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Do prices reveal the presence of informed trading?

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  • Pierre Collin-Dufresne
  • Vyacheslav Fos

Abstract

Using a comprehensive sample of trades by Schedule 13D filers, who possess valuable private information when they accumulate stocks of targeted companies, this paper studies whether several liquidity measures reveal the presence of informed trading. The evidence suggests that when Schedule 13D filers trade aggressively, both high-frequency and low-frequency measures of stock liquidity indicate a higher stock liquidity. Importantly, measures that have been used as direct proxies for adverse selection, such the Kyle (1985) lambda, the Easley et al. (1996) pin measure, and the Amihud (2002) illiquidity measure, suggest that the adverse selection is lower when informed trading takes place. The evidence is consistent with informed traders being more aggressive when measured stock liquidity is high.

Suggested Citation

  • Pierre Collin-Dufresne & Vyacheslav Fos, 2012. "Do prices reveal the presence of informed trading?," NBER Working Papers 18452, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:18452
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    Cited by:

    1. Kim, Sukwon Thomas & Stoll, Hans R., 2014. "Are trading imbalances indicative of private information?," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 20(C), pages 151-174.
    2. Pierre Collin-Dufresne & Vyacheslav Fos, 2012. "Insider Trading, Stochastic Liquidity and Equilibrium Prices," NBER Working Papers 18451, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Thomas Pöppe & Michael Aitken & Dirk Schiereck & Ingo Wiegand, 2016. "A PIN per day shows what news convey: the intraday probability of informed trading," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 47(4), pages 1187-1220, November.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • G0 - Financial Economics - - General
    • G00 - Financial Economics - - General - - - General
    • G1 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets
    • G10 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - General (includes Measurement and Data)
    • 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
    • G3 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance

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