The price of firm-level information uncertainty

Firm-level uncertainty is difficult to measure in nature. We construct a new measure of firm-level information uncertainty based on uncertainty premium implied by earnings announcement returns. This new measure fundamentally differs from other firm-level uncertainty measures. We find that high-uncertainty firms outperform low-uncertainty firms by 9.59 % per annum on a riskadjusted basis. Furthermore, this return predictability persists for up to five quarters. Our uncertainty measure and its return predictability are primarily driven by the idiosyncratic component. Overall, our results support the existence of an uncertainty premium and cast doubt on the hedgeability of uncertainty.