FINWORLD

• Fama and French (2001) document that the number of industrial (nonutility and nonfinancial) firms that pay dividends decreased by over 50% during 1978 to 1998. This paper has been cited in the financial press as evidence that dividends are disappearing or have become less relevant in the last two decades... • Following Fama and French (2001), the authors sample CRSP industrial firms with SIC codes outside the ranges 4900 - 4949 and 6000 - 6999 (financial and utility firms). They restrict attention to NYSE, AMEX and NASDAQ firms with share codes 10 or 11 (common shares) for at least one month of each year in question, and nonmissing December share price and quantity data. They consider only firms CRSP firms with dividends and earnings before extraordinary items on Compustat... academic acquisitions agency behavioral classification corporate deangelo debt dividend dividends expropriation finance gentry graham harvey home international kemsley leverage lins m&a mayer mergers method-..