Background: When firms grow through acquisitions it is commonly debated whether the two entities ought to be better off as standalone companies rather than as a merged company. This thesis aims at discussing this issue of M&As advantages and disadvantages in terms of source of synergies from the perspective of resource allocation. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to describe and analyze to what extent pre-M&A differences (against similarities) in resource allocation and corporate culture between the acquiring and target firm have an impact on the post-M&A performance. Theoretical framework: Efficient market hypothesis, resource based view, strategic fit. Methodology: A longitudinal study is conducted on the EU market during 1992 to 2002 based on balance sheet and income statement data.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate if the stock market reacts differently to accounting information, depending on the stock market climate. The study focuses solely on stocks listed on the OMX Stockholm 30 during each year from 2005 to 2009. By applying the concept of Earnings Response Coefficient we can estimate how the market reacts to accounting information. The dependent variable in the equation is the market reaction on unexpected earnings, in the study described as the abnormal return on stock. For quality purposes we measure this on a ±1,5,10 and 20 days basis.

Title: Have IFRS made the accounting more efficient for investors? ? A study of goodwill-relevance Level: Final assignment for Degree of Master (One Year)Author: Patrik Nygard and Andreas Pettersson       Supervisor: Markku Penttinen            Date: 2010 ? MayAim: The Swedish banks SEB and Swedbank are on the same market but their goodwill is amortized totally differently and its results will be different. We decided to examine the accounts in Sweden and see if they have been more efficient, from a user perspective, after the introduction of IFRS in year 2005Method:  This paper is made from a quantitative and a deductive approach. We have collected data from all companies listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange between the years 2002-2008 using the computer program Financial Datastream and then made the regression and other analyses and comparisons with the program MinitabResult & Conclusions: We have in this paper demonstrated that how the accounting of goodwill designed is relevant to investors and that this relevance has increased in Sweden after the transition to IFRS. We have also concluded that the goodwill has greater relevance in a rising market than in a downward.Suggestions for future research: In future researches can the aim be to compare other accounting standards changes that occurred in the year 2005 and see if the accounting, from that perspective been more efficient.Contribution of the thesis: We have shown how the account influences investor?s decisions during different accounting systems and in particular how they react on the changed account of goodwill.

This paper tests the information signalling hypothesis on a sample of firms making open market stock repurchases. Using an earnings-based valuation model, we find that a majority of repurchasing firms are undervalued relative to their economic value. This result is consistent with previous academic studies, which claim that undervaluation is the prevalent factor explaining the observed abnormal return following the announcement of a repurchase program. We do not, however, find any evidence that the repurchase is consciously made by management to provide the market with new information. .

This study test the short-termism of companies listed on the market OMX Stockholm 30. We will use a deductive point of view where the purpose of this study is to investigate whether corporate short-term returns can be explained by the independent variables related to corporate governance and compensation practices. This is to investigate whether there is an intentional action on raising the short-term return in order to achieve a higher CEO compensation. In the study, theories dealing with corporate governance and agency theory have resulted in two hypotheses. Basic Hypothesis H1 is: if short-termism of Swedish industry due to the company's short-term returns can be explained by the independent variables related to the company's management and compensation. This hypothesis could not be verified through the quantitative study. Alternative Hypothesis H2 is: the compensation of a CEO can be explained by the independent variables related to company performance and size.

This study test the short-termism of companies listed on the market OMX Stockholm 30. We will use a deductive point of view where the purpose of this study is to investigate whether corporate short-term returns can be explained by the independent variables related to corporate governance and compensation practices. This is to investigate whether there is an intentional action on raising the short-term return in order to achieve a higher CEO compensation. In the study, theories dealing with corporate governance and agency theory have resulted in two hypotheses. Basic Hypothesis H1 is: if short-termism of Swedish industry due to the company's short-term returns can be explained by the independent variables related to the company's management and compensation. This hypothesis could not be verified through the quantitative study. Alternative Hypothesis H2 is: the compensation of a CEO can be explained by the independent variables related to company performance and size.

Development and accuracy tests of advanced exchange trading systems require well adjusted tools for testing. Aptness of these tools are probable to have a major impact on identification of bugs and verification of new functionality. Identifying erroneous parts and bottlenecks of the trading system is of outmost importance for the exchange as a whole since stability and correctness are two of the determinant factors its viability is measured by. This paper covers how this test-tool was created and the motivation behind the design choices made. The tool was created with the goal to be broad enough to cover the majority of cases that could arise, fast enough to be able to test the trading systems speed limitations (i.e.

Title: A new battle, the same bottle: A case study of the visual communication of Absolut Vodka and how it?s positioned towards different market segments.Author: Anna von Friedrichs Grängsjö & Niklas SvanlindhTutor: Jessica GustafssonPurpose: To overview the visual communication of Absolut Vodka and how it?s positioned towards different market segments. Absolut Vodka is a brand that reaches a vast range of consumers through a single consistent marketing strategy. The hypothesis was that one can reach many different market segments with the marketing of a product by constantly keeping some components of the communication the same while constantly changing others. Key questions to be answered are: How do Absolut Vodka address their target audiences in their visual communication? Which market segments does the visual communication of Absolut Vodka seem to address?Method/Material: The research was conducted through a qualitative research study in which four Youtube videos by Absolut Vodka were analyzed.

This paper treats the question about how the internationally established company, Apple, is affected by intern or extern events when it comes to the trade market. The purpose of the study is to investigate if chosen events create abnormal return on Apples stock market. The chosen research area is Steve Jobs three sick-listings, It-bubble and the purchase of the search engine company Siri. The reason of writing about this is the big interest for the stock market and its function.This study methodological starting position is quantitative done by an event study, with qualitative feature done by an interview with an expertise within this area. When analyzing the empirics, we have used the efficient market theory that says that information should not affect the stock market in the degree that abnormal return creates.

I denna magisteruppsats undersöks eventuella långsiktiga samband mellan den svenska aktiemarknaden och aktiemarknaderna i Tyskland, Storbritannien, USA och Japan. Detta sker genom en kointegrationsanalys med Engle-Grangers metod. Undersökningen omfattar åren 1992-2010 och resultaten visar inga tecken på att det skulle existera några långsiktiga samband mellan den svenska aktiemarknaden och någon av de utländska aktiemarknaderna. Resultaten ger därmed indikationer om att den svenska aktiemarknaden tillsammans med de utländska aktiemarknaderna i undersökningen är kollektivt effektiva i åtminstone den svaga formen enligt Fama (1970). Då inga långsiktiga samband existerar bör även portföljdiversifiering mellan den svenska aktiemarknaden och de utländska aktiemarknaderna i undersökningen fungera effektivt på lång sikt..

The purpose of our study is to find out if insiders in Sweden generate abnormal earnings through insider trades. We want to pinpoint the cause for abnormal earnings by dividing transactions after company market value, size of the trade and type of insider. A quantitative approach using the market model have been used. We have conducted an event study over two short term event windows. We conclude that insiders in Sweden generate positive abnormal earnings for sales and negative for purchases in our ?long? event window.

Abstract Titel: Det svenska konsumtionsbeteendet ? En ekonometrisk analys av den permanenta inkomsthypotesenTopic/course: NEKK01, Bachelor thesisWriters: Ida Hedlund, Anna Persdotter Supervisor: Fredrik NG Andersson Keywords: Permanent income hypothesis, Milton Friedman, Consumption smoothing, Sweden Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to examine whether the permanent income hypothesis can be applied on the consumption pattern of Sweden during the time period 1950-2006. Method: To do the observation an econometric regression analysis has been made. The variables tested are consumption, real GDP, stock- and real estate market prices. In the model three different time periods have been investigated to facilitate the origin of different patterns.

The environmental issues have during the last decenniums gained an increased role in both the political arena and in the market economy. The society is therefore more knowledgeable about the environment and our impact on it. Through this enlightened state, stakeholders tend to put pressure on the organizations of today. They, more or less willingly, incorporate this responsibility to be a part of their business. Entrepreneurs in the environmental area have seen this rising market as an opportunity to gain market shares and other positive outcomes.

One could argue that the most discussed topic in finance is whether or not it is possible to ?beat the market?. Even though many people claim to do this, there is little evidence to support the idea that one can consistently beat the market over a long period of time. There are indeed several examples of investors who have managed to outperform the market consistently for a long time, but the efforts of these individuals or institutions could by many be considered to be pure luck.One of the many strategies that have been evaluated by several researchers and is said to generate a risk adjusted return greater than that of the market, is one based on the P/E-effect. This strategy is based on the financial ratio P/E ? price divided by earnings ? and used by constructing portfolios consisting of stocks with low P/E ratios.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate how three banks country funds are performing relative to each other in regard to risk and return. And to find out if there is any underlying factor that may have affected the stock exchange in the different countries.Methodology: The study is based on secondary data and will apply the quantitative method, based on a deductive approach. The sample consists of three major Swedish banks and from them we have selected three country funds. The calculation formulas that have been applied are: Sharpe ratio, standard deviation and Arithmetic Average.Conclusion: The Writers concluded that Sweden funds had the highest yield to lowest risk in both periods in all three major banks. We have also concluded that the underlying factors affecting a country fund.