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Shareholder wealth effects of stock dividends in a unique environment

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  • Al-Yahyaee, Khamis Hamed

Abstract

We investigate shareholder wealth effects of stock dividends using a unique dataset from Oman in which many market frictions that are used to explain the stock dividend announcement effect are either absent or limited. We find a positive stock market reaction to stock dividend distributions. We also find that firms that distribute stock dividends experience favorable changes in operating performance during the seven-year period around the stock dividend distribution. Our results suggest that stock dividends are used primarily to signal future operating performance and to a lesser extent to reduce stock prices to an optimal trading range.

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  • Al-Yahyaee, Khamis Hamed, 2014. "Shareholder wealth effects of stock dividends in a unique environment," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 66-81.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:intfin:v:28:y:2014:i:c:p:66-81
    DOI: 10.1016/j.intfin.2013.10.003
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    1. Khamis H. Al-Yahyaee, 2014. "Frequency and Motives for Stock Dividends in a Unique Environment," International Review of Finance, International Review of Finance Ltd., vol. 14(2), pages 295-318, June.
    2. Khanal, Aditya R. & Mishra, Ashok K., 2017. "Stock price reactions to stock dividend announcements: A case from a sluggish economic period," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 338-345.
    3. Kumar, Satish, 2017. "New evidence on stock market reaction to dividend announcements in India," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 39(PA), pages 327-337.
    4. Dupuis, Daniel, 2019. "Ex-dividend day price behavior and liquidity in a tax-free emerging market," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 239-250.
    5. Saeed Rabea Baatwah & Ehsan Saleh Almoataz & Khaled Salmen Aljaaidi, 2022. "Tightened it and ruined it: Earnings management trade-off as a consequence of key audit matters disclosure," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 42(2), pages 678-693.
    6. Wu, Manhwa & Ni, Yensen & Huang, Paoyu, 2020. "Dividend payouts and family-controlled firms—The effect of culture on business," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 221-228.
    7. Batten, Jonathan A. & Lucey, Brian M. & Peat, Maurice, 2016. "Gold and silver manipulation: What can be empirically verified?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 168-176.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Stock dividends; Trading range; Market microstructure; Bid-ask spread; Signaling;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G35 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Payout Policy

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