Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/27554 
Year of Publication: 
2008
Series/Report no.: 
ZEW Discussion Papers No. 08-076
Publisher: 
Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW), Mannheim
Abstract: 
One of the most conspicuous features of mergers is that they come in waves that are correlated with increases in share prices and price/earnings ratios. We use a natural way to discriminate between pure stock market influences on firm decisions and other influences by examining merger patterns for both listed and unlisted firms. If "real" changes in the economy drive merger waves, as some neoclassical theories of mergers predict, both listed and unlisted firms should experience waves. We find significant differences between listed and unlisted firms as predicted by behavioral theories of merger waves.
Subjects: 
Merger waves
listed versus non-listed firms
managerial discretion
overvaluation
JEL: 
L2
G3
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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