Stock splits in a retail dominant order driven market

Abstract

This paper uses intraday and daily data from the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) between 2002 and 2004 to provide evidence that firms use stock splits to bring their stock prices down to a preferred trading range of their clientele base. Stock splits reduce bid-ask spreads and intraday and daily price impact while increasing depths supplied by retail investors who account for 60-70% of trading on the SET. Firms that choose a high split factor experience greater improvement in liquidity. The study finds no evidence that split announcements are used to signal post-split earnings performance.Stock splits Liquidity Asset pricing Tick size Trading range