{"id":61314,"date":"2025-09-18T11:10:05","date_gmt":"2025-09-18T15:10:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/navigating-volatile-stock-price-movements-a-playbook-for-public-company-executives\/"},"modified":"2025-09-18T11:10:05","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T15:10:05","slug":"navigating-volatile-stock-price-movements-a-playbook-for-public-company-executives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/navigating-volatile-stock-price-movements-a-playbook-for-public-company-executives\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigating volatile stock price movements: a playbook for public company executives"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">[vc_row css_animation=&raquo;fadeIn&raquo; content_placement=&raquo;bottom&raquo; column_spacing=&raquo;0px&raquo; wpex_bg_image_source=&raquo;featured&raquo; css=&raquo;.vc_custom_1758208768610{background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}&raquo; min_height=&raquo;450px&raquo; wpex_bg_position=&raquo;center bottom&raquo;][vc_column wpex_bg_image_source=&raquo;featured&raquo; css=&raquo;.vc_custom_1738695614909{background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}&raquo; wpex_bg_position=&raquo;center center&raquo;]<div class=\"vcex-spacing wpex-w-100 wpex-clear\" style=\"height:300px;\"><\/div><style>.vcex-heading.vcex_68e4492f67c90{width:600px;color:var(--wpex-accent);font-size:var(--wpex-text-6xl);font-weight:600;line-height:var(--wpex-leading-tight);}@media (max-width:479px){.vcex-heading.vcex_68e4492f67c90{font-size:30px;}}<\/style><h1 class=\"vcex-heading vcex-heading-plain vcex-module wpex-heading wpex-text-2xl wpex-max-w-100 wpex-mr-auto vc_custom_1740760034678 vcex_68e4492f67c90\"><span class=\"vcex-heading-inner wpex-inline-block\">Navigating volatile stock price movements: a playbook for public company executives<\/span><\/h1><style>.vcex-heading.vcex_68e4492f6ada5{width:600px;color:var(--wpex-accent);font-size:var(--wpex-text-lg);font-weight:600;line-height:var(--wpex-leading-tight);}@media (max-width:479px){.vcex-heading.vcex_68e4492f6ada5{font-size:16px;}}<\/style><h3 class=\"vcex-heading vcex-heading-plain vcex-module wpex-heading wpex-text-2xl wpex-max-w-100 wpex-mr-auto vc_custom_1758207877821 vcex_68e4492f6ada5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/ja\/staff-member\/george-rubis\/\" class=\"wpex-no-underline wpex-inherit-color-important\" target=\"_self\"><span class=\"vcex-heading-inner wpex-inline-block\"><span class=\"vcex-heading-icon vcex-heading-icon-left vcex-icon-wrap wpex-mr-5\">By<\/span>George Rubis and Sarkis Sherbetchyan<\/span><\/a><\/h3><div class=\"vcex-spacing wpex-w-100 wpex-clear\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column]<div class=\"vcex-spacing wpex-w-100 wpex-clear\" style=\"height:30px;\"><\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&raquo;&raquo;]Corporate executives often wake up to unsettling stock price swings with no clear catalyst, news, filings or obvious events. In today&rsquo;s markets, volatile price movements frequently extend well beyond the fundamentals. Algorithmic trading, macro-overlay strategies and exchange-traded fund (ETF) flows often drive disconnects, making market reactions appear irrational.\n<p>These dynamics have intensified in recent years. The rise of passive investing, the influence of retail traders, including retail trading platforms such as Robinhood, and the emergence of &lsquo;meme stocks&rsquo; have all contributed to a market structure that is more fragmented, faster moving and harder to interpret.<\/p>\n<p>For directors and executives, understanding these market forces should be a key priority to help elevate their company&rsquo;s governance, finance and <a class=\"glossaryLink cmtt_Institutional Shareholder Engagement\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;Investor Relations&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt; The function within a company responsible for managing communication and relationships with...&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div id=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_articles&amp;quot; class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_articles_wrapper&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_title cmtt_related_articles_title&amp;quot;&gt;Related Articles: &lt;\/div&gt;&lt;ul class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;li class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_item&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&amp;quot;https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/alliance-advisors-acquires-lha\/&amp;quot;&gt;Alliance Advisors, LLC acquires LHA Investor Relations&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/li&gt;&lt;li class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_item&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&amp;quot;https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/annual-equity-plan-replenishments\/&amp;quot;&gt;Navigating Annual Consecutive Equity Plan Replenishments: Data Insights and a Handy Checklist for Companies&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/li&gt;&lt;\/ul&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryTooltipMoreLinkWrapper&gt;&lt;a class=glossaryTooltipMoreLink href=https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/investor-relations\/ &gt;Read more...&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-link=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/investor-relations\/\" href=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/investor-relations\/\" data-mobile-support=\"0\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]' tabindex=\"0\" role=\"link\">investor relations<\/a> functions. Volatility can affect a company&rsquo;s access to the capital markets, create an opening for <a class=\"glossaryLink cmtt_Activist Shareholder Campaign cmtt_Institutional Shareholder Engagement\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;Shareholder Activism&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt; The practice of shareholders using their ownership stakes in a company to advocate for changes...&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div id=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_articles&amp;quot; class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_articles_wrapper&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_title cmtt_related_articles_title&amp;quot;&gt;Related Articles: &lt;\/div&gt;&lt;ul class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;li class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_item&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&amp;quot;https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/compensation-advisory-case-study\/&amp;quot;&gt;Case Study: Previously, Failed Say on Pay Proposal Compensation Advisory, Shareholder Meeting Advisory&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/li&gt;&lt;li class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_item&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&amp;quot;https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/apac-power-generation-company\/&amp;quot;&gt;Case Study: EGM &amp;#8211; Shareholder Engagement&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/li&gt;&lt;\/ul&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryTooltipMoreLinkWrapper&gt;&lt;a class=glossaryTooltipMoreLink href=https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/shareholder-activism\/ &gt;Read more...&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-link=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/shareholder-activism\/\" href=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/shareholder-activism\/\" data-mobile-support=\"0\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]' tabindex=\"0\" role=\"link\">shareholder activism<\/a> and shape investor sentiment far more than earnings alone.<\/p>\n<p>This article explains the forces driving stock price volatility, outlines best practices for communicating strategically and provides actionable steps to help leadership teams understand what is going on with their stock price.<\/p>\n<h3>What is really driving volatility &ndash; market microstructure in action<\/h3>\n<p><em>Algorithmic and high-frequency trading (HFT)<\/em>. These are automated platforms that execute trades based on momentum, trend-following, sentiment and statistical arbitrage rules. While these algorithmic and HFT participants often improve liquidity when markets are calm, they become more cautious in pricing risk assets with wider bid-ask spreads when volatility explodes. In turn, this often amplifies price moves through rapid feedback loops.<\/p>\n<p>Well-known episodes like the May 2010 &lsquo;Flash Crash&rsquo; of the Dow Jones, S&amp;P 500 and Nasdaq Composite underscored how algorithms can overwhelm fundamentals. More recently, in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic induced sell-off showed how liquidity evaporated when HFT participants pulled back, exacerbating volatility just as investors sought to raise cash in a critical time of uncertainty.<\/p>\n<p>Boards must understand that much of today&rsquo;s intraday trading is detached from fundamentals, driven instead by speed and statistical relationships. This complicates the task of explaining short-term share price movements to investors.<\/p>\n<p><em>Macro overlay trading strategies.<\/em> Global news, interest rate shifts, inflation data and geopolitical shocks often drive exaggerated stock price movements. Quantitative macro and factor models sift through massive datasets and tilt portfolios toward regions, sectors and themes like growth, value or momentum. When multiple models converge, sharp buy or sell orders can trigger unusual stock price swings far detached from company fundamentals.<\/p>\n<p>From 2021-22, surging global inflation forced central banks to aggressively hike reserve rates. For example, the Federal Reserve&rsquo;s rapid tightening in 2022 sparked systematic derisking across equities, with risk assets repriced regardless of earnings results. For corporate finance executives, this meant compressed valuation multiples and narrower financing windows to raise debt or equity, factors well beyond management&rsquo;s control.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Directors and executives must recognise that short term stock price action often reflects flows not fundamentals. All companies should have the tools in place to be able to spot the differences.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Boards and chief financial officers should connect macro-driven volatility to the company&rsquo;s treasury management policy, including capital allocation strategy and timing of debt or equity issuance.<\/p>\n<p><em>ETF flows and index events<\/em>. ETF rebalancing, inflows and outflows add another powerful driver for individual stock price movements. The sheer size of passive funds means that rebalancing often creates concentrated buying or selling trading flows.<\/p>\n<p>A prime example was Tesla&rsquo;s addition to the S&amp;P 500 in 2020. From the 16 November announcement date through the end of 2020, Tesla&rsquo;s stock rose approximately 73 percent, primarily fuelled by index-tracking funds that had to acquire its shares. Similarly, the annual Russell index reconstitution regularly generates outsized trading volume and short-term distortions in shares of small and mid-cap companies.<\/p>\n<p>Executives should anticipate these events and prepare investor messaging accordingly. For companies facing upcoming index changes, explaining to the board and shareholders that such moves are technical, not fundamental, can help manage expectations.<\/p>\n<h3>What should companies do?<\/h3>\n<p>Companies should reaffirm their long-term vision and the fundamentals supporting their value proposition. Ensure alignment across investor decks, management, discussion and analysis disclosures, earnings calls and shareholder outreach. Consistently highlight strategic priorities, execution progress and financial resilience. Market noise is inevitable, and credibility rests on demonstrating consistency and discipline.<\/p>\n<p>Volatility presents opportunities to engage shareholders proactively. Use turbulent periods to connect with long-term holders and high-quality prospects to reinforce trust. Tailor outreach based on shareholder profiles, distinguishing fundamental investors from high-turnover traders who generally do not align with long-term ownership.<\/p>\n<p>Board members and executives should ensure robust processes for monitoring not only their company&rsquo;s stock, but also the dynamics of peers, sectors and the broader market.<\/p>\n<p>The only way for companies to be sure of what is happening to their stock is to use a market surveillance firm to monitor trading in the stock. Market surveillance tracks real-time activity, monitoring order books, trading volume shifts and unusual liquidity patterns.<\/p>\n<p>Market surveillance also provides settlement and ownership analysis to identify high-frequency trading patterns, separate long-term holders from algorithmic churn along with short interest analysis and fails-to-deliver as indicators of market pressure. Companies should monitor securities lending dynamics, including stock loan and borrow rates, particularly ahead of shareholder votes, activist campaigns or other key events.<\/p>\n<p>More importantly, real time stock surveillance monitors and alerts companies to critical trading in their stock that detects early signs of activist involvement, ownership shifts and hard-to-identify activist tag-along investors.<\/p>\n<p>Companies need to be careful of service providers that merely repackage stale 13f data and call it stock surveillance. By the time an activist shows up in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, the benefit of early detection is lost. Monitoring buyers and sellers of a company&rsquo;s stock in real time takes companies beyond standard 13f filers, to include pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, non-filing hedge funds and foreign investors.<\/p>\n<p>Market surveillance tools and accurate ownership analytics can equip executives and their advisers with actionable intelligence and a competitive edge in managing volatility that goes beyond the basic reporting of share price performance and trading volumes.<\/p>\n<h3>Conclusion<\/h3>\n<p>Directors and executives must recognise that short term stock price action often reflects flows, not fundamentals. All companies should have the tools in place to be able to spot the differences.<\/p>\n<p>Boards should incorporate market literacy into governance training. This prepares directors and senior management to evaluate when volatility reflects activism, or fundamentals versus technical flows, and to make better informed decisions on disclosure, capital markets activity and investor engagement.<\/p>\n<p>Executives cannot control algorithms or macro flows or even an activist &ndash; but they can control how they respond. Stay consistent and disciplined in messaging, be transparent and communicate openly with stakeholders, and more than anything else, focus on the long-term drivers of fundamental performance to create shareholder value versus daily stock price fluctuations.<\/p>\n<p>Volatility is inevitable in modern market structures. With disciplined leadership, proactive communication and a firm anchor to creating long-term shareholder value, companies can cut through the noise. Executives that embrace market literacy, monitor <a class=\"glossaryLink cmtt_AGM (Annual General Meeting) and EGM (Extraordinary General Meeting)\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;Ownership Changes&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt; Changes in institutional ownership of a stock over time, including increases, decreases, or...&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div id=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_articles&amp;quot; class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_articles_wrapper&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;div class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_title cmtt_related_articles_title&amp;quot;&gt;Related Articles: &lt;\/div&gt;&lt;ul class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;li class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_item&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&amp;quot;https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/preparing-for-the-2025-shareholder-meeting-season\/&amp;quot;&gt;Preparing for the 2025 Shareholder Meeting Season&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/li&gt;&lt;li class=&amp;quot;cmtt_related_item&amp;quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&amp;quot;https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/alliance-advisors-expands-ma-shareholder-activism-team-with-addition-of-jordan-kovler\/&amp;quot;&gt;Alliance Advisors Expands M&amp;#038;A, Shareholder Activism Team with Addition of Jordan Kovler&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/li&gt;&lt;\/ul&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryTooltipMoreLinkWrapper&gt;&lt;a class=glossaryTooltipMoreLink href=https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/ownership-changes\/ &gt;Read more...&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-link=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/ownership-changes\/\" href=\"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/glossary-index\/ownership-changes\/\" data-mobile-support=\"0\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]' tabindex=\"0\" role=\"link\">ownership changes<\/a> and communicate consistently can withstand the turbulence, ultimately leveraging it to build credibility, reinforce investor trust and lower their company&rsquo;s cost of capital.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=&raquo;2\/3&Prime;][vc_column_text css=&raquo;&raquo; font_size=&raquo;14px&raquo; font_style=&raquo;italic&raquo;]\n<\/p><p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This article first appeared in the September 2025 issue of Financier Worldwide magazine <a href=\"https:\/\/www.financierworldwide.com\/october-2025-issue-download\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">HERE<\/a>. Permission to use this reprint has been granted by the publisher. &copy; 2025 Financier Worldwide Limited.<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&raquo;1\/3&Prime;]<figure class=\"vcex-image vcex-module\"><div class=\"vcex-image-inner wpex-relative wpex-inline-block\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.financierworldwide.com\/october-2025-issue-download\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"sponsored noopener noreferrer\"><img width=\"750\" height=\"185\" src=\"https:\/\/e4h8grreyn6.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image.jpeg?lossy=1&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"vcex-image-img wpex-align-middle\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/e4h8grreyn6.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image.jpeg?lossy=1&amp;ssl=1 750w, https:\/\/e4h8grreyn6.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image-300x74.jpeg?lossy=1&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/e4h8grreyn6.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image.jpeg?lossy=1&amp;w=150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/e4h8grreyn6.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image.jpeg?lossy=1&amp;w=450&amp;ssl=1 450w, https:\/\/e4h8grreyn6.exactdn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image.jpeg?lossy=1&amp;w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\"\/><\/a><\/div><\/figure>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row css_animation=\u00bbfadeIn\u00bb content_placement=\u00bbbottom\u00bb column_spacing=\u00bb0px\u00bb wpex_bg_image_source=\u00bbfeatured\u00bb css=\u00bb.vc_custom_1758208768610{background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}\u00bb min_height=\u00bb450px\u00bb wpex_bg_position=\u00bbcenter bottom\u00bb][vc_column wpex_bg_image_source=\u00bbfeatured\u00bb css=\u00bb.vc_custom_1738695614909{background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}\u00bb wpex_bg_position=\u00bbcenter center\u00bb][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=\u00bb\u00bb]Corporate executives often wake up to unsettling stock price swings with no clear catalyst, news, filings or obvious events. In today\u2019s markets, volatile price movements frequently extend well beyond the&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":50,"featured_media":61246,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[230],"tags":[],"post_series":[],"ppma_author":[644],"class_list":["post-61314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-es","entry","has-media"],"authors":[{"term_id":644,"user_id":50,"is_guest":0,"slug":"g-rubis","display_name":"George Rubis","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/190636b404e5241723cf40500c4e7183a6ceabab9b0805739f41cafd30491d79?s=96&d=mm&r=g","author_category":"","first_name":"George","last_name":"Rubis","user_url":"","job_title":"","description":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/50"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61314\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61314"},{"taxonomy":"post_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_series?post=61314"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allianceadvisors.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=61314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}