Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3756-0012

Semester

Spring

Date of Graduation

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

PhD

College

Chambers College of Business and Economics

Department

Finance

Committee Chair

Ann Marie Hibbert

Committee Member

Alexander Kurov

Committee Member

Sabatino Silveri

Committee Member

Susan Elkinawy

Abstract

This dissertation consists of three essays on stock market expectations and financial decisions. The first essay shows significant racial differences in expectations regarding future stock market performance. Using data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Survey of Consumer Expectations from 2013 to 2022, we find that, relative to White Americans, Black and Hispanic Americans have lower probabilistic expectations that the stock market will increase. This racial gap in expectations was even larger during the recession caused by the Covid-19 epidemic, suggesting that economic uncertainty exacerbates this heterogeneity in expectations. Furthermore, we show that relative to White Americans, the likelihood and level of participation of Black and Hispanic Americans in the stock market are significantly more affected by their subjective beliefs about future market prices. The second essay investigates the relation between CEOs’ personal capital gains tax liability and their firm value maximization behavior. We provide robust evidence that an increase in the CEO’s personal tax burden is associated with an increase in their firm’s value. Furthermore, we find that a change in fiscal policy that reduces personal capital gains taxes weakens the positive association between the CEOs’ tax burden and their firm value, suggesting a causal link. Our findings support the notion that tax policy is an important consideration for firms structuring CEO compensation as it potentially affects managerial incentives. The third essay examines the impact of perceived discrimination on U.S. household demand for, and access to credit. Using data from the Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking, we provide robust evidence that respondents who report perceived discrimination based on a variety of characteristics and across a range of domains, are relatively more likely to apply for credit. Furthermore, among individuals who apply for credit, those who report experiencing discrimination are significantly more likely to be denied credit or be approved for less than the requested amount.

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