Jonathan B. Berk

Professor, Finance

Jonathan B. Berk

The A.P. Giannini Professor of Finance

Academic Area:

Research Statement

Jonathan Berk’s research is primarily theoretical in nature and covers a broad range of topics in finance including delegated money management; asset pricing (the relation between stock returns and characteristics of the firm, such as accounting numbers, investment, firm size, etc.); valuing the firm’s growth potential, the firm’s capital structure decision, and the interaction between labor markets and financial markets. He has also explored individual rationality in an experimental setting.

Bio

Jonathan Berk is The A.P. Giannini Professor of Finance at Stanford Graduate School of Business. His research covers a broad range of topics in finance, including delegated money management; the pricing of financial assets; valuing a firm’s growth potential; the capital structure decision; the interaction between labor markets and financial markets; impact investing and professional regulation . He has published articles in the American Economic Review, Journal of Finance, Journal of Political Economy, the Review of Financial Studies and other journals. His work is internationally recognized and has won numerous awards, including the Stephen A. Ross Price, TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award, the Smith Breeden Prize, Best Paper of the Year in the Review of Financial Studies, and the FAME Research Prize. His article, “A Critique of Size-Related Anomalies,” was selected as one of the two best papers ever published in the Review of Financial Studies, and was also honored as one of the 100 seminal papers published by Oxford University Press. In recognition of his influence on the practice of finance, he has received the Graham and Dodd Award of Excellence, the Roger F. Murray Prize, and the Bernstein Fabozzi/Jacobs Levy Award. Professor Berk has also co-authored two finance textbooks: Corporate Finance and Fundamentals in Finance.

Professor Berk served as an associate editor of the Journal of Finance from 2000–2008, is currently an associate editor of the Journal of Portfolio Management, and is a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He has served on the board of directors of the American Finance Association and the Financial Management Association. He received his PhD in finance from Yale University. Before joining Stanford he was the Sylvan Coleman Professor of Finance at Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

Academic Degrees

  • PhD, Yale University, 1990
  • MA, MPhil, Yale University, 1989
  • BA in Physics, Rice University, 1984

Awards and Honors

  • Amman Mineral Faculty Fellow, 2022–23
  • Stephen A. Ross Prize in Financial Economics, 2017 (“Mutual Fund Flows and Performance in Rational Markets”)
  • Fellow, Financial Management Association
  • “A Critique of Size Related Anomalies” selected as one of 100 seminal papers published in the history of Oxford University Press
  • “A Critique of Size Related Anomalies” selected as one of the two best papers ever published in The Review of Financial Studies
  • Bernstein Fabozzi/Jacobs Levy Award, Journal of Portfolio Management, 2006 (“Five Myths of Active Portfolio Management”)
  • TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award, 2005 (“Mutual Fund Flows and Performance in Rational Markets”)
  • FAME Research Prize, 2003 (“Mutual Fund Flows and Performance in Rational Markets”)
  • Roger F. Murray Prize (3rd Place), The Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance, 2003 (“Mutual Fund Flows and Performance in Rational Markets”)
  • Best Paper, Utah Winter Finance Conference, 2003 (“Mutual Fund Flows and Performance in Rational Markets”)
  • Honorable Mention (Teaching), Evening MBA program, 2000–01
  • Honorable Mention (Teaching), Evening MBA program, 1999–2000
  • Smith Breeden Prize (Distinguished Paper), Journal of Finance, 1999 (“Optimal Investment, Growth Options and Security Returns”)
  • Graham and Dodd Award of Excellence, Financial Analysts Journal, 1997 (“Does Size Really Matter?”)
  • Best Paper, Review of Financial Studies, 1995 (“A Critique of Size Related Anomalies”)
  • First Prize, 1996 Roger F. Murray Prize Competition, The Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance (“Does Size Really Matter?”)
  • Second Prize, Chicago Quantitative Alliance Third Annual Academic Competition, 1996 (“Optimal Investment, Growth Options and Security Returns”)
  • Richard D. Irwin Doctoral Fellowship, 1990

Publications

Journal Articles

Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen
The Journal of Finance (early access)
February 6, 2022
Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen, Binying Liu
Journal of Finance
August 28, 2017 Vol. 72 Issue 6 Pages 2467-2504
Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen
Financial Analyst Journal
May 2017 Vol. 73 Issue 2 Pages 25-32
Jonathan B. Berk, Cambell R. Harvey, David Hirshleifer
Journal of Economic Perspective
January 2017 Vol. 31 Issue 1 Pages 231-244
Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen
Journal of Portfolio Management
2017 Vol. 42 Pages 131-139
Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen
Forthcoming: Annual Review of Financial Economics
2017
Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen
Journal of Financial Economics
October 2015 Vol. 18 Issue 1 Pages 1–20
Jonathan B. Berk, Jules H. van Binsbergen
Forthcoming: Journal of Financial Economics
March 14, 2015
Jonathan B. Berk, Johan Walden
Review of Asset Pricing Studies
2014 Vol. 3 Issue 1 Pages 1-37
Jonathan B. Berk, Richard Stanton, Josef Zechner
Journal of Finance
2009 Vol. 65 Pages 891-925
Jonathan B. Berk, Richard Stanton
Journal of Finance
2007 Vol. 62 Issue 2 Pages 529-556
Jonathan B. Berk
Journal of Portfolio Management
2005 Vol. 31 Issue 3 Pages 27-31
Jonathan B. Berk, Richard C. Green
Journal of Political Economy
2004 Vol. 112 Issue 6 Pages 1269-1295
Jonathan B. Berk, Richard C. Green, Vasant Naik
Review of Financial Studies
2004 Vol. 17 Pages 1-35
Jonathan B. Berk
Journal of Finance
2000 Vol. 55 Pages 407-427
Jonathan B. Berk
American Economic Review
1999 Vol. 89 Pages 1319-1326
Jonathan B. Berk, Richard C. Green, Vasant Naik
The Journal of Finance
1999 Vol. 54 Pages 1153-1607
Jonathan B. Berk
Financial Analysts Journal
1997 Vol. 53 Pages 12-18
Jonathan B. Berk
Journal of Economic Theory
1997 Vol. 73 Pages 245-257
Jonathan B. Berk
Economic Theory
1997 Vol. 9 Pages 441-451
Jonathan B. Berk, Eric Hughson, Kirk Vandezande
American Economic Review
1996 Vol. 86 Pages 954-970
Jonathan B. Berk
Review of Financial Studies
1995 Vol. 8 Pages 275-286
Jonathan B. Berk, Harald Uhlig
Journal of Economic Theory
1993 Vol. 59 Pages 275-287
Jonathan B. Berk, Lynn Bartholomew, Richard Roll
The Housing Finance Review
1988 Vol. 7 Pages 31-46
Jonathan B. Berk, Richard Roll
Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics
1988 Vol. 1 Pages 163-184

Books

Jonathan B. Berk, Peter M. DeMarzo, Jarrad Harford
Prentice Hall
Boston
2018
Jonathan B. Berk, Peter M. DeMarzo
Pearson Prentice Hall
Boston
2014

Stanford Case Studies

Jonathan Berk, Debra Schifrin
2011
Jonathan Berk, Nate Blair
2009

Conferences, Talks & Speaking Engagements

In this episode, we take a plunge into the world of financial markets with experts Jules van Binsbergen and Jonathan Berk. Jules is a professor of finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Jonathan is a professor of finance at Stanford Graduate School of Business. They also host a popular podcast called All Else Equal, which explores the science and strategy of making better financial decisions, and have written several academic papers that challenge the status quo.

Jonathan Berk turns the efficient market hypothesis, which popularized the belief that mutual fund managers were “monkey investors” who consistently perform worse than the overall market, on its head to prove that mutual fund managers are in fact highly skilled investors.

Service to the Profession

  • Director, American Finance Association, 2013-2016
  • Director, Western Finance Association, 2014-2016
  • Academic Director, Financial Management Association, 2010-2013
  • Advisory Board, The Journal of Portfolio Management, 2009-present

In the Media

Insights by Stanford Business

December 07, 2023
Communication. Power. Technology. Finance. This year’s podcast roundup has something for everyone.
December 05, 2023
New ideas never go out of season.
May 01, 2023
From VC and ESG to China and crypto — the topics and trends that professors are watching most closely.
April 14, 2023
Why did bankers and regulators ignore a lesson that MBA students learn in the first weeks of our managerial finance class?
December 06, 2022
Our favorite episodes from the past year delve into business topics from workplace communication and power to technology, finance, and economics.
July 13, 2022
It’s in how you evaluate the lesson, not the outcome.
June 07, 2022
In this podcast episode, we discuss how competitive markets work, and whether they lead to good economic outcomes.
May 03, 2022
In this podcast episode, we compare several investment strategies used for achieving social impact.
April 20, 2022
In this podcast episode, Larry Summers pushes back against suggestions to stop taxing companies.
April 19, 2022
Navigating the line between opportunity and uncertainty in the ESG boom
April 05, 2022
In this podcast episode, we discuss what to do when leaders can’t find common ground.
March 23, 2022
In this podcast episode, co-CEO of Fortress Investment Group Pete Briger shares his decision-making strategies.
March 08, 2022
In this podcast episode, investment legend Cliff Asness describes the “superpower” everybody needs when making decisions.
February 22, 2022
In this podcast episode, former general manager Billy King discusses the decision-making process of assembling a team.
February 17, 2022
In this podcast episode, we discuss decision-making mistakes, and how to talk about them.
February 07, 2022
In this podcast episode, Alphabet and Google CFO Ruth Porat talks about the risks of “going with your gut.”
October 27, 2021
A new analysis finds that selling off stocks in corporations that don’t meet your values has minimal impact on their behavior.
March 26, 2020
An open letter drafted by Stanford professors says the coronavirus stimulus package should benefit workers — not corporations and their wealthy shareholders.
March 02, 2018
A new study shows that professional certification requirements benefit providers more than consumers.
July 09, 2014
Research says top managers are good at what they do, yet most investors can’t benefit from it.
December 01, 2008
A finance professor argues that preventing financial crises means creating policies that align bankers' incentives with the public interest.

School News

October 21, 2017
The Stephen A. Ross Prize has been awarded to the co-authors of an important 2004 paper on mutual funds’ equilibrium behavior.
April 01, 2009
Professors Anat Admati, Jonathan Berk, Charles Jones, Dale Miller, Jesper Sørensen, and Sarah Soule, have been honored with new academic titles.