Top Line Research Articles

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and kidney outcomes.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) have gained increasing attention for their potential benefits in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Most supportive evidence of a kidney-protective effect of the GLP-1RA class of medications has been derived from kidney-related outcomes reported from cardiovascular outcome trials (CVOTs). GLP-1RAs have been shown to reduce albuminuria, mitigate cardiovascular risk, and possibly attenuate estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decline. The kidney-protective effects of GLP-1RAs are thought to be attributed to their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and vasodilatory properties. Despite these promising findings, the use of GLP-RAs has yet to be definitively shown to slow progression to chronic kidney failure in people with T2DM. The Research Study to See How Semaglutide Works Compared to Placebo in People With Type 2 Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease (FLOW trial) is the first major trial assessing the potential of a GLP-1RA to slow progression of kidney disease in people with established CKD to clinically important kidney end points. On March 5, 2024, the top line result from FLOW was announced with semaglutide 1.0 mg being reported to reduce the primary end point of the trial by a significant 24% compared with placebo. Here, we summarize the kidney outcomes reported from CVOTs for the GLP-1RA class of medication and briefly describe kidney outcomes from other major GLP-1RAs trials. We also discuss a potential role of the dual GLP-1/glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor agonist, tirzepatide, as a kidney-protective agent.

Eco-Physiological and Genetic Basis of Drought Response Index in Rice—Integration Using a Temperate Japonica Mapping Population

The drought response index (DRI) is an indicator of drought tolerance after adjustment for variation in flowering date and potential yield under well-watered conditions. Using a temperate japonica mapping population of 97 recombinant inbred lines from a cross between Otomemochi (OTM) and Yumenohatamochi (YHM), we evaluated DRI during the reproductive stage under very severe drought in one year and under severe drought in the next year. DRI under very severe drought (−6.4 to 15.9) and severe drought (−3.9 to 8.3) positively correlated with grain dry weight under drought. Three QTLs for DRI were identified: RM3703–RM6911–RM6379 and RM6733–RM3850 both on chromosome 2 in both years combined; and RM8120–RM2615–RM7023 on chromosome 6 in the second year. The latter collocated with putative genes for signaling and defense mechanisms (e.g., PIN1B, BZIP46) revealed by database analysis. Top DRI lines retained root dry weight and had bigger steles. QTL-by-environment interaction had a greater relative contribution than the main effects of QTLs. Comparison with three previous studies revealed that the QTLs for DRI were unique to each experiment and/or population; most of them closely colocalized with reported drought-yield QTLs.

Top management and employees’ commitment to sustainability as internal drivers of a company’s ESG performance

Social and environmental issues gain more importance for society that stimulates companies to adopt and integrate more sustainability practices into their business activities. This study is embedded in almost uncovered in the literature context of Russian business that undergoes its ESG transformation in conditions of unprecedented sanctions and hostile institutional environment. The study aims to reveal the role of internal stakeholders (top managers, line managers, and employees) in successful implementation of a company’s ESG practices along various dimensions. Using the primary data from 29 large Russian companies the fsQCA method is applied to identify various configurations of contingencies that stimulate their ESG performance. The analysis results in identification of two alternative core conditions for high ESG performance in Russian companies: high top management commitment to sustainability and low employees’ commitment to sustainability or the employees’ awareness about sustainability. At the end, the study results in two generic profiles composed of top management commitment, line management support, and employees’ awareness, behavior, and commitment towards ESG performance. The results show two different approaches towards ESG transformation that may bring a company to the comparably similar desired outcome. The study has a potential for generalization on a wider scope of emerging market contexts.

Understanding the drivers of innovative work behaviour among millennial employees in India’s IT sector: some exploratory research findings

PurposeThe study aims to develop a hierarchical model for innovative work behaviour (IWB) that can capture the complex associations among the factors contributing to IWB within the information technology (IT) sector. To accomplish this, the authors rely on an abductive approach using a graph theoretic model, often called interpretive structural modelling (ISM).Design/methodology/approachAfter conducting an in-depth literature review and using the Delphi method, the authors identified 12 factors (11 enablers and IWB as an outcome). The authors collected data through the Delphi approach by sending the questionnaire to 11 experts from academia and the IT sector who have extensive experience and knowledge relevant to the study. The authors then used the ISM method to analyse the relationships among these factors and understand their driving forces.FindingsBased on the ISM model and the Matrice d'Impacts Croisés Multiplication Appliquée à un Classement analysis, the authors have identified that inclusive leadership, proactive personality and knowledge creation ability are the variables with strong driving power but weak dependence. Conversely, IWB has strong dependence but weak driving power. These findings suggest that to foster IWB, the organisation should prioritise inclusive leadership, proactive personality and knowledge-creation ability to succeed in challenging times. The study’s findings contribute to the social exchange theory, which explains IWB in a dynamic setting. Additionally, the study helps address the significant concerns that most IT companies face during times of crisis.Practical implicationsThe study provides valuable guidance for managers and policymakers who are grappling with the challenges of improving IWB in the IT sector. This study is particularly relevant as the industry is currently navigating an economic recession and facing intense competition from other tech companies launching new products and services.Originality/valueThis research holds great significance for top executives, line managers and policymakers in the IT industry. It sheds light on the relevance and importance of various factors facilitating millennials' IWB.

Efficacy and Safety of Nipocalimab in Patients with Generalised Myasthenia Gravis: Top Line Results from the Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Randomised Phase III Vivacity-MG3 Study

Efficacy and Safety of Nipocalimab in Patients with Generalised Myasthenia Gravis: Top Line Results from the Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Randomised Phase III Vivacity-MG3 Study

Innovative Programming Approaches to Address Z-Interference in High-Density 3D NAND Flash Memory

Increasing the bit density in 3D NAND flash memory involves reducing the pitch of ON (Oxide-Nitride) molds in the Z-direction. However, this reduction drastically increases Z-interference, adversely affecting cell distribution and accelerating degradation of reliability limits. Previous studies have shown that programming from the top word line (WL) to the bottom WL, instead of the traditional bottom-to-top approach, alleviates Z-interference. Nevertheless, detailed analysis of how Z-interference varies at each WL depending on the programming sequence remains insufficient. This paper investigates the causes of Z-interference variations at Top, Middle, and Bottom WLs through TCAD analysis. It was found that as more electrons are programmed into WLs within the string, Z-interference variations increase due to increased resistance in the poly-Si channel. These variations are exacerbated by tapered vertical channel profiles resulting from high aspect ratio etching. To address these issues, a method is proposed to adjust bitline biases during verification operations of each WL. This method has been validated to enhance the performance and reliability of 3D NAND flash memory.

Development and validation of novel keloid-derived immortalized fibroblast cell lines.

Keloids are a common connective tissue disorder with an ill-understood etiopathogenesis and no effective treatment. This is exacerbated because of the absence of an animal model. Patient-derived primary keloid cells are insufficient as they age through passaging and have a limited supply. Therefore, there is an unmet need for development of a cellular model that can consistently and faithfully represent keloid's pathognomic features. In view of this, we developed keloid-derived immortalized fibroblast (KDIF) cell lines from primary keloid fibroblasts (PKF) by transfecting the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene. The TERT gene encodes the catalytic subunit of the telomerase enzyme, which is responsible for maintaining the cellular replicative potential (cellular immortalization). Primary fibroblasts from keloid-specific lesional (peripheral, middle, and top) as well as extralesional sites were isolated and evaluated for cell line development and comparative cellular characteristics by employing qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence staining. Moreover, the immortalized behavior of KDIF cell lines was evaluated by comparing with cutaneous fibrosarcoma and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans cell lines. Stable KDIF cell lines with elevated expression of hTERT exhibited the cellular characteristics of site-specific keloid fibroblasts. Histochemical staining for β-galactosidase revealed a significantly lower number of β-gal-positive cells in all three KDIF cell lines compared with that in PKFs. The cell growth curve pattern was studied over 10 passages for all three KDIF cell lines and was compared with the control groups. The results showed that all three KDIF cell lines grew significantly faster and obtained a fast growing characteristic as compared to primary keloid and normal fibroblasts. Phenotypic behavior in growth potential is an indication of hTERT-mediated immortalized transformation. Cell migration analysis revealed that the top and middle KDIF cell lines exhibited similar migration trend as site-specific PKFs. Notably, peripheral KDIF cell line showed significantly enhanced cell migration in comparison to the primary peripheral fibroblasts. All KDIF cell lines expressed Collagen I protein as a keloid-associated fibrotic marker. Functional testing with triamcinolone inhibited cell migration in KDIF. ATCC short tandem repeat profiling validated the KDIF as keloid representative cell line. In summary, we provide the first novel KDIF cell lines. These cell lines overcome the limitations related to primary cell passaging and tissue supply due to immortalized features and present an accessible and consistent experimental model for keloid research.

Evaluating Supply Chain Performance through Financial Metrics: A Study in a Manufacturing Industry

This empirical study is based on primary data emphasizing the importance of evaluating supply chain performance through financial metrics, each activity within the supply chain directly impacts both the top line and bottom line of a business. In today's challenging business environment, organizations must prioritize monitoring their financial performance to ensure enduring resilience. The economy of Bangladesh has encountered turbulence due to disruptions such as the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing global political unrest. These occurrences have significantly impacted the business landscape, resulting in uncertainties in both demand and supply, shifts in consumer purchasing patterns, and notable increases in the prices of essential commodities and raw materials, therefore, the overall cost of business has risen. This study investigates the consequences of various disruptions, both internal and external, on the economy, adversely affecting organizations. The ability of an organization to withstand such challenges depends on maintaining robust financial and operational performance. Given the persistent global upheaval, there is a compelling need for an innovative approach to enhance supply chain optimizations, overall operational efficiency, and meticulous budget control and variance analysis aligned with financial planning. This is crucial at a substantial level to ensure positive entries in the profit and loss account and maintain a healthy cash flow statement. This study is done based on twenty-four (24) manufacturing sectors of Bangladesh. To address these challenges, the study advocates an Integrated Supply Chain Performance Measurement (ISCPM) model. This model contributes to academia through a novel approach, demonstrating its effectiveness by employing ten attributes to evaluate supply chain performance, with a specific focus on the financial performance termed Financial Health (FH), an attribute to measure supply chain performance in an organization. The study further elaborates Financial Health attributes into five key Performance Measurement Index (PMI) which are Economic Performance, Cost, Budget Variance, Inventory, and Planning Variance —within the context of manufacturing operations, providing insights into various facets of their impact. The study significantly contributes to the industry for practitioners by bringing synergy into the framework and performance measurement attributes, ultimately adding value to the manufacturing industry.

Beyond Traditional Cost Reporting the Business Strategy Connect

As a continuum of the Beyond Traditional Cost Reporting series, started in March 2024, this article starts with addressing the Business Strategy context and how the Internal Cost Reporting should be able to provide support for the Cost Connect to Business Strategy. While the Business Strategy concentrates on the twin rails of Top Line and Bottom-Line growth, once the Top Line growth strategy is achieved, it is assumed that the Bottom-Line growth will automatically follow. It is like going ahead with full steam ahead in unchartered territory, without a compass or in the present-day context a Google Map. The reason for many businesses failures, point out the absence of cost connect to the Business Strategy. All these and the vital need for transformation of the Cost Management System will be explored in this article.

Effectiveness of AbobotulinumtoxinA in Adults with Lower Limb Spasticity: Top Line Results from the AboLiSh Observational Study (P7-11.020)

Effectiveness of AbobotulinumtoxinA in Adults with Lower Limb Spasticity: Top Line Results from the AboLiSh Observational Study (P7-11.020)

Haofa dog – An indigenous canine germplasm from Manipur, India

A study on Haofa dog was carried out at its breeding tract in Ukhrul and Kamjong districts of Manipur to find out its origin, distribution and phenotypic characteristics. A total of 100 adult Haofa dogs (50 male and 50 female) were recorded for studying physical characters and body measurement. Further, 69 number of observation were also recorded for studying body weights of adult male and female. In addition, 100 Haofa owners were interviewed to study the reproductive characteristics, management practices followed and their utility, etc. The study revealed that Haofa were of medium size with a compact body, broad chest, straight top line and slightly tucked up abdomen. The coat colour is usually black with grey skin while some dogs have black coat colour with white markings in ventral parts and tips of legs. The head of a Haofa dog is medium in size with a slightly trapezoid shape, while the forehead is usually prominent with the straight nasal bridge. Eyes are oval shaped with golden colour. Ears are erect and usually cropped at an early age. The dogs have short coats and their tails are usually semi-curved and docked usually at a young age. The adult body weight and average litter size at birth ranges from 22-31 kg and 3-8, respectively. Haofa is morphologically different from the other exotic breeds, crossbreeds or local dogs found in the state. Hence, it deserves to be recognized as a distinct breed of dog.

Abstract 3613: Screening iPSC lines for optimal characteristics of differentiation into immune effector cells for clinical programs

Abstract Engineered Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs) are the core foundational technology for Century Therapeutics. In our constant effort to identify iPSC lines with diverse functional activity, we have derived a large panel of clinical-grade peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC)-derived and gamma-delta T cell-derived IPSC lines (PiPSCs and TiPSCs, respectively) from multiple donors. These lines have been screened by multiple criteria to select the top lines for clinical development in our iPSC-derived NK (iNK) and T cell (iT) programs. Initial screening included in-depth genomic and transcriptomic analysis of PiPSC and TiPSC lines to eliminate those with any unwanted genetic abnormalities, as well as to build multi-omics datasets for correlating gene polymorphisms and transcript variation to function. Next, all lines were differentiated to iNK or iT effector cells, and phenotypically characterized throughout the differentiation process. In those studies, 86.5% of PiPSCs and 69.2% of TiPSCs lines were compatible with our protocols and able to be successfully differentiated and acquire NK cell and gamma delta T cell phenotypes respectively. Yield and lineage commitment (%CD56+ for NK cells and %CD3+ for T cells) variability was found to be higher across clones than donors in this initial analysis. Finally, we evaluated in vitro cytotoxicity, cytokine secretion, and persistence for all clones that met differentiation thresholds (>90% lineage commitment). As part of that evaluation, 39 PiPSCs lines were differentiated to iNK cells. Cytotoxicity against tumor lines was observed to be consistently between 85-100% at an effector to target ratio of 1:1. Although no trends in functionality were found to be associated with the PBMC donor, iPSC lines derived from CD34+ enriched PBMCs exhibited higher levels of innate killing as compared to those derived from bulk PBMCs. For this presentation, we will present genetic, transcriptomic, and phenotypic correlations with favorable differentiation and functional efficacy and illustrate how our screening process enables efficient selection of founder lines with the highest therapeutic potential for allogeneic cell therapies. Citation Format: Barry A. Morse, Amarin Cogburn, Alex Chialastri, Matthew S. Hall, Ohad Manor, Andriana Lebid, Dae Hwan Kim, Luis Cocka, Daniel J. Perry, Ciara Budd, Aarti Kolluri, Liam Campion, Toshinobu Nishimura, Michael Naso, Hyam Levitsky. Screening iPSC lines for optimal characteristics of differentiation into immune effector cells for clinical programs [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 3613.

Disaggregated defense spending: Introduction to data

Theoretical and empirical research on causes and consequences of defense spending is plentiful. Most of this research uses ‘top line’ defense spending data, either as a share of GDP or as a raw monetary figure. Empirical research has been limited, however, by the ‘blunt’ nature of this data, which does not help to explain what countries are spending on. We introduce a dataset that provides information on disaggregated defense spending from 35 NATO and EU members over as many as 51 years. We discuss the main features of this data in the paper, and the replication files will enable other scholars to automate accessing it in the future. In addition to automating the extraction of NATO and European Defence Agency data on overall military expenditures, we make data on equipment, personnel, operating, and infrastructure spending available in a single dataset. We illustrate the utility of the disaggregated defense spending dataset by replicating canonical and newer analyses using both the overall data and its disaggregated components. The findings differ depending on which type of spending is considered. We found that differences in the relationship between national wealth and defense spending depended on the category of spending considered, as did the tendency toward ‘free-riding’. These exercises shed new light on seminal theories on burden-sharing and the political economy of security. Our initial analysis suggests that disaggregating defense spending is likely to improve the analysis of old and emerging research questions of considerable policy importance, and points to several opportunities to do so.

Assessing HR department effectiveness: managerial perspective in Polish firms

Abstract Purpose This paper aims to determine variations in how different groups of stakeholders, such as top managers, HR managers, and line managers, perceive HR department effectiveness. Additionally, it explores the relation between different views on HR department effectiveness and multidimensional firm performance, encompassing proximal and distal outcomes. Design/methodology/approach The study comprised 150 Polish firms, with questionnaires collected from top managers, HR managers, and line managers within each organization. The analysis involved regression analysis and testing for two regression coefficients to confirm the hypotheses. Findings Research highlighted variations in how stakeholders perceive HR department effectiveness and its influence on organizational outcomes. Notably, top managers exhibited a strong association between HR department effectiveness and firm performance, especially concerning organizational and market performance. Surprisingly, assessments by HR managers and line managers did not display a stronger correlation with proximal outcomes, such as employee productivity and firm growth, compared to top managers, indicating a convergence in perspectives between different managerial levels. Originality/value Viewed through a managerial perspective, this paper emphasizes the significance of (dis)agreement in perceptions of HR department effectiveness at various hierarchical levels. In particular, this article enhances our knowledge of how top managers perceive HR department effectiveness, which has been relatively underexplored in prior research. Furthermore, it underscores the importance of top management as a critical stakeholder in HRM.

Data Augmentation Enhances Plant-Genomic-Enabled Predictions.

Genomic selection (GS) is revolutionizing plant breeding. However, its practical implementation is still challenging, since there are many factors that affect its accuracy. For this reason, this research explores data augmentation with the goal of improving its accuracy. Deep neural networks with data augmentation (DA) generate synthetic data from the original training set to increase the training set and to improve the prediction performance of any statistical or machine learning algorithm. There is much empirical evidence of their success in many computer vision applications. Due to this, DA was explored in the context of GS using 14 real datasets. We found empirical evidence that DA is a powerful tool to improve the prediction accuracy, since we improved the prediction accuracy of the top lines in the 14 datasets under study. On average, across datasets and traits, the gain in prediction performance of the DA approach regarding the Conventional method in the top 20% of lines in the testing set was 108.4% in terms of the NRMSE and 107.4% in terms of the MAAPE, but a worse performance was observed on the whole testing set. We encourage more empirical evaluations to support our findings.

Measuring visually guided motor performance in ultra low vision using virtual reality.

Ultra low vision (ULV) refers to profound visual impairment where an individual cannot read even the top line of letters on an ETDRS chart from a distance of 0.5 m. There are limited tools available to assess visual ability in ULV. The aim of this study was to develop and calibrate a new performance test, Wilmer VRH, to assess hand-eye coordination in individuals with ULV. A set of 55 activities was developed for presentation in a virtual reality (VR) headset. Activities were grouped into 2-step and 5-step items. Participants performed a range of tasks involving reaching and grasping, stacking, sorting, pointing, throwing, and cutting. Data were collected from 20 healthy volunteers under normal vision (NV) and simulated ULV (sULV) conditions, and from 33 participants with ULV. Data were analyzed using the method of successive dichotomizations (MSD), a polytomous Rasch model, to estimate item (difficulty) and person (ability) measures. MSD was applied separately to 2-step and 5-step performance data, then merged to a single equal interval scale. The mean SD of completion rates were 98.6 1.8%, 78.2 12.5% and 61.1 34.2% for NV, sULV and ULV, respectively. Item measures ranged from -1.09 to 5.7 logits and - 4.3 to 4.08 logits and person measures ranged from -0.03 to 4.2 logits and -3.5 to 5.2 logits in sULV and ULV groups, respectively. Ninety percent of item infits were within the desired range of [0.5,1.5], and 97% of person infits were within that range. Together with item and person reliabilities of 0.94 and 0.91 respectively, this demonstrates unidimensionality of Wilmer VRH. A Person Item map showed that the items were well-targeted to the sample of individuals with ULV in the study. We present the development of a calibrated set of activities in VR that can be used to assess hand-eye coordination in individuals with ULV. This helps bridge a gap in the field by providing a validated outcome measure that can be used in vision restoration trials that recruit people with ULV, and to assess rehabilitation outcomes in people with ULV.

Becker Muscular Dystrophy: Could Altering the Natural History of Decline Help Tackle Unmet Medical Need?

This symposium was held as part of the 28th International Annual Congress of the World Muscle Society (WMS), held in Charleston, South Carolina, USA. Speakers reviewed the natural history of Becker muscular dystrophy (Becker), outlined the top line, 12-month data from the ARCH open label study of investigational agent EDG-5506, and aimed to put those results into clinical context. Becker is a serious rare disease with significant physical, emotional, financial, and social impact on the affected individuals and their caregivers. Once function begins to decline, males affected by the progressive X-linked genetic disorder continue to irreversibly lose muscle, ultimately leading to the loss of ambulatory and cardiopulmonary function. After discussing the aetiology of the condition, Erik Niks, Paediatric and Adult Neurologist, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), the Netherlands, presented the findings of natural history studies. They showed that while the age at which decline begins varies, once it does start, patients tend to experience a consistent decline in function equivalent to around 1.2–1.3 North Star Ambulatory Assessment (NSAA) points each year. This finding, combined with data on using MRI as a biomarker of disease progression, provides an evidence-based framework for clinical trial design, he argued. Sam Collins, Vice President of clinical development, Edgewise Therapeutics, Boulder, Colorado, USA, then presented topline 12-month data from the ARCH study. It found that EDG-5506 was well tolerated, and, importantly, recorded the stabilisation of functional assessments, including the NSAA, with a trend towards improvement, as well as rapid, sustained, and significant decreases in biomarkers of progression, including those related to muscle damage. Putting the ARCH study data into context, Barry Byrne, Director of the Health Center for Advanced Therapeutics and Powell Gene Therapy Center, University of Florida (UF), Gainesville, USA, explained exactly how declining NSAA status translated into life-altering function loss. Stabilising function, or even reducing the speed of decline, was an important goal for patients, he said, adding that meeting it could help to address significant unmet medical need.

Hak Waris Anak Perempuan dalam Pewarisan Lingkungan Masyarakat Adat Tionghoa

In the Chinese community, in the distribution of inheritance according to Chinese custom, sons are given priority over daughters. The problem is what is the inheritance system in Chinese society, the position of daughters in inheritance in Chinese customary law. What are the Inheritance Rights of Girls in Inheritance in the Chinese Indigenous Community? The purpose of this research is to know and understand the inheritance system in Chinese society, the position of girls in inheritance in Chinese customary law, the inheritance rights of girls in inheritance in traditional Chinese society. The type of research used is empirical juridical, descriptive analytical research. Sources of legal materials used are primary legal materials and secondary legal materials. Data collection uses library research and field studies. The data analysis used is qualitative analysis. The inheritance system in Chinese society is from the top line of family relationships, namely sons, the inheritance system is given to sons, woman are not heirs because women marry along with their husbands. The position of daughters in the division of inheritance in Chinese customary law is that sons still have priority in the division of inheritance. They still use the prevailing Chinese customs where men have privileges and a higher position as successors to the clan, inheritance when their parents die becomes their right man. Daughters have no right to inheritance.

LONG TERM INVESTMENT: CRITICALLY EVALUATING THE SPECULATIVE NATURE OF INVESTING IN HIGH PE RATIO STOCKS

Price to Earnings ratio is one of the most significant and top used financial metric when it comes to fundamental analysis and investment decision making. Even the market moves based on the expected PE ratio and adjusts itself from time to time accordingly. This study aims at critical evaluation by comparing a stock purchase at a historic date at a higher PE multiple with a current date and calculating returns on both stock price levels as well as dividend yield level over the entire period in absolute terms. It wants to highlight that a purchase at higher PE falls out of the definition of investing and should be categorized and treated as speculative for very clear reasons that are critically evaluated in this study. It is noticed that unless the company grows top line and bottom-line exponentially, a stock purchase at higher PE delivers very dismal dividend yield if any and mostly negative return on account of stock price depreciation rather than appreciation. Hence, such purchase can be said to be speculative as it relies solely on momentum stock price rise for gains.

Top Management Team Fault Lines and Stock Price Crash Risk: Evidence from China

Synopsis The research problem This study examined whether and how top management team (TMT) fault lines formed by diversity and division affect stock price crash risk (hereafter, crash risk). Motivation Prior studies have documented how a single characteristic or the demographic diversity of managers affects real economic activities. However, TMT fault lines, formed by the structure of executives’ demographic diversity, remain untapped in crash risk research. Given the potential monopoly of the TMT on information, it is important to determine whether TMT fault lines influence the distribution of bad news. This study therefore explored how TMT fault lines reduce crash risk through the private leakage of bad news by subgroups and the moderating role of analysts in this process. The test hypotheses We hypothesized that firms with a strong TMT fault line have low stock price crash risk. Moreover, subgroups divided by TMT fault lines have a greater chance of leaking bad news when firms are followed by more analysts, thereby reducing the stock price crash risk to a greater extent. Target population We examined 19,228 annual observations of Chinese publicly listed firms from 2008 to 2021. Adopted methodology We applied ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and moderation analysis to our study. Analyses We evaluated the microgovernance factors affecting crash risk from a novel perspective — internal TMT conflict. First, we performed regression analysis on a sample of Chinese publicly listed firms to determine whether TMT fault lines reduce crash risk and the effect of analysts on this relationship. Second, we performed cross-sectional variation tests for the main regression. Finally, we investigated the effect of a CEO-CFO coalition on crash risk, given that the unequal status of subgroups may reduce the monitoring capacity of any subgroup in a weaker position. Findings We found that TMT task-related fault lines are negatively associated with crash risk and positively moderated by analysts. Meanwhile, the TMT biodemographic fault lines do not have a significant influence on crash risk. We also demonstrated that the monitoring effect of TMT task-related fault lines is stronger when external governance is weaker. Finally, additional analysis implies that the monitoring effect of a CEO-CFO coalition fault line remains effective, but this effect is weaker.