The Impact of Clientele Changes: Evidence from Stock Splits

Abstract

We examine the trades of individual and professional investors around stock splits and find that splits bring about a significant shift in investor clientele. We find that a higher fraction of post-split trades are made by less sophisticated investors, as individual investors increase and professional investors reduce their aggregate buying activity following stock splits. This behavior supports the common practitioners' belief that stock splits help attract new investors and improve stock liquidity. The shift in clientele also influences return properties, price discovery, and asset prices: stocks exhibit stronger serial correlation after splits; stocks co-move more with the market index; and the introduction of new investors explains part of the positive post-split drift puzzle.

Keywords: Stock Splits, Clientele Change, Market Efficiency, Noise Trading, Investor Sophistication, Splits, Clientele Shift, Liquidity

JEL Classification: G1, G3