Empirical tests on the liquidity-adjusted capital asset pricing model

• This study examines the effects of systematic liquidity risk on stock returns in the Australian market.
• We find the different channels of liquidity risk are priced differently.
• Aggregate liquidity risk strongly affect stocks returns in down market, which suggests the liquidity risk is time-varying.
• Liquidity risks are priced regardless of which liquidity proxies are used.

This study examines the effects of systematic liquidity risk on stock returns in the Australian market. We find that liquidity risk, in the form of (i) the co-movement between individual stock liquidity and market liquidity, (ii) the co-movement between stock returns and market liquidity, and (iii) the co-movement between stock liquidity and market returns, is priced individually and jointly in Australian equities. The results are robust to the use of alternative liquidity proxies and after controlling for other factors known to affect stock returns. The analysis across different market conditions shows that the net liquidity risk is approximately eight times higher in bearish markets than in bullish markets. Our overall results support the importance of liquidity risk in the generation of stock returns, particularly during market downturns.