Outstandingly High Values of the Market Value Ratios as a Symptom of Market Informational Inefficiency: A Study on the Warsaw Stock Exchange

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to examine whether the outstandingly high values of the market value ratios co-occurring with low levels of weak-form informational efficiency proxied by the percentage of the stock returns normality tests in which the null hypothesis could not be rejected. Methodology: The weak-form informational efficiency measure used in the study is based on the strict random walk model proposed by Bachelier. The data collected covered the period from 31/12/2016 to 23/03/2020 and contained financial data of the companies listed on both stock markets of the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE), i.e. on the Main Market and NewConnect. The empirical study consisted in comparing the average market value ratios and the market efficiency measures calculated for both the WSE sectors and subsectors. Findings: The analysis of the scatterplots as well as the analysis of the correlation coefficients suggest that the outstandingly high values of the market value ratios do not co-occur with low levels of weakform informational efficiency. Thus, the outstandingly high values of the market value ratios cannot be treated as any clear indication of market inefficiency. Research limitations: The authors encourage other researchers to test weak-form informational efficiency under more general conditions and repeat the study for other datasets. Value: According to the authors’ knowledge, it is the first study making an attempt to capture any connection between the extremely high values of the market value ratios and quantified informational market efficiency in a weak form.

Keywords

• market value ratios
• efficient market hypothesis
• weak-form efficiency
• stock markets
• random walk