On the afternoon of July 10th, the 16th (177th) DUFE • Accounting and Finance Forum of 2023 was held as scheduled at Room 245 of Quan Xue Building. This forum invited Professor In-Mu Haw from Texas Christian University in the United States. Professor In-Mu Haw shared an academic paper titled 'Equity Trading Halts and Market Reactions: The Evidence of M&As in China' with the attending teachers and students.
Existing research has found that investors often react negatively to merger and acquisition (M&A) announcements. Professor In-Mu Haw and his team studied how companies' information disclosure strategies can reverse this negative reaction. Drawing first from signaling and efficient market theories, they argued that managers use information signals to capture investor attention, provide the firm opportunity to share positive information about a forthcoming M&A, which investors subsequently factor into the firm’s financial value once the announcement is made. Next, the research team combined anticipatory impression management with priming theory, and found that longer periods for sharing information prior to the M&A announcement will be related to investor reaction in an increasingly positive manner. The paper uses 1584 M&A data made in China during 2007-2016 to test the above theory based on the unique scenario of equity trading halts, and the empirical results support the theoretical expectations.
After the report, the attending teachers and students had in-depth exchanges and discussions with Professor In-Mu Haw. Professor In-Mu Haw's profound research foundation, down-to-earth and rigorous research attitude, and humorous teaching style have left a deep impression on the faculty and students. This forum has a positive effect on enhancing the research perspective and English paper writing ability of our faculty and students.
