As we mourn the death of Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Jobs, investors are also following what happens to the company's stock.
Few executives of major corporations are so identified with the success of their companies as Mr. Jobs. He was not only the chief executive officer until he resigned from the post in August for health reasons, he also defined the spirit that propelled Apple to become the world's most valuable technology company.
Yet while Apple's shares rose and fell as much as 1.7 per cent during the day after his death, they closed 0.2 per cent lower, their smallest end-of-day change in a month.
Such a modest move is in line with the findings of the study, "Do Investors Care if Steve Jobs is Healthy?" published in January in the Atlantic Economic Journal. The authors, led by the economist James Koch, reviewed changes in Apple's share price following nine health-related events between 2007 and 2009.
"One cannot show that the introduction of adverse information concerning Steve Jobs' health has a statistically significant impact on Apple's share price," the authors wrote. "At the end of the day, it appears that the media gives more credence to Jobs being irreplaceable than investors."