The analysis of dividend announcement impact on stock prices of Baltic companies

Abstract

The paper is aimed to analyze and evaluate the dividend announcement impact on stock prices of companies listed on the NASDAQ OMX Baltic market during 2010–2015. The analysis was performed using the market model event study analysis and calculating AARs based on 3 strategies, which assume that investors buy shares 30 days prior to the dividend announcement and sell them either 1, 3 or 7 days after the dividend announcement. During the research period, dividends were paid by 40 out of 72 companies listed on the NASDAQ OMX Baltic. A total of 168 dividend announcements have been made and analyzed in this paper. The results of the research revealed that within the analyzed event windows, positive AARs exist; however, they are not statistically significant. Positive AARs obtained 3 or 7 days after the dividend announcement imply that stock prices do not drop shortly after the dividend announcement, which would indicate weak NASDAQ OMX Baltic market efficiency