When do stock analysts find bond rating changes informative?*. Issue 1 (2nd January 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jung, Boochun; Sivaramakrishnan, Konduru; Soderstrom, Naomi
• Is Part Of: Accounting and business research. Volume 46:Issue 1(2016)
• Page Start: 3
• Page End: 30
• Publication Date: 2016-01-02
• Subjects: equity analysts -- debt rating changes -- analyst forecast revisions -- Regulation Fair Disclosure; Accounting -- Periodicals; Accounting -- Research -- Periodicals; Business -- Periodicals; Comptabilité -- Périodiques; Comptabilité -- Recherche -- Périodiques; Affaires -- Périodiques; Accounting; Electronic journals; 658.15
• DOI: 10.1080/00014788.2015.1014464
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0001-4788

Abstract

Abstract : Credit rating agencies (CRAs) have considerable privileged access to corporate management and are therefore a potentially important source of information to the equity market. We study how stock analysts incorporate bond ratings in their earnings forecasts. We develop an economic framework to explain why equity analysts might look to CRAs as an information source, especially after Regulation Fair Disclosure. Using this framework, we characterize the association between ratings changes and earnings forecast revisions surrounding these changes. We examine whether the extent to which equity analysts glean information from ratings changes is related to the extent and importance of information conveyed in the ratings change and analysts' information uncertainty. We find that characteristics we examine are strongly related to stock analysts' use of information in rating downgrades.