Index Creation, Information Changes, and Financing

• 成果类型: Article; Early Access
• 署名作者: Goyal, Vidhan K.; Urban, Daniel; Zhao, Wenting
• 署名单位: Hong Kong University of Science & Technology; Erasmus University Rotterdam; Erasmus University Rotterdam - Excl Erasmus MC; Technical University of Munich
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF ACCOUNTING RESEARCH
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0021-8456
• DOI: 10.1111/1475-679X.12626
• 发表日期: 2025
• 关键词: INSTITUTIONAL OWNERSHIP; corporate governance; s-and-p-500 index; demand curves; STOCK-PRICE; EXCESS COMOVEMENT; ANALYST COVERAGE; UNITED-STATES; WALL-STREET; MARKET

摘要

We study how stock index inclusion affects corporate financing using a global sample of 198 index events-primarily new index launches-across 21 markets. Firms added to indexes issue more public debt but not equity, leading to a sustained increase in leverage. Inclusion draws greater attention from analysts and the media and increases the likelihood of receiving credit ratings. As a result, indexed firms benefit from more liquid bond markets and lower yield spreads, prompting greater reliance on public debt. Consistent with an information-driven mechanism, leverage responses are strongest in countries with weaker information environments. However, these information gains do not enhance stock price informativeness: bid-ask spreads, price impact measures, post-earnings announcement drift, and the implied cost of equity remain unchanged-likely because of the growing presence of information-insensitive passive investors.