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Journal of Corporate Finance Vol. 88 2024

The real impacts of public short campaigns: Evidence from stakeholders

Claire Liu1; Angie Low2; Talis Putnins

1 The University of Sydney · 2 Nanyang Technological University

open access

Abstract

Using a novel dataset of firm product introductions, we examine whether public short campaigns (PSCs) have real impacts on targets. Targets introduce fewer new products and experience declines in productivity and product quality relative to matched firms following PSCs. These declines in product outcomes are partly attributed to the withdrawal of support from key stakeholders, resulting in reduced access to external capital, decreased employee commitment, and weakened customer relationships. Our results suggest that the public nature of PSCs has distinctive impacts on target firms compared to traditional short selling, primarily through their impact on the firm's stakeholders.

DOI
10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2024.102624
Volume
88
Pages
102624
Language
en
Sources
bibtex:phds-export.bib openalex crossref

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