Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility

This paper investigates the association between idiosyncratic volatility and firm life cycle stages. Since firm performance and availability of information vary across life cycle stages, and such variation affects uncertainty about future cash flows and stock returns, we argue that idiosyncratic vol...

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Main Authors: Hasan, Mostafa, Habib, A.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier BV 2016
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/50008
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author Hasan, Mostafa
Habib, A.
author_facet Hasan, Mostafa
Habib, A.
author_sort Hasan, Mostafa
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description This paper investigates the association between idiosyncratic volatility and firm life cycle stages. Since firm performance and availability of information vary across life cycle stages, and such variation affects uncertainty about future cash flows and stock returns, we argue that idiosyncratic volatility also varies across firm life cycle stages. Using US data, this study shows that idiosyncratic volatility is significantly higher in the introduction and decline stages, and significantly lower in the growth and mature stages, when compared to that in the shake-out stage. Our study also reveals that the roles of both cash flow volatility and information uncertainty in affecting idiosyncratic volatility vary depending on firm life cycle stages. Our results are robust to alternative specifications of life cycle proxies and idiosyncratic volatility, and to an alternative regression specification.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-500082017-09-13T15:36:41Z Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility Hasan, Mostafa Habib, A. This paper investigates the association between idiosyncratic volatility and firm life cycle stages. Since firm performance and availability of information vary across life cycle stages, and such variation affects uncertainty about future cash flows and stock returns, we argue that idiosyncratic volatility also varies across firm life cycle stages. Using US data, this study shows that idiosyncratic volatility is significantly higher in the introduction and decline stages, and significantly lower in the growth and mature stages, when compared to that in the shake-out stage. Our study also reveals that the roles of both cash flow volatility and information uncertainty in affecting idiosyncratic volatility vary depending on firm life cycle stages. Our results are robust to alternative specifications of life cycle proxies and idiosyncratic volatility, and to an alternative regression specification. 2016 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/50008 10.1016/j.irfa.2017.01.003 Elsevier BV restricted
spellingShingle Hasan, Mostafa
Habib, A.
Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
title Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
title_full Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
title_fullStr Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
title_full_unstemmed Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
title_short Firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
title_sort firm life cycle and idiosyncratic volatility
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/50008