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Valuation of European firms during the Russia–Ukraine war

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  • Bougias, Alexandros
  • Episcopos, Athanasios
  • Leledakis, George N.

Abstract

We infer the asset value dynamics of European firms during the Russia–Ukraine war via the structural model of Merton (1974). Using high-frequency stock price data, we find that the war led to lower corporate security prices and higher asset volatility, eventually shifting asset values closer to the default region. On average, the balance sheet of European firms is expected to shrink by 2.05% and their 1-year default probability to increase from 0.32% to 2.12%. Regression analysis on asset and equity returns as well as default probability changes suggests that these effects are stronger for firms with large revenue exposure to Russia.

Suggested Citation

  • Bougias, Alexandros & Episcopos, Athanasios & Leledakis, George N., 2022. "Valuation of European firms during the Russia–Ukraine war," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 218(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:218:y:2022:i:c:s016517652200266x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110750
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    Cited by:

    1. Umar, Zaghum & Bossman, Ahmed & Choi, Sun-Yong & Vo, Xuan Vinh, 2023. "Are short stocks susceptible to geopolitical shocks? Time-Frequency evidence from the Russian-Ukrainian conflict," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    2. Oana Panazan & Catalin Gheorghe, 2024. "Impact of Geopolitical Risk on G7 Financial Markets: A Comparative Wavelet Analysis between 2014 and 2022," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-22, January.
    3. Liu, Wei & Chen, Xiao & Zhang, Jihong, 2023. "The Russia-Ukraine conflict and the automotive energy transition: Empirical evidence from China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 284(C).
    4. Alcindo Neckel & M. Santosh & Brian William Bodah & Laércio Stolfo Maculan & Diana Pinto & Cleiton Korcelski & Paloma Carollo Toscan & Laura Pasa Cambrussi & Isadora Cezar Caino & Leila Dal Moro & Dir, 2022. "Using the Sentinel-3B Satellite in Geospatial Analysis of Suspended Aerosols in the Kiev, Ukraine Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-14, December.
    5. Marjan Petreski, 2023. "The impact of the crisis induced by the conflict in Ukraine on firms in North Macedonia: Evidence from a micro-survey," Finance Think Policy Studies 2023-06/46, Finance Think - Economic Research and Policy Institute.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    European firms; Merton model; Russia–Ukraine war; Asset returns; Default risk;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates
    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill

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