She'-E-Os: Gender Effects and Stock Price Reactions to the Announcements of Top Executive Appointments

Abstract

Recently, we have seen an increase in the number of female executives. Little has been done, however, to assess how investors perceive women leaders. This study uses the market-signaling and diversity literatures to link announcements of appointments of top executives with shareholder reactions, highlighting possible gender effects. Results show that shareholder reactions to appointments of female CEOs are significantly more negative than reactions to appointments of male CEOs. Moreover, women are more positively viewed if they have been promoted from within a firm.

Keywords: Market Signaling, Gender, TMT, Executives, Event Study, Diversity