de Jong, A., Dutordoir, M.(. and Verwijmeren, P. (2011). Why do convertible issuers simultaneously repurchase stock? An arbitrage-based explanation Journal of Financial Economics, 100(1):113--129.
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Affiliated author
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Publication year2011
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JournalJournal of Financial Economics
Over recent years, a substantial fraction of US convertible bond issues have been combined with a stock repurchase. This paper explores the motivations for these combined transactions. We argue that convertible debt issuers repurchase their stock to facilitate arbitrage-related short selling. In line with this prediction, we show that convertibles combined with a stock repurchase are associated with lower offering discounts, lower stock price pressure, higher expected hedging demand, and lower issue-date short selling than uncombined issues. We also find that convertible arbitrage strategies explain both the size and the speed of execution of the stock repurchases.