Nancy Ursel

University of Windsor · Odette School of Business

We use the resource‐based theory and leadership categorization theory to develop hypotheses about ethnic minority CEO turnover. Using survival analysis, we test the hypotheses and find that, as a group, ethnic minority CEOs at U.S. firms experience only about half of the risk of turnover at any time as do non‐ethnic minority CEOs. However, the risk...

We use the glass cliff to study the appointment and employment duration of 193 female CEOs between 1992 and 2014 in a sample of large, small and mid-size North American firms. Consistent with the glass cliff, we find that women are appointed as CEOs in precarious situations. However, we find female CEOs are 40% less likely to face turnover at any p...

CEO turnover increases when announced stock issues are withdrawn, even after controlling for endogeneity and firm performance. However, greater underwriter certification of a stock issue is associated with lower CEO turnover. Together, these two findings suggest that the corporate governance practice of terminating CEOs for unsuccessful offerings a...

We show competition between underwriters even when fees are clustered. We study accelerated seasoned equity offerings (SEOs), which are now the predominant form of public SEO in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Underwriters compete by establishing capacity sufficient to allow them to maintain close relationships with issuers, in order to be able to id...

CEO successions are major corporate events with the potential to change corporate direction. We investigate risk-taking following CEO succession and whether age affects CEO succession. In 679 CEO successions occurring between 1992 and 2005 in 650 small, medium and large-cap North American firms, we find that, except when the predecessor CEO was for...

We show that competition in equity underwriting exists, even though fees or spreads are clustered. Our findings differ from those of studies that conclude that clustered fees are evidence of collusion. Applying an economic model of firms' strategic choice under demand uncertainty to investment bank decision making, we investigate investment bankers...

We investigate the effect of mergers on corporate debt financing using time series analysis. We find that corporate debt use increases during periods of very high merger activity but is not significantly affected by variations within the normal range of merger activity. Traditional trade-off and pecking order variables also significantly affect cor...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine, within a succession framework, the impact of the gender composition of boards of directors on the gender of the CEOs they appoint, and to assess the impact of newly appointed CEOs' gender on risk taking by the firm. Design/methodology/approach The authors estimate a two‐stage least squares regressio...

We examine interactions between firms issuing seasoned equity and their underwriters. Our approach contrasts with many studies which assume the interests of issuing firms and their underwriters are aligned, thus rendering distinctions between the two parties unimportant. We specifically examine interactions between issuers and underwriters to a) ch...

This study examines the underpricing of Canadian initial public offerings (IPOs) since July 1, 1987, when banks entered the underwriting business. The level of underpricing found (3.64%‐3.95%) is much lower than that found by other studies. Bank ownership of an issue's underwriter is found to be significantly related to lower underpricing. However,...

This paper develops the hypothesis that the decline in the use of rights offerings is due to reductions in issue costs brought about by changes in securities regulation. The hypothesis is tested in two jurisdictions: Canada and the United States. Time series analysis is used to determine if the decreased use of rights offerings in the 1970–1985 per...

CEO successions are major corporate events with the potential to change corporate direction. We investigate risk-taking following CEO succession and whether demographics affect CEO succession. In 758 CEO successions occurring between 1992 and 2005 in 650 small, medium and large-cap North American firms, we find that, except when the predecessor CEO...

Through two studies with diverse samples, we tested a conceptual model of the relationships between organizational and career factors and older workers' intention to remain with their organization. Perceived organizational support mediated the relationship between training and development practices, hierarchical, and job content plateauing and inte...

Chinese companies have recently started listing ADRs in North American stock exchanges and thus offered an alternative venue for Western investors whose access to the Chinese market has largely been limited to the illiquid B shares. Are ADRs a good substitute for investing in Chinese B Shares? We examine characteristics of return distributions for...

We analyze the impact on stock prices, and thus on stockholders, of 84 newspaper announcements regarding corporate age discrimination lawsuits. We find that, on average, initial announcements cause a 2 percent decline in stock price, a $40 million average loss in total stock value for the large firms charged. The stock price decreases are consisten...

Certain American industrial firms still use equity rights offerings. Most of these offerings are uninsured. I examine firms’ financing decisions, and develop the explanation that rights offerings are used by firms in financial distress with difficulty accessing underwriting services. These firms have little to lose from the costs of adverse selecti...

This paper develops the hypothesis that the decline in the use of rights offerings is due to reductions in issue costs brought about by changes in securities regulation. The hypothesis is tested in two jurisdictions: Canada and the United States. Time series analysis is used to determine if the decreased use of rights offerings in the 1970-1985 per...

This paper analyzes the 1987 change in Canadian legislation permitting commercial banks to engage in investment banking, and makes comparisons to the US, where similar regulatory change is under way. The study focuses on the impact of such regulatory change on issue costs for corporations raising seasoned common equity. The findings indicate that a...

This study explores the reactions of shareholders to layoff announcements. We examine shareholders' reactions to 137 layoff announcements by 57 Canadian firms over the period January 1989 to August 1992. Shareholders are found to react negatively to announcements of a layoff in their company. Shareholders have a greater negative reaction to a compa...

This study examines the market reactions of Canadian banks and investment dealers to regulatory changes regarding the ownership of investment dealers and to announcements of bank takeovers of investment dealers. The statistically significant and negative abnormal returns for the acquiring banks suggest that any potential benefits from economies of...

The stock and bond market reactions to American banks′ announcements of their intentions to form Export Trading Companies are investigated. The results are robust to various return-generating model specifications and are consistent with the view that the markets do not believe that U.S. bank Export Trading Companies will be successful.© 1993 JIBS....

One of the persistent challenges facing financial researchers is to find a set of satisfactory answers to the related questions: 1. Why do firms acquire new equity capital via public underwritten issues rather than employing the apparently less costly non-underwritten rights offering alternatives? 2. Why do those firms which do employ rights offeri...

This study examines the competitiveness of underwriting fees for bought deal seasoned equity offerings in Canada. Competitive fees are important because they minimize the cost of raising capital, thereby promoting corporate investment and economic growth. I study the clustering of fees, the structure of the underwriting industry (concentration, bar...

We wish to gratefully acknowledge the generous financial contribution made by CGA-Canada that supported the research and presentation of this paper.

Research paper, Faculty of Commerce and Administration (M.B.A.)--Concordia University, 1983. Bibliography: leaves [61-66].

Theory paper, Faculty of Commerce and Administration, Joint Doctoral Program in Administration--Concordia University. Bibliography: leaves [2-4].