IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/eufman/v21y2015i1p106-147.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Returns to Hedge Fund Activism in Germany

Author

Listed:
  • Wolfgang Bessler
  • Wolfgang Drobetz
  • Julian Holler

Abstract

Recent regulatory changes in the German financial system shifted corporate control activities from universal banks to other capital market participants. Particularly hedge funds took advantage of the resulting control vacuum by acquiring stakes in weakly governed and less profitable firms. We document that, on average, hedge funds increased shareholder value in the short†and long†run. However, more aggressive hedge funds generated only initially higher returns and their outperformance quickly reversed, whereas non†aggressive hedge funds ultimately outperformed their aggressive peers. These findings suggest that aggressive hedge funds attempt to expropriate the target firm's shareholders by exiting at temporarily increased share prices.

Suggested Citation

  • Wolfgang Bessler & Wolfgang Drobetz & Julian Holler, 2015. "The Returns to Hedge Fund Activism in Germany," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 21(1), pages 106-147, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:eufman:v:21:y:2015:i:1:p:106-147
    DOI: 10.1111/eufm.12004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/eufm.12004
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/eufm.12004?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Galai, Dan & Masulis, Ronald W., 1976. "The option pricing model and the risk factor of stock," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(1-2), pages 53-81.
    2. Goergen, Marc & Manjon, Miguel C. & Renneboog, Luc, 2008. "Recent developments in German corporate governance," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 175-193, September.
    3. Michael R. King, 2009. "Prebid Run‐Ups Ahead of Canadian Takeovers: How Big Is the Problem?," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 38(4), pages 699-726, December.
    4. Dittmann, I. & Maug, E. & Schneider, Christoph, 2010. "Bankers on boards of German firms : What they do, what they are worth, and why they are (still) there," Other publications TiSEM 610cf1b5-ae96-4112-9ff3-9, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    5. Franks, Julian & Mayer, Colin, 2001. "Ownership and Control of German Corporations," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 14(4), pages 943-977.
    6. Barclay, Michael J. & Holderness, Clifford G., 1989. "Private benefits from control of public corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 371-395, December.
    7. Martijn Cremers & Antti Petajisto & Eric Zitzewitz, 2008. "Should Benchmark Indices Have Alpha? Revisiting Performance," Yale School of Management Working Papers amz2452, Yale School of Management, revised 26 Jan 2010.
    8. Fama, Eugene F., 1998. "Market efficiency, long-term returns, and behavioral finance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 283-306, September.
    9. Eckbo, B. Espen & Norli, Oyvind, 2005. "Liquidity risk, leverage and long-run IPO returns," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 11(1-2), pages 1-35, March.
    10. Marco Pagano, 2004. "The European Bond Markets under EMU," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 20(4), pages 531-554, Winter.
    11. Christian Andres & André Betzer & Charlie Weir, 2007. "Shareholder wealth gains through better corporate governance—The case of European LBO-transactions," Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, Springer;Swiss Society for Financial Market Research, vol. 21(4), pages 403-424, December.
    12. Schwert, G. William, 1996. "Markup pricing in mergers and acquisitions," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 153-192, June.
    13. La Porta, Rafael & Lopez-de-Silanes, Florencio & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert, 2000. "Investor protection and corporate governance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 3-27.
    14. Fauver, Larry & Fuerst, Michael E., 2006. "Does good corporate governance include employee representation? Evidence from German corporate boards," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(3), pages 673-710, December.
    15. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "The Limits of Arbitrage," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(1), pages 35-55, March.
    16. Jenkinson, Tim & Ljungqvist, Alexander, 2001. "The role of hostile stakes in German corporate governance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 7(4), pages 397-446, December.
    17. Marco Becht & Julian Franks & Colin Mayer & Stefano Rossi, 2010. "Returns to Shareholder Activism: Evidence from a Clinical Study of the Hermes UK Focus Fund," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(3), pages 3093-3129, March.
    18. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1986. "Large Shareholders and Corporate Control," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 94(3), pages 461-488, June.
    19. April Klein & Emanuel Zur, 2011. "The Impact of Hedge Fund Activism on the Target Firm's Existing Bondholders," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(5), pages 1735-1771.
    20. Fama, Eugene F. & French, Kenneth R., 1993. "Common risk factors in the returns on stocks and bonds," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 3-56, February.
    21. Wolfgang Drobetz & Andreas Schillhofer & Heinz Zimmermann, 2004. "Corporate Governance and Expected Stock Returns: Evidence from Germany," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 10(2), pages 267-293, June.
    22. André Betzer & Erik Theissen, 2009. "Insider Trading and Corporate Governance: The Case of Germany," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 15(2), pages 402-429, March.
    23. Alon Brav & Paul A. Gompers, 2003. "The Role of Lockups in Initial Public Offerings," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 16(1), pages 1-29.
    24. John M. Griffin & Jin Xu, 2009. "How Smart Are the Smart Guys? A Unique View from Hedge Fund Stock Holdings," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(7), pages 2331-2370, July.
    25. Holderness, Clifford G. & Sheehan, Dennis P., 1985. "Raiders or saviors? The evidence on six controversial investors," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(4), pages 555-555, December.
    26. April Klein & Emanuel Zur, 2009. "Entrepreneurial Shareholder Activism: Hedge Funds and Other Private Investors," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 64(1), pages 187-229, February.
    27. repec:bla:jfinan:v:59:y:2004:i:2:p:537-600 is not listed on IDEAS
    28. Mitchell A. Petersen, 2009. "Estimating Standard Errors in Finance Panel Data Sets: Comparing Approaches," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(1), pages 435-480, January.
    29. Bradley, Michael & Brav, Alon & Goldstein, Itay & Jiang, Wei, 2010. "Activist arbitrage: A study of open-ending attempts of closed-end funds," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 1-19, January.
    30. Nicole Boyson & Robert Mooradian, 2011. "Corporate governance and hedge fund activism," Review of Derivatives Research, Springer, vol. 14(2), pages 169-204, July.
    31. Urs Peyer, 2009. "The Nature and Persistence of Buyback Anomalies," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(4), pages 1693-1745, April.
    32. Faccio, Mara & Lang, Larry H. P., 2002. "The ultimate ownership of Western European corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(3), pages 365-395, September.
    33. Hillion, Pierre & Vermaelen, Theo, 2004. "Death spiral convertibles," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(2), pages 381-415, February.
    34. John C. Driscoll & Aart C. Kraay, 1998. "Consistent Covariance Matrix Estimation With Spatially Dependent Panel Data," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 80(4), pages 549-560, November.
    35. Weber, Anke, 2009. "An empirical analysis of the 2000 corporate tax reform in Germany: Effects on ownership and control in listed companies," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 57-66, March.
    36. Renneboog, Luc & Simons, Tomas & Wright, Mike, 2007. "Why do public firms go private in the UK? The impact of private equity investors, incentive realignment and undervaluation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 591-628, September.
    37. John D. Lyon & Brad M. Barber & Chih‐Ling Tsai, 1999. "Improved Methods for Tests of Long‐Run Abnormal Stock Returns," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(1), pages 165-201, February.
    38. John, Kose & John, Teresa A., 2006. "Managerial incentives, derivatives and stability," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 2(1), pages 71-94, April.
    39. Sanford J. Grossman & Oliver D. Hart, 1980. "Takeover Bids, the Free-Rider Problem, and the Theory of the Corporation," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 11(1), pages 42-64, Spring.
    40. Gary Gorton & Frank A. Schmid, 2004. "Capital, Labor, and The Firm: A Study of German Codetermination," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 2(5), pages 863-905, September.
    41. Gorton, Gary & Schmid, Frank A., 2000. "Universal banking and the performance of German firms," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 29-80.
    42. Susan E.K. Christoffersen & Christopher C. Geczy & David K. Musto & Adam V. Reed, 2007. "Vote Trading and Information Aggregation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(6), pages 2897-2929, December.
    43. Krahnen, Jan P. & Schmidt, Reinhard H. (ed.), 2004. "The German Financial System," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199253166.
    44. David J. Brophy & Paige P. Ouimet & Clemens Sialm, 2009. "Hedge Funds as Investors of Last Resort?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(2), pages 541-574, February.
    45. Clifford, Christopher P., 2008. "Value creation or destruction? Hedge funds as shareholder activists," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 14(4), pages 323-336, September.
    46. Stuart L. Gillan & Laura T. Starks, 2007. "The Evolution of Shareholder Activism in the United States," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 19(1), pages 55-73, January.
    47. Alon Brav & Wei Jiang & Frank Partnoy & Randall Thomas, 2008. "Hedge Fund Activism, Corporate Governance, and Firm Performance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 63(4), pages 1729-1775, August.
    48. Brad M. Barber & Terrance Odean, 2008. "All That Glitters: The Effect of Attention and News on the Buying Behavior of Individual and Institutional Investors," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 21(2), pages 785-818, April.
    49. Fung, William & Hsieh, David A., 1999. "A primer on hedge funds," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 309-331, September.
    50. Jean Tirole, 2006. "The Theory of Corporate Finance," Post-Print hal-00173191, HAL.
    51. Ingolf Dittmann & Ernst Maug & Christoph Schneider, 2010. "Bankers on the Boards of German Firms: What They Do, What They Are Worth, and Why They Are (Still) There," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 14(1), pages 35-71.
    52. Ann†Kristin Achleitner & André Betzer & Jasmin Gider, 2010. "Do Corporate Governance Motives Drive Hedge Fund and Private Equity Fund Activities?," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 16(5), pages 805-828, November.
    53. Jegadeesh, Narasimhan & Karceski, Jason, 2009. "Long-run performance evaluation: Correlation and heteroskedasticity-consistent tests," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 101-111, January.
    54. Hu, Henry T.C. & Black, Bernard, 2007. "Hedge funds, insiders, and the decoupling of economic and voting ownership: Empty voting and hidden (morphable) ownership," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 13(2-3), pages 343-367, June.
    55. Greenwood, Robin & Schor, Michael, 2009. "Investor activism and takeovers," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(3), pages 362-375, June.
    56. Dai, Na, 2007. "Does investor identity matter? An empirical examination of investments by venture capital funds and hedge funds in PIPEs," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 538-563, September.
    57. Guercio, Diane Del & Hawkins, Jennifer, 1999. "The motivation and impact of pension fund activism," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(3), pages 293-340, June.
    58. Stiglitz, Joseph E, 1985. "Credit Markets and the Control of Capital," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 17(2), pages 133-152, May.
    59. Michael Adams, 1999. "Cross Holdings in Germany," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 155(1), pages 1-80, March.
    60. Jain, Pc, 1986. "Analyses Of The Distribution Of Security Market Model Prediction Errors For Daily Returns Data," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(1), pages 76-96.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Josef Bajzik, 2023. "Does Shareholder Activism Have a Long-Lasting Impact on Company Value? A Meta-Analysis," Working Papers 2023/10, Czech National Bank.
    2. Ann-Kristin Achleitner & Dmitry Bazhutov & André Betzer & Joern Block & Florian Hosseini, 2020. "Foundation ownership and shareholder value: an event study," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 14(3), pages 459-484, June.
    3. Bessler, Wolfgang & Vendrasco, Marco, 2022. "Corporate control and shareholder activism in Germany: An empirical analysis of hedge fund strategies," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    4. Marco Becht & Julian Franks & Jeremy Grant & Hannes F. Wagner, 2017. "Returns to Hedge Fund Activism: An International Study," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 30(9), pages 2933-2971.
    5. Josef Bajzik & Tomas Havranek & Zuzana Irsova & Jiri Novak, 2023. "Do Shareholder Activism Announcements Affect Stock Prices? A Meta-Analysis," Working Papers 2023/17, Czech National Bank.
    6. Jörn Obermann, 2020. "Let’s talk about money! Assessing the link between firm performance and voluntary Say-on-Pay votes," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 90(1), pages 109-135, February.
    7. Robert M. Hull & Sungkyu Kwak & Rosemary Walker, 2018. "Hedge fund attributes, insider behavior, and IPO volatility," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 42(2), pages 268-292, April.
    8. Block, Jörn & Jarchow, Svenja & Kammerlander, Nadine & Hosseini, Florian & Achleitner, Ann-Kristin, 2020. "Performance of foundation-owned firms in Germany: The role of foundation purpose, stock market listing, and family involvement," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 11(4).
    9. Bessler, Wolfgang & Beyenbach, Johannes & Rapp, Marc Steffen & Vendrasco, Marco, 2021. "The global financial crisis and stock market migrations: An analysis of family and non-family firms in Germany," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    10. Drobetz, W. & Momtaz, Paul P., 2020. "Antitakeover Provisions and Firm Value: New Evidence from the M&A Market," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    11. Bajzík, Josef & Havranek, Tomas & Irsova, Zuzana & Novak, Jiri, 2023. "Does Shareholder Activism Create Value? A Meta-Analysis," CEPR Discussion Papers 18233, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    12. Jochen Hartmann & Matthias Pelster & Soenke Sievers, 2022. "Shareholder activism around the globe: Hedge funds vs. other professional investors," Working Papers Dissertations 98, Paderborn University, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics.
    13. Bajzik, Josef, 2023. "Is the role of shareholder activism in corporate governance overestimated?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PC).
    14. Simon Döring & Wolfgang Drobetz & Sadok El Ghoul & Omrane Guedhami & Henning Schröder, 2021. "Institutional investment horizons and firm valuation around the world," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(2), pages 212-244, March.
    15. Simon Rafaqat & Sana Rafaqat & Sahil Rafaqat & Saoul Rafaqat & Dawood Rafaqat, 2023. "Shareholder Activism and Firm Performance: A Review," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 14(4), pages 31-41.
    16. Bessler, Wolfgang & Vendrasco, Marco, 2022. "Why do companies become hedge fund targets? Evidence from shareholder activism in Germany," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 47(PB).
    17. Hiroaki Miyachi & Fumiko Takeda, 2021. "Hedge Fund Activism in Japan under the Stewardship and Corporate Governance Codes," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 27(2), pages 119-130, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bessler, Wolfgang & Vendrasco, Marco, 2022. "Corporate control and shareholder activism in Germany: An empirical analysis of hedge fund strategies," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    2. Edmans, Alex & Holderness, Clifford, 2016. "Blockholders: A Survey of Theory and Evidence," CEPR Discussion Papers 11442, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    3. Christian Engelen, 2015. "The effects of managerial discretion on moral hazard related behaviour: German evidence on agency costs," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 19(4), pages 927-960, November.
    4. Dasgupta, Amil & Fos, Vyacheslav & Sautner, Zacharias, 2021. "Institutional investors and corporate governance," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 112114, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Barbara Voußem & Utz Schäffer & Denis Schweizer, 2015. "Top management turnover under the influence of activist investors," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 19(3), pages 709-739, August.
    6. Mark Mietzner & Denis Schweizer, 2014. "Hedge funds versus private equity funds as shareholder activists in Germany — differences in value creation," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 38(2), pages 181-208, April.
    7. Bessler, Wolfgang & Vendrasco, Marco, 2022. "Why do companies become hedge fund targets? Evidence from shareholder activism in Germany," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 47(PB).
    8. Simon Rafaqat & Sana Rafaqat & Sahil Rafaqat & Saoul Rafaqat & Dawood Rafaqat, 2023. "Shareholder Activism and Firm Performance: A Review," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 14(4), pages 31-41.
    9. Oehler, Andreas & Schmitz, Jonas Tobias, 2021. "Does intensified communication of hedge funds with letters affect abnormal returns?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 127-142.
    10. Sudi Sudarsanam & Tim Broadhurst, 2012. "Corporate governance convergence in Germany through shareholder activism: Impact of the Deutsche Boerse bid for London Stock Exchange," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 16(2), pages 235-268, May.
    11. Denes, Matthew R. & Karpoff, Jonathan M. & McWilliams, Victoria B., 2017. "Thirty years of shareholder activism: A survey of empirical research," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 405-424.
    12. Alex Edmans, 2014. "Blockholders and Corporate Governance," Annual Review of Financial Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 23-50, December.
    13. Lucian A. Bebchuk & Michael S. Weisbach, 2012. "The State of Corporate Governance Research," Springer Books, in: Sabri Boubaker & Bang Dang Nguyen & Duc Khuong Nguyen (ed.), Corporate Governance, edition 127, pages 325-346, Springer.
    14. Nicole Boyson & Robert Mooradian, 2011. "Corporate governance and hedge fund activism," Review of Derivatives Research, Springer, vol. 14(2), pages 169-204, July.
    15. Raluca Roman, 2015. "Shareholder activism in banking," Research Working Paper RWP 15-9, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
    16. Goergen, Marc & Manjon, Miguel C. & Renneboog, Luc, 2008. "Recent developments in German corporate governance," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 175-193, September.
    17. Mike Burkart & Samuel Lee, 2022. "Activism and Takeovers," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 35(4), pages 1868-1896.
    18. Szu-Yin (Jennifer) Wu & Kee H. Chung, 2022. "Hedge Fund Activism and Corporate M&A Decisions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(2), pages 1378-1403, February.
    19. Helwege, Jean & Intintoli, Vincent J. & Zhang, Andrew, 2012. "Voting with their feet or activism? Institutional investors’ impact on CEO turnover," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 22-37.
    20. Harford, Jarrad & Kecskés, Ambrus & Mansi, Sattar, 2018. "Do long-term investors improve corporate decision making?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 424-452.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:eufman:v:21:y:2015:i:1:p:106-147. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/efmaaea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.