Prof. Shen ZHAO
Associate Professor of Finance
University of Macau
Date: 20 November 2024 (Wednesday)
Time: 13:00 to 14:00 pm
Venue: E22 Lobby
Moderator: Prof. Rachel Xiaorong MA, Associate Professor of Finance
Abstract
We uncover a negative correlation between macroeconomic uncertainty and analyst earning forecasts dispersion and explain it via herding behaviour. We find that the herding firms, whose analysts are subject to this behaviour, have greater firm-level uncertainty than non-herding firms, and their stock prices are less informative about fundamentals. Moreover, the herding firms’ stocks are also more likely to be overpriced and earn lower subsequent returns. Our study links the interaction between macro-uncertainty and micro-dispersion to the firms’ characteristics, supporting the notion that greater uncertainty leaves more room for psychological biases that are associated with informational inefficiency.
Speaker
Professor. Shen Zhao is an Associate Professor of Finance in University of Macau. Her research focuses on asset pricing, macroeconomics, uncertainty, and behavioural finance, with publications in top journals such as the Journal of Financial Economics and Journal of Monetary Economics. Professor Zhao has presented at major finance conferences and is a member of both the CFA Institute and the Global Association of Risk Professionals.
All are welcome!
