Performance and stock return in Australian banking

This paper examines the relationship between the total shareholder return (TSR) and performance of Australian banks over the period 2001-2010. In particular, it investigates whether returns of banks in the stock market can be explained by changes in their performance. First, we use a weighted financial ratio-based Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model to estimate the performance of banks. We then regress changes in performance against the total shareholder returns to investigate their relationship. The results indicate that changes in performance are reflected in TSR. That is, well-performed banks tend to generate more return for their stockholders.