This paper examines how, and to what extent, cross-listing impacts corporate dividend smoothing. We report significantly increased dividend smoothing, with idiosyncratic sectoral responses, after cross-listing. Furthermore, we show that sectoral competition and local market development explain the extent of dividend smoothing after cross-listing. To study the dynamics in dividend smoothing channels after cross-listing, we adopt a variance decomposition approach. We find substantial variation in the use of debt and investment channels to absorb net income shocks, keeping dividends smooth after cross-listing. Our findings suggest that, with increased access to a larger pool of capital in the U.S., cross-listed firms are motivated to keep dividends stable through debt and investment decisions after cross-listing.

We find that the expected contribution of new CEO's experience to firm value depends on the degree of managerial challenge faced in the hiring firm. We identify two firm dimensions of such challenge: 1) firm complexity and 2) prior poor performance of the firm. Using a multi-industry 15-year sample of 1095 newly appointed CEOs of U.S. public firms, we find that CEO's experience benefits investors only when the firm is complex and/or struggling. The more complexity or performance challenge the firm is facing, the greater is the positive effect of CEO generalist experience on shareholder value.