Investment and Expected Stock Returns

Valuation theory predicts that, all else equal, expected investment should be negatively related to expected returns. We study the relation between expected investment and expected stock returns globally. We show that recent asset growth is a systematic proxy for future investment not only in the US, but also in developed ex US and emerging markets. Using this proxy, we find a negative investment effect across developed and emerging markets as well as across sectors in those regions, consistent with the prediction of valuation theory. Globally, the effect is much stronger among small caps than large caps and is mainly driven by the underperformance of high investment firms. Examining the different components of asset growth related to raising of capital as well as those related to use of capital, we find that all components contribute to the investment effect.