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Firms often undertake activities that do not necessarily increase cash flows (e.g., costly investments in corporate social responsibility or CSR), and some investors value these non cash activities (i.e., they have a "taste" for these activities). We develop a model to capture this phenomenon and focus on the asset-pricing implications of differences in investors' tastes for firms' activities and outputs. Our model shows that, first, investor taste differences provide a basis for investor clientele effects that are endogenously determined by the shares demanded by different types of investors. Second, because the market must clear at one price, investors' demands are influenced by all dimensions of firm output even if their preferences are only over some dimensions. Third, information releases cause trading volume, even when all investors have the same information. Fourth, investor taste provides a rationale for corporate spin-offs that help firms better target their shareholder bases. Finally, individual social responsibility can lead to corporate social responsibility when managers care about stock price because price reacts to investments in CSR activities. AbstractFirms often undertake activities that do not necessarily increase cash ‡ows (e.g., costly investments in corporate social responsibility, or CSR), and some investors value these noncash activities (i.e., they have a "taste"for these activities). We develop a model to capture this phenomenon and focus on the asset-pricing implications of di¤erences in investors'tastes for …rms' activities and outputs. Our model shows that, …rst, investor taste di¤erences provide a basis for investor clientele e¤ects that are endogenously determined by the shares demanded by di¤erent types of investors. Second, because the market must clear at one price, investors'demands are in ‡uenced by all dimensions of …rm output even if their preferences are only over some dimensions. Third, information releases cause trading volume, even when all investors have the same information. Fourth, investor taste provides a rationale for corporate spin-o¤s that help …rms better target their shareholder bases. Finally, individual social responsibility can lead to corporate social responsibility when managers care about stock price because price reacts to investments in CSR activities.

This paper studies the propensity of firms to commit to disclose information that is subsequently biased, in the presence of other firms also issuing potentially biased information. An important aspect of such an analysis is the fact that firms can choose whether to disclose or withhold information. We show that allowing the number of disclosed reports to be endogenous introduces a countervailing force to some of the empirical predictions from the prior literature. For example, we find that as more firms issue reports or as the correlation across firms' cash flows increases, the firm biases its report less. However, when we treat firms' disclosure choices as endogenous, we show that the number of firms that commit to disclose decreases as the correlation across these cash flows increases, and this, in turn, offsets the direct effect of the correlation on bias. AbstractThis paper studies the propensity of …rms to commit to disclose information that is subsequently biased, in the presence of other …rms also issuing potentially biased information. An important aspect of such an analysis is the fact that …rms can choose whether to disclose or withhold information. We show that allowing the number of disclosed reports to be endogenous introduces a countervailing force to some of the empirical predictions from the prior literature. For example, we …nd that as more …rms issue a report or as the correlation across …rms' cash ‡ows increases, the …rm biases its report less. However, when we treat …rms' disclosure choices as endogenous, we show that the number of …rms that commit to disclose decreases as the correlation across these cash ‡ows increases, and this, in turn, o¤sets the direct e¤ect of the correlation on bias.

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