Block Share Purchases and Corporate Performance
Posted: 3 Aug 1998
There are 2 versions of this paper
Block Share Purchases and Corporate Performance
Block Share Purchases and Corporate Performance
Abstract
This paper investigates the causes and consequences of activist block share purchases in the 1980s. We find that activist investors were most likely to purchase large blocks of shares in highly diversified firms with poor profitability. Activists were not less likely to purchase blocks in firms with shark repellents and ESOPs. Activist block purchases were followed by increases in asset divestitures, decreases in mergers and acquisitions, and abnormal share price appreciation. Industry-adjusted operating profitability also rose. This evidence supports the view that the market for partial corporate control plays an important role in limiting agency costs in U.S. corporations.
JEL Classification: G31, G32, G34
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation