Ben Blau

Department Head and George S. Eccles Endowed Chair in Finance

Department(s):
  • Economics and Finance
Ben Blau

Contact Information

  Eccles Business Building 611
  435.797.2340
  ben.blau@usu.edu
Personal Website

Education

Ph.D., Finance, University of Mississippi, 2008 Emphasis: Econometrics & Microeconomic Theory 
MS, Economics, Utah State University, 2005 Emphasis: Economic Theory
BS, Finance, Utah State University, 2002 Minor: Economics

Awards

Graduate Research Mentor of the Year - 2015
Researcher of the Year - 2013
Teacher of the Year - 2012

Biography

Ben Blau is a professor and the holder of the George S. Eccles Endowed Chair in Finance at Utah State University. Since arriving at USU in 2009, Ben has won multiple awards, including the 2012 Huntsman School of Business Teacher of the Year and the 2013 Huntsman School Researcher of the Year. Before joining the faculty at Utah State, he taught at the Marriott School at Brigham Young University and received an undergraduate teaching award in 2009. Ben’s research interests include financial development, asset pricing, market microstructure, and banking. He has published approximately seventy articles in academic journals, such as the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, the Journal of Development Economics, and the Journal of Banking and Finance. His article titled, “Signaling, Free Cash Flow, and Nonmonotonic Dividends” won the Outstanding Paper award in the Financial Review in 2010. Another one of Ben’s article titled, “Trade Size and Price Clustering: The Case of Short Sales and the Suspension of Price Tests” won the 2012 Outstanding Article award at the Journal of Financial Research. His research has also been highlighted by several media outlets, such as the Wall Street Journal, SmartMoney Magazine, and Politico.

Journal Articles

Academic Journal

  • Blau, B., Woodward, D., Whitby, R.J, Griffith, T.G, Reference Dependence and Anchoring on the 52-Week High: Implications for Asset Pricing. Journal of Behavioral Finance
  • Blau, B., Fox, C., Smith, J., Della Vedova, J., Equity Borrowing Costs and the Informed Trading Strategies of Short Sellers. Market Microstructure and Liquidity
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, Griffith, T., (2022). Price Clustering and Expected Returns. Journal of Behavioral Finance, 23, 301-315.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, Griffith, T.G, (2021). Income Inequality and Stock Market Volatility. Applied Economics, 53, 4404-4416.
  • Blau, B., Crane, B., (2021). Religiosity and loss aversion: Does local religiosity influence the skewness of stock returns?. International Review of Finance, 21, 478-496.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, (2020). Gambling Activity and Stock Price Volatility: A Cross-Country Analysis. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 27, 100338.
  • Blau, B., Griffith, T.G, Whitby, R.J, (2019). Comovement in the Stock Prices of Banks: The Case of Opacity. Accounting and Finance, 60, 3557-3580.
  • Blau, B., (2019). Price Clustering and Investor Sentiment. Journal of Behavioral Finance, 20, 19-30.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, Griffith, T.G, (2018). The Maximum Bid-Ask Spread. Journal of Financial Markets, 41, 1-16.
  • Blau, B., (2018). Does Religiosity Affect Liquidity in Financial Markets?. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 19, 72-83.
  • Blau, B., (2018). Exchange Rate Volatility and the Stability of Stock Prices. International Review of Economics and Finance, 58, 299-311.
  • Blau, B., (2018). Income Inequality, Poverty, and the Liquidity of Stock Markets. Journal of Development Economics, 130, 113-126.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, (2018). Short Interest, Skewness, and the Efficiency of Stock Prices. Applied Economics, 50, 2229-2242.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R., (2017). Option Introductions and the Skewness of Stock Returns. Journal of Futures Markets, 37, 892-912.
  • Blau, B.M, Whitby, R.J, (2017). Range-Based Volatility, Expected Returns, and the Low Volatility Anomaly. Plos One, e0188517
  • Blau, B., (2017). Skewness Preferences, Asset Prices, and Investor Sentiment. Applied Economics, 49, 812-822.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, Griffith, T., (2017). Bank Opacity and the Efficiency of Stock Prices. Journal of Banking and Finance, 76, 32-47.
  • Blau, B., (2017). Economic Freedom and Crashes in Financial Markets. Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions, and Money, 47, 33-46.
  • Blau, B., (2017). Exchange Rate Dynamics and Speculative Trading in Bitcoin. Research in International Business and Finance, 41, 493-499.
  • Blau, B., (2017). Exchange Rate Volatility and the Non-Normality of Stock Returns. Journal of Economics and Business, 91, 41-52.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, (2017). Idiosyncratic Kurtosis and Expected Returns. Journal of Investing, 26, 81-88.
  • Blau, B., (2017). Lobbying, Political Connections, and Emergency Lending by the Federal Reserve. Public Choice, 172, 333-358.
  • Blau, B., Daines, B., Karl, B., Wade, C., (2017). Key Stakeholder's Stock Returns and the Affordable Care Act. Journal of Insurance Regulation, 35, 1-25.
  • Blau, B., (2017). Social Trust and the Liquidity of Cross-Listed Securities. Journal of Business Research, 78, 155-171.
  • Blau, B.M, (2017). Religiosity and the Volatility of Stock Prices: A Cross-Country Analysis. Journal of Business Ethics, 144, 609-621.
  • Blau, B., Bowles, T.B, Whitby, R.J, (2016). Gambling Preferences, Options Markets, and Volatility. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 51, 515-540.
  • Blau, B., Griffith, T., (2016). Price Clustering and the Stability of Stock Prices. Journal of Business Research, 69, 3933-3942.
  • Blau, B., Hein, S., Whitby, R.J, (2016). The Financial Impact of Lender of Last Resort Borrowing from the Federal Reserve during the Financial Crisis. Journal of Financial Research, 39, 179-206.
  • Blau, B., Liebenberg, A., Wade, C., (2016). Information and Insurer Financial Stength Ratings: Do Short Sellers Anticipate A.M. Best Ratings Changes. Journal of Risk and Insurance, 83, 475-800.
  • Blau, B., Gorry, D., Wade, C., (2016). Guns, Laws, and Mass Shootings in the United States. Applied Economics, 48, 4732-4746.
  • Blau, B., Egginton, J., Hill, M., (2016). REITs and Market Friction. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 46, 1-24.
  • Blau, B., Nguyen, N., Whitby, R.J, (2015). The Distribution of REIT Liquidity. Journal of Real Estate Research, 23, 233-252.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R., (2015). The Volatility of Bid-Ask Spreads. Financial Management, 44, 851-874.
  • Blau, B., Fuller, K.P, Wade, C., (2015). Short Sales, Informed Trading, and Merger Announcements. Journal of Financial Services Research, 48, 143-160.
  • Blau, B., Pinegar, J.M, Whitby, R.J, (2015). Skewness and the Asymmetry in Earnings Announcement Returns. Journal of Financial Research, 38, 145-168.
  • Blau, B., DeLisle, R., Price, M., (2015). Do Sophisticated Investors Interpret Earnings Conference Call Tone Differently than Investors at Large? Evidence from Short Sales. Journal of Corporate Finance, 31, 203-219.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T., (2015). Analyzing the Substitutability of Short Sales and Put-Call Ratios. Review of Derivatives Research, 18, 51-73.
  • Blau, B., Roseman, B., (2014). The Reaction of European Credit Default Swap Spreads to the U.S. Credit Rating Downgrade. International Review of Economics and Finance, 34, 131-141.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, (2014). Short Sales and Options Listing Decisions. Financial Management, 43, 703-724.
  • Blau, B., Tew, P., (2014). Short Sales, Class-Action Lawsuits and Potential Information Leakages. Journal of Financial Markets, 20, 79-100.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R., (2014). The Information Content of Option Ratios. Journal of Banking and Finance, 43, 179-187.
  • Blau, B., Whitby, R.J, (2014). Speculative Trading in REITs. Journal of Financial Research, 37, 55-74.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, Thomas, D.W, (2014). Economic Freedom and the Stability of Stock Prices: A Cross-Country Analysis. Journal of International Money and Finance, 41, 182-196.
  • Blau, B., Smith, J.M, (2014). Autocorrelation in Short-Sale Volume. Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, 54:1, 31-41.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, Stephens, N., Smith, J.L, (2013). Short Sales and Auditor Dismissals. Journal of Accounting, Auditing & Finance, 28, 348-368.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T., Thomas, D., (2013). Corporate Lobbying, Political Connections, and the Bailout of Banks. Journal of Banking and Finance, 37:8, 3007–3017.
  • Blau, B., Wade, C., (2013). Comparing the Information in Short Sales and Put Options. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 41, 567-583.
  • Blau, B., Pinegar, J.M, (2013). Are Short Sellers Incrementally Informed Prior to Earnings Announcements. Journal of Empirical Finance, 21, 142-155.
  • Blau, B., (2013). Informed Short Sales and Option Introductions. Annals of Finance, 9, 365-382.
  • Blau, B., Alldredge, D.M, Brough, T.J, (2012). After Hours Short Selling. Journal of Economics and Business, 64, 439-451.
  • Blau, B., Fuller, K.P, Van Ness, R.A, (2012). Short Selling around Dividend Announcements and Ex-Dividend Days. Journal of Corporate Finance, 17, 628-639.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, B.F, Van Ness, R.A, (2012). Do Short Sellers Trade in Anticipation of Short Interest Announcements?. Journal of Trading, 7, 35-46.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, (2012). Concentrated Short-Selling Activity: Bear Raids or Contrarian Trading?. International Journal of Managerial Finance
  • Blau, B., (2012). Short Interest and Frictions in the Flow of Information. Financial Management, 41, 371-394.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, B.F, Van Ness, R.A, (2012). Trade-Size and Price Clustering: The Case of Short Sales. Journal of Financial Research
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, (2012). Short Sales, Stealth Trading, and the Suspension of Price Tests. Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, 52, 38-48.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, R.A, Warr, R., (2012). Shorting Selling ADRs and Foreign Market Short-Sale Constraints. Journal of Banking and Finance, 36:3, 886-897.
  • Blau, B., Wade, C., (2012). Informed or Speculative: Short Selling Analyst Recommendations. Journal of Banking and Finance, 36:1, 14-25.
  • Blau, B., Brough, T.J, (2011). Is the Trading of ETFs a Bearish Signal. Journal of Trading, 6, 32-40.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, B.F, Van Ness, R.A, (2011). Information in Short Selling: Comparing NASDAQ and the NYSE. Review of Financial Economics, 20, 1-20.
  • Blau, B., Hill, M., Wang, H., (2011). Short Sales and Return Predictability: A Comparison of REITs and Common . Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, 42, 481-503.
  • Blau, B., Fuller, K.P, (2010). Signaling, Free Cash Flow, and Nonmonotonic Dividends. Financial Review, 45, 21-56.
  • Blau, B., (2010). Short Selling in Volatile Markets. Journal of Trading, 5, 14-27.
  • Blau, B., (2009). Intraday Stealth Trading: Which Trades Move Prices During Periods of High Volume? . Journal of Financial Research, 32, 1-21.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, B.F, Van Ness, R.A, (2009). Short Selling and the Weekend Effect for NYSE Securities. Financial Management, 38, 603-630.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, B.F, Van Ness, R.A, (2009). Information and Trade Sizes: The Case of Short Sales. Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, 49, 1371-1388.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, R.A, Wade, C., (2008). Capitalizing on Catastrophe: Short Selling Insurance Companies around Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Journal of Risk and Insurance, 75, 967-996.
  • Blau, B., Fuller, K.P, (2008). Flexibility and Dividends. Journal of Corporate Finance, 14, 133-152.
  • Blau, B., Van Ness, B.F, Van Ness, R.A, (2006). An Analysis of Short Selling in NYSE-Listed Securities . Journal of Trading, 1, 14-21.

Books

  • Blau, B., Brau, J., Holmes, A., (2015). Finance for MBAs. MyEducator *
  • Blau, B., Brau, J., Holmes, A., (2014). Principles of Finance. MyEducator *

Magazine/Trade Publications

    An asterisk (*) at the end of a publication indicates that it has not been peer-reviewed.

    Teaching

    FIN 3200 - Fundamentals of Finance I (QI), Fall 2023
    FIN 3200 - Fundamentals of Finance I, Spring 2023
    FIN 3200 - Fundamentals of Finance I, Fall 2022
    FIN 3200 - Fundamentals of Finance I, Spring 2022
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2021
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Spring 2021
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2020
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Summer 2020
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Spring 2020
    FIN 5600 - Financial Economics, Spring 2020
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Spring 2020
    MSLE 6640 - Selected Topics in Business Administration, Spring 2020
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Fall 2019
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2019
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2019
    HONR 4900 - Honors Thesis/Capstone, Fall 2019
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Summer 2019
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Spring 2019
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Spring 2019
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2019
    , Fall 2018
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Fall 2018
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2018
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2018
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Summer 2018
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Spring 2018
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Spring 2018
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2018
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2017
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2017
    FIN 4250 - Finance Internship, Summer 2017
    FIN 5100 - Financial Markets and Trading, Spring 2017
    HONR 4900 - Honors Thesis/Capstone, Spring 2017
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2017
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2016
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2016
    FIN 4300 - International Finance, Spring 2016
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2016
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2015
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2015
    FIN 3200 - Financial Management, Fall 2015
    FIN 4300 - International Finance, Spring 2015
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2015
    FIN 4300 - International Finance, Fall 2014
    FIN 3400 - Corporate Finance, Summer 2014
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2014
    FIN 3400 - Corporate Finance, Fall 2013
    FIN 4300 - International Finance, Fall 2013
    FIN 3400 - Corporate Finance, Summer 2013
    FIN 3400 - Corporate Finance, Spring 2013
    FIN 3400 - Corporate Finance, Spring 2013
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2013
    FIN 3400 - Corporate Finance, Summer 2012
    FIN 6460 - Investment Analysis, Spring 2012
    FIN 4460 - Investments, Spring 2012
    FIN 4460 - Investments, Fall 2011
    FIN 3400 - CORPORATE FINANCE (QI), Summer 2011
    FIN 3400 - CORPORATE FINANCE (QI), Spring 2011
    FIN 4460 - INVESTMENTS, Spring 2011
    FIN 6440 - FINANCIAL DECISIONS, Fall 2010
    FIN 4480 - PORTFOLIO THEORY AND RISK MGMT, Fall 2010
    FIN 3400 - CORPORATE FINANCE (QI), Summer 2010
    FIN 3400 - CORPORATE FINANCE (QI), Spring 2010
    FIN 4460 - INVESTMENTS, Spring 2010
    FIN 5460 - ADVANCED INVESTMENTS, Fall 2009
    FIN 3400 - CORPORATE FINANCE (QI), Fall 2009