A large number of studies demonstrate that
book-to-market (BM) ratio is strongly positively
associated with future stock returns. Chan et al.
(1990) document that BM ratio, along with earningsto-price
ratio, among others, exhibits an important
role in explaining future stock returns in Tokyo
Stock Exchange. In the U.S. stock markets, high
(low) BM firms generally earn significant positive
(negative) returns. Chen and Zhang (1998) also
explore the relationship between BM ratio and
stock returns from both developed and emerging
markets during 1970–1993, and find that BM ratio
is highly positively correlated to stock returns in
the United States, Japan, Hong Kong and Malaysia,
while the relationship is not observed in Thailand
and Taiwa