ABSTRACT This study examines whether the tone of earnings conference calls is associated with investors' subsequent use of firms' mandatory disclosure filings. Using conference call transcripts and EDGAR web traffic data from 2007 to 2016, I find that more positive conference call tone is followed by lower subsequent requests for firms' periodic filings. This relation persists after controlling for firm characteristics, earnings news, analyst following, institutional ownership and leverage, and remains robust in matched sample and weather‐based analyses. I further find that more positive tone is associated with lower implied volatility after the call, consistent with lower perceived uncertainty. The relation between tone and subsequent EDGAR search is also stronger when analyst following and leverage are higher, consistent with a greater role for managerial communication when external scrutiny and verification incentives are stronger. Overall, the findings link voluntary managerial communication to investors' subsequent use of mandatory disclosures.
ABSTRACT Using matched supplier–client data of Chinese A‐share listed companies (2009–2024), we examine how client greenwashing affects suppliers' green total factor productivity (GTFP). We find that client greenwashing significantly suppresses suppliers' GTFP, indicating that downstream firms' selective environmental communication can translate into real efficiency losses in upstream green production. This effect mainly operates through a weakened information environment and reduced supplier green efforts. Further analyses show that the effect is stronger when dependence asymmetry is more pronounced or more difficult to mitigate, namely when clients have greater market influence, when client information transparency is lower, or when suppliers have a lower degree of digital transformation. Our findings reveal that selective environmental communication generates spillover effects beyond disclosing firms, adversely impacting suppliers' green development.
ABSTRACT This study investigates how Australian institutional and retail investors perceive, assess and utilise human capital information. Surveys of 100 and interviews with 11 investors indicate high perceived relevance but limited reported integration of human capital information in decision‐making. Institutional investors emphasised qualitative assessment and engagement, while retail investors relied on reputational cues. Participants expressed dissatisfaction with current disclosures and sought standardised, detailed and comparable metrics. The study extends sustainability disclosure research by highlighting investor‐related barriers and the specific disclosure improvements they seek, with implications for standard setters, regulators and preparers aiming to improve the decision‐usefulness of human capital reporting.
This study explores whether institutional investors' ESG preferences affect firms' real investment decisions in China. Using quarterly panel data from Q1 2009 to Q4 2023, we construct a measure of ESG-oriented institutional ownership (ESGIO) and find that firms with higher ESGIO exhibit significantly greater capital expenditures, and this remains robust after distinguishing from the effect of general institutional ownership. This relation is also robust to various specifications and endogeneity concerns. Mechanism tests show that the relation between ESGIO and investment is stronger when stock prices are more informative and trading liquidity is higher. The effect is stronger among non-state-owned enterprises, highly leveraged firms, firms with lower internal cash flow, lower ESG rating divergence, externally assured ESG disclosures and during periods of elevated investor sentiment. This paper highlights the role of capital markets in promoting sustainable corporate investment and offers policy insights, suggesting that an enhanced ESG disclosure framework can facilitate the allocation of ESG-aligned patient capital.
Finance has long been part of Australian and New Zealand tertiary education, although its long-term presence has been offset by significant changes within the business education landscape. Employing an online content analysis approach, we provide an in-depth analysis of the various forms of undergraduate finance education currently delivered by Antipodean public universities, including the finance units offered and degrees encompassing them, the discipline areas providing this education and associated value propositions. Overall, our analysis reveals the continued ubiquity of finance-related undergraduate education but also identifies potential limitations regarding the future-readiness of graduates and mitigating reputational challenges faced by the sector.
