), using trade-by-trade data in 2008. The study also empirically analyzes the effects of trading characteristics on the information share of these two markets. Trading characteristics examined in the study include trading volume, trade size, and trading costs. On average, CME is characterized by greater volume and trade size but also slightly greater bid-ask spread. CME leads the process of price discovery and this leadership is caused by relative trade size and volatility before the financial crisis of 2008; however post-crisis period this leadership is caused by trading volume. Moreover, this study presents evidence that, in times of large uncertainty in the market, the market maker charges a greater bid-ask spread for the more informative market. The second chapter examines the influence of expected oil price volatility, the behavior of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and the US Dollar exchange rate volatility on the backwardation of crude oil futures during the period from January 1986 to December 2008. The results indicate that oil futures are strongly and weakly backwardated 57% and 69% of the time, respectively. The regression analysis of weak backwardation shows that oil volatility, OPEC overproduction (difference between quota and the actual production), and the volatility of the US Dollar against the Japanese Yen have a positive significant effect on oil backwardation, while OPEC production quota imposed on its members has a negative significant effect on oil backwardation. However the volatility of US Dollar against the British Pound has no significant effect on oil backwardation. The regression analysis of strong backwardation produces qualitatively the same results except that volatility has no effect. In a sub-period analysis, evidence also indicates that trading volume of oil funds and backwardation are negatively related, suggesting that oil funds increase the demand of futures relative to that of spot.

Universiẗat, FB Wirtschaftswiss., Diss.--Hamburg, 2000. / Literaturverz. S. [229] - 254.

Submitted by Aline Martins (1146629@mackenzie.br) on 2016-08-03T17:58:48Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Nelson Bueno de Oliveira .pdf: 1417154 bytes, checksum: be408077bc059e50904b963eb6ce97e5 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Paola Damato (repositorio@mackenzie.br) on 2016-08-05T16:25:02Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Nelson Bueno de Oliveira .pdf: 1417154 bytes, checksum: be408077bc059e50904b963eb6ce97e5 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-05T16:25:02Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Nelson Bueno de Oliveira .pdf: 1417154 bytes, checksum: be408077bc059e50904b963eb6ce97e5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-02-18 / The aim of this study is to analyze the economic benefits of transparency or corporate disclosure. It is estimated the reduction of information asymmetry, which is a component of the cost of equity, due to the mandatory adoption of IFRS in Brazil, the level of commitment to corporate governance and the ADR issuance at the New York Stock Exchange. It uses the proxy bid-ask spread to estimate the asymmetry of information, as the dependent variable. The sample consists of non-financial companies of the Ibovespa index. In addition to disclosure variables, this study also analyzes the control variables like size, free float, risk and profitability. The conclusion of this dissertation confirms the initial expectations, in the sense that a higher corporate level of disclosure implies in a reduction of the asymmetry of information. Corporate governance variable, although significant, has a positive relationship with asymmetric information. This result is the opposite of what is expected by theory and can be subject of further studies. It is also statistically significant the expected positive relation between information asymmetry and the beta control variable. / O objetivo deste estudo é analisar os benefícios econômicos da transparência ou disclosure empresarial. Avalia-se a redução da assimetria de informação, que é um componente do custo de capital próprio, em função da adoção obrigatória das IFRS no Brasil, do nível de compromisso com governança corporativa e da emissão de ADR junto à Bolsa de Nova Iorque. Utiliza-se a proxy bid-ask spread para estimar a assimetria de informação, como variável dependente. A amostra é composta pelas empresas não financeiras do índice Ibovespa. Além das variáveis de disclosure, analisa-se as variáveis de controle tamanho, free float, risco e rentabilidade. A conclusão da dissertação é aderente à expectativa inicial, no sentido de que um maior nível de disclosure empresarial implica em uma redução da assimetria de informação. A variável governança corporativa, apesar de significativa, possui relação positiva com a assimetria de informação. Esse resultado é o oposto do esperado pela teoria e pode ser objeto de estudos futuros. Encontra-se também significância estatística na relação positiva esperada entre assimetria de informação e a variável de controle beta.

Liquidity is a measure of the ease with which an asset can be converted into cash. In a perfectly liquid market, conversion is instantaneous and does not incur costs. Amihud and Mendelson (1986:224) proposed that illiquidity increases the expected return on an investment (liquidity premium) and simultaneously lengthens the holding period. These two effects are known respectively as the “spread-return relationship” and the “clientele effect” and have theoretical as well as practical implications. From a theoretical perspective it may help to explain the gap between the capital asset pricing model (which assumes that markets are perfectly liquid) and the associated empirical evidence; which thus far has been rather poor. From a practical perspective, liquidity will influence stakeholders’ decisions and market competitiveness (Amihud&Mendelson, 1991:61-64). The relevant stakeholders are governments, stock exchange regulators, corporations, investors and financial intermediaries. Emerging economies such as the South African economy typically have less liquid markets than the developed world. While this may be attractive for investors looking for higher returns, Amihud and Mendelson (1991:61) are of the opinion that liquid markets are more generally favoured by investors. Constantinides (1986:842-858), also proposes a model for liquidity, but found the liquidity premium to be of lesser importance than that proposed by Amihud and Mendelson (1986:223-231) but also supports the suggestion that investors will favour liquid markets. Although it is by no means a perfect proxy, a security’s bid-ask spread has been found to be an attractive and effective measure of liquidity. It has been found to correlate with beta as well as market capitalisation and several other variables commonly used in capital markets research. Because of this correlation the effect of the bid-ask spread cannot be studied in isolation when regression techniques are employed (Ramanathan, 1998:166). This is particularly problematic because empirical evidence for beta, which is arguably the most important independent variable in financial cross sectional relationships, is weak. Beta has to be estimated and so it is not clear if real markets do not support CAPM theory or if beta cannot be estimated with the required accuracy. All of the common independent variables used in empirical capital markets research are correlated to beta, and for this reason it cannot be established if these variables have a real effect or if they are simply serving as a proxy for the difference between the real and the estimated beta. Various strategies have been proposed to increase the accuracy of beta estimation and these are discussed in detail in this research. Successes with these strategies have been mixed. A second problem encountered in the empirical research base relating to the CAPM is that in the theory the cross-sectional relationship is between expected market return (which cannot be observed due to the vast number of real investments beyond those listed on exchanges) and beta, whereas empirical research makes use of actual return on a market proxy and beta. In order for the actual return to approach the expected return, empirical studies have to be conducted over extended periods. Accurate data for such periods are generally lacking and severe macro-economic changes such as wars, may also affect rational economic behaviour. It has to be kept in mind that the entire CAPM theory flows from the simple assumption that investors aim to achieve the highest return per unit of risk, and so a rejection of beta is a rejection of rational investor behaviour. Liquidity however, addresses one of the assumptions of CAPM, namely that markets are perfectly liquid; which obviously is not met in real markets and so CAPM models expanded for liquidity should be a reasonably fundamental starting point for all empirical capital markets research. The current empirical evidence for the spread-return relationship is inconclusive. While some researchers have found a significant relationship, others have questioned the ability of the methodology to differentiate a true relationship from the ‘proxy for errors in the estimated beta’ problem. Deductions (as explained in section 4.3) that have been made from the research of Marshall and Young (2003:176-186) in particular, provide strong evidence that at least some of the relationship is due to the ‘errors in estimated beta’ problem. Little empirical work has been done on the clientele effect. Atkins and Dyl (1997:318-321) found a significant relationship between holding period and bid-ask spread, although their approach was somewhat unorthodox in the sense that portfolio formation was not done and the effect of beta was not tested. This study tests empirically both the spread-return relationship and the clientele effect on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange over the period stretching from January 2002 to June 2007. The methodology of Fama and Macbeth (1973:614-617) as well as the aggregated beta of Dimson (1979:203-204) were mainly used, with some modifications as suggested by other researchers. With regard to the spread-return relationship, the findings of this study do not support theoretical expectations. This may be due to the short time period that was used as well as the difficulty in estimating beta. To the contrary, very significant evidence for the clientele effect was found, with little to no influence from market capitalisation and beta, which is as expected. Further investigation into the spread-return relationship is required. If a liquidity premium is not present, foreign investors will favour liquid developed markets above the JSE. This implies that efforts of exchange regulators and the government to decrease illiquidity will lead to foreign portfolio investment inflow into the South African economy. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Graduate School of Management / unrestricted

This dissertation consists of five separate and self-contained essays. They have been written as distinct papers. Although there is a fair amount of overlap and cross-reference in analysis and discussion, the intention is that potential readers should be able to read them separately. Essay 1: An Empirical Analysis of the Trading Structure at the Stockholm Stock Exchange.This essay describes and analyzes the trading structure at the Stockholm Stock Exchange. In the empirical part, we report stylized facts based on intraday transaction and order book data, focusing on the intraday behavior of returns, trading activity, order placement and bid/ask spread, on the importance of the tick size and finally on some characteristics of the limit order book. Our main empirical conclusions are that a) the intraday U-shape in trading activity found in earlier U.S. studies on the whole also pertains to the Stockholm Stock Exchange, b) the limit order placement also follows an intraday U-shape, c) there is no distinct intraday pattern in returns, d) the volatility and bid/ask spread seems to be higher at the beginning of the trading day, e) the tick size is economically important, and f) the price impact of an order is a nonlinear function of its quantity, implying price inelastic demand and supply. Essay 2: An Empirical Analysis of the Trading Structure at the Stockholm Options and Forwards Exchange, OM.We first describe and analyze the trading structure at the Stockholm Options and Forward Exchange, OM Stockholm. It is characterized by some interesting market microstructure features, such as a high degree of transparency in a fully computerized trading system and a possibility to submit combination orders. We also present empirically results from tests on the intra- and interday trading volume of the OMX index derivatives, both in terms of number of contracts traded and in terms of number of transactions. There is evidence of a high degree of intraday variation in trading volume and some interday variation. The extension of trading hours of the underlying stocks, during the studied period should, according to modern trade concentration models, affect the distribution of trading across the day. Although no formal test of the models is possible with this data set, we are able to shed some supportive additional light on all of these models. Essay 3: Tick Size, Market Liquidity and Trading Volume: Evidence from the Stockholm Stock Exchange. (This essay was co-authored with Patrik Sandås.)The regulated tick size at a securities exchange puts a lower bound on the bid/ask spread. We use cross-sectional and cross-daily data from the Stockholm Stock Exchange to assess if this lower bound is economically important and if it has any direct effect on market depth and traded volume. We find a) strong support that the tick size is positively correlated to market depth and c) some support that it is negatively related to traded volume. We identify different groups of agents to whom a lower tick size would be beneficial and to whom it would be detrimental. Essay 4: An Analysis of the Lead-Lag Relationship between the OMX Index Forwards and the OMX Cash Index.This essay investigates the intraday lead-lag structure in returns between on the one hand the OMX cash index and on the other hand the OMX index forwards and the OMX synthetic index forwards in Sweden. The data set includes 22 months of data, from December 1991, to September 1993. It is divided into three sub-periods. The main conclusion is that there is a high degree of bidirectional interdependence, with both series Granger causing each other. Using a Sims-test, we find that the forwards as well as synthetic forwards lead the cash index with between fifteen and thirty minutes, while the cash index leads the forwards with about ten to fifteen minutes.. This implies a longer lead from the cash index to the forwards than in previous studies. The large interdependence could possibly be due to higher transaction costs, lower liquidity in the forward market and the specific trading environments used for Swedish securities. Essay 5: Order Flow Dynamics: Evidence from the Helsinki Stock Exchange. (This essay was co-authored with Kaj Hedvall.)This essay investigates the dynamics of the order flow in a limit order book. In contrast to previous studies, our data set from the Helsinki Stock Exchange encompasses the entire order book structure, including the dealer identities. This enables us to focus on the order behavior of individual dealers. We classify the events in the order book and study the structure of subsequent events using contingency tables. In specific, the structure of subsequent events initiated by the same dealer is compared to the overall event structure. We find that order splitting is more frequent than order imitation. Furthermore, if the spread increases as a result of a trade, other dealers quickly restore the spread, by submitting new limit orders. One conclusion is therefore that there exists a body of potential limit orders outside the formal limit order book and that there is a high degree of resiliency in our limit order book market. As a logical consequence, a large dealer strategically splits his order, in order for the market to supply additional liquidity. One interpretation of our results is that a limit order book market can accommodate larger orders than is first apparent by the outstanding limit orders. Another interpretation is that a limit order book structure gives room for informed traders to successively trade on their information. A third interpretation is that prices only slowly incorporate new information. / Diss. Stockholm : Handelshögskolan, 1994

Lietuvos akcijų rinkos pasiūlos ir paklausos srautų analizei buvo pasirinktos 9 akcijos. Jas, pagal įvykusių sandorių skaičių ir vertę, galima suskirstyti į tris grupes: nelikvidžios, pusiau likvidžios ir likvidžios akcijos. Šių akcijų, viešai skelbiami rinkos gylio ir įvykusių sandorių, duomenys buvo imami iš Vilniaus vertybinių popierių biržos internetinio puslapio http://www.baltic.omxgroup.com/ nuo 2008 02 25 iki 2008 04 18. Darbe buvo skaičiuojami paprastas (inside bid-ask spread), efektyvus (effective spread) ir užfiksuotas kainų skirtumai. Roll matas skaičiuojamas remiantis akcijų įvykusių sandorių kainomis, kurių skirtumų stacionarumas ištirtas RA-kriterijumi (reverse arrangement test). Kaip ir buvo galima tikėtis, parodyta, kad pasirinktų akcijų rinka yra neefektyvi. Dėl šios priežasties, kiekvienai akcijai apskaičiuotas Roll matas yra labai grubus. Naudojant C++ programavimo kalbą, buvo sukurta programinė įranga: • Duomenų skaitymui iš interneto; • Duomenų bazės kūrimui, apdorojimui ir redagavimui; • Duomenų analizei. / Nine types of stock were chosen to analyse quoted bid-ask spread of Vilnius Stock Exchange. According to the value and number of transactions of the stock, it can be divided into three groups: non-liquid, half-liquid and liquid stock. Public market depth information and data of trade was taken from Vilnius Stock Exchange website http://www.baltic.omxgroup.com/ during the period from 25th February 2008 to 18th April 2008. In my work I have analysed inside bid-ask spread, effective spread and fixed prices. Roll measure was measured using trade prices of stock; stationarity of differences of trade prices were examined using reverse arrangement test. As had been expected, I came to conclusion that the stock market for chosen stocks is informationally inefficient. Due to this reason the Roll measure is not correct. By using C++ programming language the following programming tools were created: • Data reading from internet tool; • Data collection and correction tool; • Data analysis tool.