Investment as the Opportunity Cost of Dividend Signaling
研究发现，对于投资机会弱的公司，股利更能传递可持续盈利信息；而投资机会强的公司，股利与投资支出负相关更明显，表明股利信号作用随公司质量非单调变化。
ABSTRACT We provide evidence that dividends signal sustainable earnings generated by assets-in-place for firms with weak investment opportunities. In the cross-section, both dividend levels and changes contain more earnings information among firms with weaker investment opportunities. Intertemporally, when aggregate investment opportunities in the economy are worse, dividend changes convey more earnings information. In contrast, dividends have a more negative association with investment spending for firms with strong growth options, as funding investment is a higher priority for those firms. Collectively, our findings suggest that dividends serve as a counter-signal, whereby additional information about investment opportunities give rise to signaling that is non-monotonic in firm quality. JEL Classifications: G15; G32; G35.