This paper examines the change in trading activity around stock splits, adopting a microstructure
approach. The results show that stock splits decrease the bid-ask spread and trade size per trade and
increase daily trading volume and turnover. We also find a decline in the proportion of limit orders and an
increase in individual investor’s participation. These results are in line with the trading range hypothesis.
Stock splits lower the trading costs and attract uninformed individual traders. Their trading through
market orders and marketable limit orders enhance the trading activity. Furthermore, the increase in
relative tick size and the decrease in the information asymmetry after splits are consistent with the
optimal tick size hypothesis and information asymmetry hypothesis, respectively. However, the evidence
does not contradict the expectation of the trading range hypothesis and is inconclusive to be recognized as
a main incentive of stock splits.
Keywords: Stock splits, microstructure, trading activity, the trading range hypothesis, the optimal tick size
hypothesis, the information asymmetry hypothesis