In the US right now economy, I do agree that it can be a negative signal for employers when quantifying cost but, that outweighs their inherent value of prior vetting done by a major organization. However, if a candidate employee does apply for a role they are more than likely well aware of the possible salary range for the role - pending their states laws around pay range posting requirements. Companies hiring for software developers are mostly already complying with these requirments, as any survey across open roles can tell you.