About

Mark D. Walker is a Professor of Finance and the Department Head at the Poole College of Management at NC State University. His research focuses on topics in corporate finance, including financial policies, governance, and restructuring. He has published extensively in reputable journals such as the Review of Financial Studies, Journal of Business, Journal of Corporate Finance, and Financial Management. Professor Walker teaches international finance in both undergraduate and M.B.A. programs. His educational background includes a Ph.D. and an M.B.A. from Purdue University, as well as a B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Research topics

• Business
• Finance
• Economics
• International economics
• Computer Science
• Political Science
• Telecommunications
• Econometrics
• Monetary economics
• Geography
• Industrial organization
• International trade

Selected publications

• Managerial response to institutional investor distraction

  The North American Journal of Economics and Finance · 2024-12-12 · 6 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• PIPEs, firm investment, and viability

  Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting · 2023 · 1 citations

  1st authorCorresponding
  • Finance
  • Business
  • Economics
  PublisherDOI

• Seasoned equity offerings and payout policy

  The Journal of Financial Research · 2022-07-21 · 1 citations

  article1st author

  Abstract We investigate firms that issue seasoned equity following a period of payouts to equity holders. Firms that engage in this roundtrip of equity exhibit strong growth in investment in capital expenditures. Issuing seasoned equity for payout firms does not appear to be associated with future declines in operating cash flow, but rather is associated more with large absolute increases in future cash flow. These firms tend to issue equity when their equity valuations are high, suggesting that market conditions matter. Our findings are consistent with firms issuing equity to use the capital for valuable investments in fixed assets, consistent with market assessments of growth opportunities.

  PublisherDOI

• Belt and road initiative and Chinese cross‐border mergers and acquisitions

  World Economy · 2021 · 18 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Political Science
  • Business
  • International economics

  Abstract The Belt and Road Initiative was introduced to further economic connections with partner countries and foster development within China. We examine the effect of the Initiative on Chinese cross‐border M&As. We find that the Initiative significantly increases the probability and the transaction amount of M&A deals in target countries. Moreover, the market reacts more positively to these deals. We find that the effect is entirely driven by state‐owned enterprises during our sample period and it is more pronounced in firms that are located on the more‐developed eastern coast of China. The evidence suggests that the announcement of the Belt and Road Initiative was followed by economically meaningful cross‐border M&A in targeted countries.

  PublisherDOI

• Direct flights and cross-border mergers & acquisitions

  Journal of Corporate Finance · 2021 · 15 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Computer Science
  • Business
  • Monetary economics
  PublisherDOI

• How Pandemics Affect International Investment: Evidence from M&As during SARS-CoV-1 in China

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2021-01-01

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• The Belt and Road Initiative and Chinese Cross-border Mergers & Acquisitions

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2020-01-01

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Innovation in Urban Transit at the Start of the Twentieth Century: A Case Study of Metropolitan Street Railway’s Stealth Hostile Takeover of Third Avenue Railroad

  Enterprise & Society · 2020-10-28

  articleSenior author

  In 1900, a syndicate of investors used open market purchases and manipulative trading strategies to exploit an ongoing financial crisis at the Third Avenue Railroad Company and stealthily gain control of the company. The acquisition occurred during the first great merger wave in U.S. history and represented the street railway industry’s response to a new technology, namely electrification. The lax regulatory environment of the period allowed operators and insiders to profit handsomely and may have benefited consumers, but possibly harmed some minority shareholders. Our case study illuminates an unusual acquisition, when capital markets were less transparent.

  PublisherDOI

• Equity issues when in distress

  European Financial Management · 2019-05-10 · 6 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding

  Abstract We investigate the role of financial distress in the seasoned equity market. We find that distressed firms comprise about 40% of SEOs and these distressed issuers have worse abnormal announcement returns than non‐distressed issuers. Stock return volatility is an important determinant for announcement returns for non‐distressed SEO issuers but not for distressed SEO issuers. Signals of firm quality are associated with better announcement returns, larger issues, increased investment, improved operating performance, and lower likelihood of delisting for distressed SEO firms as compared to non‐distressed firms. Our findings suggest equity finance is valuable for financially distressed firms with strong growth prospects.

  PublisherDOI

• The Selection of Directors to Corporate Boards

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2018-01-01 · 6 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Keven Yost

  7 shared

• Chi Zhang

  5 shared

• Bonnie F. Van Ness

  University of Mississippi

  4 shared

• David J. Denis

  4 shared

• Diane K. Denis

  University of Pittsburgh

  4 shared

• William Elliott

  4 shared

• Richard S. Warr

  North Carolina State University

  4 shared

• Jing Zhao

  Henan Agricultural University

  4 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Finance

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  1990

• M.S., Finance

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  1986

• B.S., Finance

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  1984