Straight Talkers and Vague Talkers: The Effects of Managerial Style in Earnings Conference Calls
65 Pages Posted: 24 May 2017 Last revised: 5 Jul 2023
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CEO Clarity
Date Written: May 2017
Abstract
Managers conducting earnings conference calls display distinctive styles in their word choice. Some CEOs and CFOs are straight talkers. Others, by contrast, are vague talkers. Vague talkers routinely use qualifying words indicating uncertainty, such as “approximately”, “probably”, or “maybe”. Analysts and the stock market attend to the style of managerial talk. They find earnings news less informative when managers are vague; they respond less and more slowly as a result. Thus, quantitative information and straightforward contextual information prove to be complements. Vague communications have the potential benefit of tamping down over-optimistic analysts expectations.
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