This study investigates the return implications of investment decisions by firms that are subject to incentive regulation (IR). The analysis controls for the mediating effects of regulatory climate and firm size and allows for industry-wide effects by incorporating a control sample of traditional rate-of-return firms. It is shown that the information contents of unexpected capital expenditures and unexpected investment costs derived from the allowance for funds used during construction are positively related to incentive regulation. The results further reveal that differences in IR types are associated with differences in the information contents of unexpected investments. Furthermore, regulatory climate has positive effects on the association between returns and unexpected investments, whereas firm size has negative but weak effects on the association between returns and unexpected investments.
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