Online Reputation and Debt Capacity (download)
with François Derrien, Alexandre Garel and Arthur Petit-Romec, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 2024,59(3): 1100-1140.
This paper explores the effects of online customer ratings on debt capacity. Using a large sample of Parisian restaurants, we find a positive and economically significant relation between customer ratings and bank debt. We use the locally exogenous variation in customer ratings resulting from the rounding of scores in regression discontinuity tests to establish causality. Customer ratings have more impact on debt capacity when information asymmetry is higher. They affect financial policy through a reduction in cash flow risk and greater resilience to demand shocks. Restaurants with good ratings use their extra debt capacity to invest in tangible assets.
In family we trust - in good and bad times (download)
with Philippe Masset and Cédric Poretti, International Review of Finance, 2024, 24(1):128-138.
This short report investigates the stock market behavior of Swiss companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results suggest that family firms performed better during the outbreak and post-lockdown periods than widely-held firms. Family firms also displayed a larger abnormal trading volume drop than widely-held companies. In size-sorted subsamples, the volume difference appears more pronounced for smaller firms. We explain these findings by family firms, especially smaller ones, predominantly attracting investors with a long-term horizon. Such investors are less likely to sell during market turmoil, making family firms not only less liquid but also less sensitive to market fluctuations.
Chasing dividends during the COVID-19 pandemic (download)
with Nicolas Eugster, Romain Ducret, and Dusan Isakov, International Review of Finance, 2022, 22(2): 335-345.
This paper investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the trading behavior of investors around ex-dividend dates in Europe. The sudden decrease in the number of companies paying dividends reduced the opportunities to capture dividends. The firms that have maintained dividend payments during the pandemic thus attracted more interest than before. This led to a doubling in the magnitude of stock return patterns usually observed around ex-dividend days. Our evidence indicates that dividend-seeking investors are likely to be the main driver of the price patterns observed around ex-dividend dates.
What If Dividends Were Tax‐Exempt? Evidence from a Natural Experiment (download)
with Dusan Isakov and Christophe Pérignon, Review of Financial Studies, 2021, 34(12): 5756-5795.
We study the effect of dividend taxes on the payout and investment policies of publicly listed firms. We exploit a unique setting in Switzerland where, following the corporate tax reform of 2011, some but not all firms were suddenly able to pay tax-exempt dividends. We show that treated firms increase their dividend payout by around 30% after the tax cut. The impact on payout is less pronounced for firms prone to agency conflicts. We find a significant positive abnormal stock return after the announcement of the payment of a tax-exempt dividend. However, reducing dividend taxes does not boost investment.
Pay-out policies in founding family firms (download)
with Dusan Isakov, Journal of Corporate Finance, 2015, 33: 330-344.
This article analyses founding family influence on pay-out policies for Swiss listed firms over the period 2003–2010. We hypothesise that family firms have different incentives and characteristics that affect pay-out decisions and propose three possible explanations: agency theory, reputation building and family income needs. Our results show that founding family firms display significantly higher dividend pay-outs relative to companies with other ownership structures. We also examine specific family characteristics and document that a family's stake, active involvement and generation play an important role in determining pay-out policies. Our findings appear to be consistent with the family income hypothesis and to some extent with reputational concerns.
Are founding families special blockholders? - An investigation of controlling shareholder influence on firm performance (download)
with Dusan Isakov, (Lead Article) Journal of Banking & Finance, 2014, 41: 1-16.
This paper examines how family and non-family ownership affects the performance of Swiss listed firms from 2003 to 2010. We distinguish between these two types of controlling shareholders since they have different objectives. We hypothesise that only family shareholders have a real incentive to reduce agency costs whereas non-family blockholders are similar to widely held companies. Our results show that family firms are more profitable than companies that are widely held or have a non-family blockholder. For market valuations we find that the family stake plays a critical role and document a concave relationship between family ownership and Tobin’s Q. We also investigate the impact of different features of family firms on performance, and document that the generation of the family and the active involvement of the family play an important role for market valuation.
with François Derrien, Alexandre Garel and Arthur Petit-Romec, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 2024,59(3): 1100-1140.
This paper explores the effects of online customer ratings on debt capacity. Using a large sample of Parisian restaurants, we find a positive and economically significant relation between customer ratings and bank debt. We use the locally exogenous variation in customer ratings resulting from the rounding of scores in regression discontinuity tests to establish causality. Customer ratings have more impact on debt capacity when information asymmetry is higher. They affect financial policy through a reduction in cash flow risk and greater resilience to demand shocks. Restaurants with good ratings use their extra debt capacity to invest in tangible assets.
In family we trust - in good and bad times (download)
with Philippe Masset and Cédric Poretti, International Review of Finance, 2024, 24(1):128-138.
This short report investigates the stock market behavior of Swiss companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results suggest that family firms performed better during the outbreak and post-lockdown periods than widely-held firms. Family firms also displayed a larger abnormal trading volume drop than widely-held companies. In size-sorted subsamples, the volume difference appears more pronounced for smaller firms. We explain these findings by family firms, especially smaller ones, predominantly attracting investors with a long-term horizon. Such investors are less likely to sell during market turmoil, making family firms not only less liquid but also less sensitive to market fluctuations.
Chasing dividends during the COVID-19 pandemic (download)
with Nicolas Eugster, Romain Ducret, and Dusan Isakov, International Review of Finance, 2022, 22(2): 335-345.
This paper investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the trading behavior of investors around ex-dividend dates in Europe. The sudden decrease in the number of companies paying dividends reduced the opportunities to capture dividends. The firms that have maintained dividend payments during the pandemic thus attracted more interest than before. This led to a doubling in the magnitude of stock return patterns usually observed around ex-dividend days. Our evidence indicates that dividend-seeking investors are likely to be the main driver of the price patterns observed around ex-dividend dates.
What If Dividends Were Tax‐Exempt? Evidence from a Natural Experiment (download)
with Dusan Isakov and Christophe Pérignon, Review of Financial Studies, 2021, 34(12): 5756-5795.
We study the effect of dividend taxes on the payout and investment policies of publicly listed firms. We exploit a unique setting in Switzerland where, following the corporate tax reform of 2011, some but not all firms were suddenly able to pay tax-exempt dividends. We show that treated firms increase their dividend payout by around 30% after the tax cut. The impact on payout is less pronounced for firms prone to agency conflicts. We find a significant positive abnormal stock return after the announcement of the payment of a tax-exempt dividend. However, reducing dividend taxes does not boost investment.
Pay-out policies in founding family firms (download)
with Dusan Isakov, Journal of Corporate Finance, 2015, 33: 330-344.
This article analyses founding family influence on pay-out policies for Swiss listed firms over the period 2003–2010. We hypothesise that family firms have different incentives and characteristics that affect pay-out decisions and propose three possible explanations: agency theory, reputation building and family income needs. Our results show that founding family firms display significantly higher dividend pay-outs relative to companies with other ownership structures. We also examine specific family characteristics and document that a family's stake, active involvement and generation play an important role in determining pay-out policies. Our findings appear to be consistent with the family income hypothesis and to some extent with reputational concerns.
Are founding families special blockholders? - An investigation of controlling shareholder influence on firm performance (download)
with Dusan Isakov, (Lead Article) Journal of Banking & Finance, 2014, 41: 1-16.
This paper examines how family and non-family ownership affects the performance of Swiss listed firms from 2003 to 2010. We distinguish between these two types of controlling shareholders since they have different objectives. We hypothesise that only family shareholders have a real incentive to reduce agency costs whereas non-family blockholders are similar to widely held companies. Our results show that family firms are more profitable than companies that are widely held or have a non-family blockholder. For market valuations we find that the family stake plays a critical role and document a concave relationship between family ownership and Tobin’s Q. We also investigate the impact of different features of family firms on performance, and document that the generation of the family and the active involvement of the family play an important role for market valuation.
