This study examines whether acquirers make better acquisition decisions when target firms’ financial statements exhibit greater comparability with industry peer firms. We predict and find that ...acquirers make more profitable acquisition decisions when target firms’ financial statements are more comparable—as evidenced by higher merger announcement returns, higher acquisition synergies, and better future operating performance. We also find that post‐acquisition goodwill impairments and post‐acquisition divestitures are less likely when target firms’ financial statements are more comparable. Finally, we find that acquirers benefit most from comparability when acquirers’ ex ante information asymmetry is higher, acquirers operate in volatile operating environments, and management knows relatively less about the target. In total, our evidence suggests targets’ financial statement comparability helps acquirers make better acquisition‐investment decisions and fosters more efficient capital allocation.
Comparabilité des états financiers et efficience des décisions d'acquisition
Les auteurs se demandent si les acquéreurs prennent de meilleures décisions d'acquisition lorsque la comparabilité des états financiers des sociétés cibles avec ceux des sociétés homologues du même secteur d'activité est plus grande. Ils formulent et démontrent l'hypothèse selon laquelle les acquéreurs prennent des décisions d'acquisition plus rentables lorsque les états financiers des sociétés cibles sont davantage comparables — ce dont témoignent des rendements supérieurs associés à l'annonce d'une fusion, des effets de synergie plus importants résultant de l'acquisition et un meilleur rendement de l'exploitation futur. Les auteurs constatent également que les dépréciations de l’écart d'acquisition et les dessaisissements postérieurs à l'acquisition sont moins probables lorsque la comparabilité des états financiers des sociétés cibles est plus grande. Enfin, ils observent que les acquéreurs bénéficient davantage de la comparabilité dans les cas où l'asymétrie de l'information ex ante des acquéreurs est plus importante, où les acquéreurs exercent leurs activités dans des environnements d'exploitation volatils et où la direction connaît moins bien la société cible. Dans l'ensemble, les données recueillies par les auteurs donnent à penser que la comparabilité des états financiers des sociétés cibles aide les acquéreurs à prendre de meilleures décisions d'acquisition et d'investissement et accroît l'efficience de l'affectation du capital.
ABSTRACT
This study examines whether requiring the disclosure of audited financial statements disciplines managers’ mergers and acquisitions (M&As) decisions. When an M&A transaction meets certain ...disclosure thresholds, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires the public acquirer to disclose the target's audited financial statements after the merger is completed. Using hand‐collected data, I find that the disclosure of private targets’ financial statements is associated with better acquisition decisions. Furthermore, I find that this disciplining effect of disclosure is more pronounced when monitoring by outside capital providers is more difficult and costly, and when other disciplining mechanisms are weaker. Finally, these findings are robust to several alternative explanations, such as monitoring from blockholders and voluntary disclosures. In sum, the evidence suggests that the ex post mandatory disclosure of private targets’ accounting information disciplines managers’ acquisition decisions and improves acquisition efficiency.
Figure abstract. Schematic diagram of synthesis method and photcatalysis for as-prepared BiOxCly/BiOmBrn/BiOpIq under different conditions.
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This paper presents an unprecedented ...systematic synthetic study of a controlled hydrothermal method for the preparation of bismuth oxychloride/bismuth oxybromide/bismuth oxyiodide ternary composites (BiOxCly/BiOmBrn/BiOpIq). The pH, temperature, and KCl:KBr:KI molar ratio for the reactions were adjusted to control the compositions and morphologies of BiOxCly/BiOmBrn/BiOpIq composites. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller specific surface areas, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy were applied to the products. The photocatalytic activities of dispersions were examined by monitoring the 2-hydroxybenzoic acid (HBA) and crystal violet concentrations. Various scavengers demonstrated quenching effects. O2− was crucial to HBA degradation, whereas h+ and OH played minor roles in HBA degradation. This text hypothesizes possible photodegradation mechanisms.
ABSTRACT
We examine the real effects of lease-capitalization rules (i.e., standards that require firms to capitalize finance leases) on corporate investment. We show that the introduction of these ...rules leads to a decrease in investment, which is more pronounced for firms with high reliance on leases. We posit and find that lease capitalization affects investment via a learning channel and a contracting channel. Regarding the first channel, we argue that managers identify areas of overinvestment and activities that should be discontinued or downsized because of the information they collect and analyze to comply with lease-capitalization rules. Accordingly, we find that the effect of lease capitalization is stronger when learning opportunities are higher. Regarding the second channel, we argue that lease capitalization affects investment via its effect on contracts. Accordingly, we document an increase in the likelihood of covenant breaches and a stronger decline in investment for financially constrained firms.
JEL Classifications: G31; M41.
Job vacancy duration reflects the time a firm spends searching, selecting, and hiring for a job opening. Capturing vacancy duration using the creation and deletion dates of job postings by US public ...firms, we examine the informativeness of vacancy duration for future firm profitability. We find that while firms that quickly fill
low-skill
job vacancies exhibit higher future profitability, firms that take more time to fill
high-skill
jobs exhibit higher future profitability. Our cross-sectional analyses across the benefits and costs of candidate selection and performance expectations suggest that the informativeness of vacancy duration comes from its reflection of firms’ hiring strategies. That is, firms expecting higher profitability recruit more intensively to avoid the opportunity cost associated with vacancies for
low-skill
jobs and to ensure the selection of high-quality workers for
high-skill
jobs. Further analyses show that the implication of job vacancy duration for future profitability is not incorporated timely in the capital markets, as evidenced by pessimistic analyst forecasts and positive earnings announcement returns in future quarters for firms with short (long) durations for low-skill (high-skill) jobs. These results demonstrate the informativeness of job vacancy duration for firm profitability and advance the understanding of firms’ hiring strategies.
Background/Aims: Fisetin is a naturally abundant flavonoid isolated from various fruits and vegetables that was recently identified to have potential biological functions in improving allergic airway ...inflammation, as well as anti-oxidative and anti-tumor properties. Fisetin has also been demonstrated to have anti-obesity properties in mice. However, the effect of fisetin on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is still elusive. Thus, the present study evaluated whether fisetin improves hepatic steatosis in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice and regulates lipid metabolism of FL83B hepatocytes in vitro. Methods: NAFLD was induced by HFD in male C57BL/6 mice. The mice were then injected intraperitoneally with fisetin for 10 weeks. In another experiment, FL83B cells were challenged with oleic acid to induce lipid accumulation and treated with various concentrations of fisetin. Results: NAFLD mice treated with fisetin had decreased body weight and epididymal adipose tissue weight compared to NAFLD mice. Fisetin treatment also reduced liver lipid droplet and hepatocyte steatosis, alleviated serum free fatty acid, and leptin concentrations, significantly decreased fatty acid synthase, and significantly increased phosphorylation of AMPKα and the production of sirt-1 and carnitine palmitoyltransferase I in the liver tissue. In vitro, fisetin decreased lipid accumulation and increased lipolysis and β-oxidation in hepatocytes. Conclusion: This study suggests that fisetin is a potential novel treatment for alleviating hepatic lipid metabolism and improving NAFLD in mice via activation of the sirt1/AMPK and β-oxidation pathway.
Bismuth oxyiodides have been prepared using controlled hydrothermal methods. The products are characterized by SEM-EDS, XRD, XPS, FTIR, PL, EPR, and DRS. It is illustrated that BiOI, Bi 4 O 5 I 2 , ...Bi 7 O 9 I 3 , Bi 5 O 7 I, and BiO x I y /BiO p I q composites can be selectively synthesized through a facile solution-based hydrothermal method. UV-Vis spectra display the bismuth oxyiodide materials as indirect semiconductors with an optical bandgap of 1.86–3.316 eV. The photocatalytic efficiency of the powder suspension is evaluated by measuring the Crystal Violet (CV) concentration. This is the first study to demonstrate the superior activities of BiOI, Bi 4 O 5 I 2 , Bi 7 O 9 I 3 , Bi 5 O 7 I, and BiO x I y /BiO p I q composites as promising visible-light-responsive photocatalysts. The quenching effects of various scavengers and EPR indicate that the reactive O 2 ˙ − plays a major role and ˙OH and h + play a minor role. The Bi 7 O 9 I 3 /Bi 5 O 7 I composite shows the highest photocatalytic activity reaching a maximum rate constant of 0.2225 h −1 , which is 6 times higher than that of BiOI and Bi 7 O 9 I 3 and 4 times higher than that of Bi 5 O 7 I.
We examine whether tax-motivated income shifting by U.S. multinational corporations affects information asymmetry. Using a new firm-year measure of income shifting and a two-stage least squares ...approach, we find income shifting is positively associated with four measures of information asymmetry. Cross-sectional tests reveal that this effect is more pronounced for firms with large differences between foreign and domestic earnings growth. Using SFAS 131 to improve identification and establish evidence consistent with a causal relation between income shifting and information asymmetry, we demonstrate that the adverse impact of income shifting on information asymmetry is concentrated in firms that discontinue geographic earnings disclosures. Overall, our study provides evidence that significant consequences of information asymmetry are associated with tax-motivated income shifting.
This study assessed the machine learning based sensitivity analysis coupled with source-apportionment of volatile organic carbons (VOCs) to look into new insights of O3 pollution in Yunlin County ...located in central-west region of Taiwan. One-year (Jan 1 to Dec 31, 2021) hourly mass concentrations data of 54 VOCs, NOX, and O3 from 10 photochemical assessment monitoring stations (PAMs) in and around the Yunlin County were analyzed. The novelty of the study lies in the utilization of artificial neural network (ANN) to evaluate the contribution of VOCs sources in O3 pollution in the region. Firstly, the station specific source-apportionment of VOCs were carried out using positive matrix factorization (PMF)—resolving six sources viz. AAM: aged air mass, CM: chemical manufacturing, IC: Industrial combustion, PP: petrochemical plants, SU: solvent use and VE: vehicular emissions. AAM, SU, and VE constituted cumulatively more than 65% of the total emission of VOCs across all 10 PAMs. Diurnal and spatial variability of source-segregated VOCs showed large variations across 10 PAMs, suggesting for distinctly different impact of contributing sources, photo-chemical reactivity, and/or dispersion due to land-sea breezes at the monitoring stations. Secondly, to understand the contribution of controllable factors governing the O3 pollution, the output of VOCs source-contributions from PMF model along with mass concentrations of NOX were standardized and first time used as input variables to ANN, a supervised machine learning algorithm. ANN analysis revealed following order of sensitivity in factors governing the O3 pollution: VOCs from IC > AAM > VE ≈ CM ≈ SU > PP ≈ NOX. The results indicated that VOCs associated with IC (VOCs-IC) being the most sensitive factor which need to be regulated more efficiently to quickly mitigate the O3 pollution across the Yunlin County.
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•Solvent use, aged air mass and vehicle emission accounted for >65% of VOCs sources in Yunlin County.•Spatial heterogeneity and reactivity of VOCs resulted in a huge variability of O3.•ANN model showed that industrial combustion and aged air mass majorly contributed to O3formation.•Results are helpful for an effective O3 mitigation strategy around a petrochemical complex.
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