Shane Underwood

Professional Summary

Shane Underwood is a professor of Finance and the holder of the Pat and Thomas R. Powers Chair of Investment Management. He earned a PhD in Finance from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Underwood served as chair of the Finance Department from 2019 to 2025.

Prior to joining the Baylor faculty in 2016, Underwood held academic positions at Rice University and the University of Alabama. He has published papers in top finance journals including the Journal of Financial Economics and Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. His current research interests center on institutional investing.

Underwood serves as the organizer of the Christian Finance Faculty Association and is passionate about helping Baylor students see the world of investments and financial markets through a Christian lens.

Education

• 2004 - PhD, Finance, The Wharton School - University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• 2001 - MA, Finance, The Wharton School - University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• 1999 - BS, Quantitative Finance, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Courses

• FIN 3310 – Introduction to Corporate Finance

Research Interests

• Mutual Fund and Hedge Fund Performance
• Institutional Investor Communications
• Trust in Financial Markets

Selected Publications

• Ellis, J., Madureira, L., and Underwood, S. (2020). The Causal Effects of Proximity on Investment:  Evidence from Flight Introductions. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 55(6), 1978-2004.
• Grullon, G., Underwood, S., and Weston, J. (2014).  Comovement and Investment Banking Networks.  Journal of Financial Economics, 113(1), 73-89.
• Grullon, G., Paye, B., Underwood, S., and Weston, J. (2011). Has the Propensity to Payout Declined?.  Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 46(1), 1-24.
• Downing, C., Underwood, S., and Xing, Y. (2009). The Relative Informational Efficiency of Stocks and Bonds:  An Intraday Analysis.  Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 44(5), 1081-1102.
• Madureira, L., and Underwood, S. (2009). Information, Sell-Side Research, and Market Making.  Journal of Financial Economics, 90(2), 105-126.