Showing papers on "Leverage (finance) published in 2018"

Factors affecting profitability in Malaysia

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors affecting profitability in Malaysian-listed companies. It has been argued that profitability is the main pillar for any company to survive in the long run. Although profitability is the primary goal of all business ventures, scant attention has been paid to the factors that affect profitability in developing countries. This study investigates the factors affecting profitability in Malaysian-listed companies.,This research is based on five independent variables that were empirically examined for their relationship with profitability. These variables are: firm size (as measured by total sales), working capital (WC), company efficiency (assets turnover ratio), liquidity (current ratio) and leverage (debt equity ratio and leverage ratio). Data of 120 companies listed on Bursa Malaysia covering the period from 2012 to 2014 were extracted from companies’ annual reports. Pooled ordinary least squares regression and fixed-effects were used to analyze the data.,The findings show a strong positive relationship between firm size (total sales), WC, company efficiency (assets turnover ratio) and profitability. The results also show a negative relationship between both debt equity ratio and leverage ratio and profitability. Liquidity (current ratio) has no significant relationship with profitability.,Due to the time limitation, the data includes only 120 companies listed in bursa Malaysia and covers the period from 2012 to 2014.,These results benefit internal users (such as mangers, shareholders and employees). They can realize the determinants of enhancing the profitability of their company after the depreciation of the Malaysian currency and therefore concentrate more on the factors that enhance their companies’ profitability. On the other side, other external users (such as investors, creditors, new established companies, tax authority) also may get advantages of these results. It is clear that those users concern about the profitability of companies and the determinants of their profitability after the currency’s depreciation.,This study differs than previous studies in many ways: first, it focuses on non-financial listed companies in Malaysia. Previous studies have concentrated on companies in the financial sector, such as banking and financial institutions or on industrial organizations. Second, this study analyzes the data in companies’ annual reports for a three-year period from 2012 to 2014. During this period, the economy in Malaysia was fluctuating due to currency depreciation. Third, the study used both return on equity and earnings per share as indicators of profitability. Fourth, the results of the study provide empirical evidence that large size firms with efficiently managed assets can improve operating income and ultimately enhance profitability. Last but not least, this study applies the resource-based theory and the trade-off theory.

Debt Overhang, Rollover Risk, and Corporate Investment: Evidence from the European Crisis

Abstract: We quantify the role of financial leverage behind the sluggish post-crisis investment performance of European firms. We use a cross-country firm-bank matched database to identify separate roles for firm leverage, bank balance sheet weaknesses arising from sovereign risk, and aggregate demand conditions. We find that firms with higher debt levels reduce their investment more after the crisis. This negative effect is stronger for firms holding short-term debt in countries with sovereign stress, consistent with rollover risk being an important channel influencing investment. The negative effect of firm leverage on investment is persistent for several years after the shock in the countries with sovereign stress. The corporate leverage channel can explain 40 percent of the cumulative decline in aggregate investment over four years after the crisis.

Exploring the impact of intellectual capital on company reputation and performance

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to analyse the impact of intellectual capital (IC) on the reputation and performance of Italian companies.,The paper exploits a unique data set of 452 non-listed companies that obtained a reputational assessment from the Italian Competition Authority (ICA). To test the hypotheses, this study implemented several regression analyses.,Results support the argument that human capital efficiency is a key driver of corporate reputation. Findings also reveal that companies, which obtained reputational rating under ICA scrutiny, show a positive relationship between IC elements and various measures of financial performance.,The study focuses on a single country; it is not free from the imprecisions of Pulic’s VAIC model.,This paper recommends companies that are interested to achieve a robust reputation should consider the human capital as a strategic intangible asset. Second, the results suggest that companies with an ICA reputational rating are able to leverage their intangibles to potentiate performance and competitiveness.,This is the first empirical investigation on the contribution of IC in generating value for corporate reputation. Additionally, the study contributes to the literature on the link between IC and performance by examining a sample of firms not yet explored in prior research.

Macroeconomic factors, firm characteristics and financial performance: A study of selected quoted manufacturing firms in Nigeria

Abstract: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the interrelationship between macroeconomic factors, firm characteristics and financial performance of quoted manufacturing firms in Nigeria. Specifically, the study investigates the effect of interest rate, inflation rate, exchange rate and the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate, while the firm characteristics were size, leverage and liquidity. The dependent variable financial performance is measured as return on assets (ROA). Design/methodology/approach The study used the ex post facto research design. The population comprised all quoted manufacturing firms on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. The sample was restricted to companies in the consumer goods sector, selected using non-probability sampling method. The study used multiple linear regression as the method of validating the hypotheses. Findings The study finds no significant effect for interest rate and exchange rate, but a significant effect for inflation rate and GDP growth rate on ROA. Second, the firm characteristics showed that firm size, leverage and liquidity were significant. Practical implications The study has implications for regulators and policy makers in formulating policy decisions. In addition, managers may better understand the interplay between macroeconomic factors, firm characteristics and profitability of firms. Originality/value Few studies have addressed the interplay of macroeconomic factors and firm characteristics in determining the profitability of manufacturing firms in the country and developing countries in general.

The Impact of Capital Structure on Risk and Firm Performance: Empirical Evidence for the Bucharest Stock Exchange Listed Companies

Abstract: This paper analyzes the evolution of the main theories regarding the capital structure and the related impact on risk and corporate performance. The capital structure is a dynamic process that changes over time, depending on the variables that influence the overall evolution of the economy, a particular sector, or a company. It may also change depending on the company’s forecasts of its expected profitability, capital structure being, in fact, a risk–return compromise. This study contributes to the literature by investigating the drivers of capital structure of the firms from the Romanian market. For the econometric analysis, we applied multivariate fixed-effects regressions, as well as dynamic panel-data estimations (two-step system generalized method of moments, GMM) on a panel comprising the companies listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange. The analyzed period, 2000–2016, covers a cycle with significant changes in the Romanian economy. Our results showed that leverage is positively correlated with the size of the company and the share price volatility. On the other hand, the debt structure has a different impact on corporate performance, whether this calculated on accounting measures or seen as market share price evolution.

Equity SRI funds vacillate between ethics and money: an analysis of the funds' stock holding decisions

Abstract: We provide a detailed holdings-based analysis of investment decisions made by U.S. equity SRI funds. Besides incorporating conventional fundamental factors, such as earnings growth, leverage, dividend yield, stock return and volatility, SRI funds adjust portfolio weights by considering companies’ relative ESG performance. This holds for all categories of passively and actively managed funds, while for active funds ESG scores have a higher economic impact for value rather than growth funds. The timing of inclusion of companies in active SRI funds or their exclusion is driven primarily by fundamentals rather than by ESG performance. We find that both active SRI and matched conventional funds integrate ESG information as well as financial criteria in their investment decisions, but SRI portfolios exhibit higher average sustainability scores. Finally, we posit that SRI screening criteria effectively guide investment decisions, positive screening resulting in higher active portfolio weights of best performers in a corresponding ESG pillar.

Flexibility in Income Shifting under Losses

Abstract: This study examines the flexibility of multinational firms to adjust their income-shifting strategies—whether using transfer pricing or internal debt—during the tax year to react to affiliates' operating losses. We develop the concept that under flexibility, multinationals can adjust their inter-affiliate payments ex post (i.e., after financial outcomes are revealed, but before the end of the tax year) to minimize worldwide tax payments. Without flexibility, multinationals must commit to their affiliates' income-shifting strategies ex ante (i.e., before financial outcomes are revealed). Our central prediction is that under ex post income shifting, loss affiliates report lower transfer prices and internal leverage than profitable affiliates; under ex ante income shifting, affiliates report the same transfer prices and internal capital structure, regardless of making losses. Using novel data on direct transfer payments and internal debt of Norwegian affiliates, we find empirical evidence that tran...

Margin Requirements and the Security Market Line

Abstract: Between 1934 and 1974, the Federal Reserve changed the initial margin requirement for the U.S. stock market 22 times. I use this variation to show that investors' leverage constraints affect the pricing of risk. Consistent with earlier theoretical predictions, I find that tighter leverage constraints result in a flatter relation between betas and expected returns. My results provide strong empirical support for the idea that the constraints investors face may help explain the empirical failure of the capital asset pricing model.

Determinants of capital structure: evidence from Shari'ah compliant and non-compliant firms

Abstract: Many Muslim individual and institutional investors seek to invest only in stocks that are compliant with the Shari'ah (i.e. Islamic law). Among others, Dow Jones addressed this demand and has developed their proprietary screening methodologies to identify Shari'ah compliant firms (SC). One key factor that distinguishes SC firms from their non-compliant peers (SNC) is that the former is not allowed to cross the leverage threshold of 33%. Due to the restrictions imposed on them, it is expected that SC firms exhibit different capital structure compared to the SNC firms. The purpose of this initial comparative study is to analyze the most reliable debt determinants identified in the literature on both firm types. This study utilizes static panel data techniques on the sample consisting of SC and SNC firms from 7 countries and 7 industries over the years 2004–2014. Our study is inconclusive and it shows that most of the determinants do exhibit different effects among both firm types. Depending on the leverage measure, the effect of different independent variables on firms' capital structure varies. A uniform effect can be exerted for debt determinants profitability for both leverage measures, and growth opportunities, firm size and tangibility for market leverage only. Our robustness tests reveal that the impact of some debt determinants on firms leverage remains consistent. The coefficient sign and significance suggests, that the capital structure decision of both firm types, both are better explained by the Pecking Order Theory for book and by the Trade-Off Theory for market leverage, respectively.

Homeowner Borrowing and Housing Collateral: New Evidence from Expiring Price Controls

Abstract: I empirically analyze how changes to the collateral value of real estate assets affect homeowner borrowing behavior. While previous research has documented a positive relationship between house prices and home-equity based borrowing, a key empirical challenge has been to disentangle the role of collateral constraints from that of wealth effects in generating this relationship. To isolate the role of collateral constraints, I exploit the expiration of resale price controls on owner-occupied housing units created through an inclusionary zoning regulation in Montgomery County, Maryland. Because the duration and stringency of the price controls are set by formula and known in advance, their expiration has no effect on expected lifetime wealth but directly shocks collateralized borrowing capacity. Using data on all transactions and loans secured against every property in the county from 1997‐2012, I estimate that the marginal propensity to borrow out of increases in housing collateral induced by expiring price controls is between $0.04 and $0.13. The magnitude of this effect is correlated with a homeowner’s initial leverage and indicates that a significant fraction of the additional borrowing arising from house price increases is due to relaxing collateral constraints. Additional analysis of residential investment and ex-post loan performance further suggests that borrowers used at least some portion of the extracted funds to finance current consumption and investment expenditures. These results highlight the importance of collateral constraints for homeowner borrowing and suggest a potentially important role for house price growth in driving aggregate consumption.

Leverage over the Life Cycle and Implications for Firm Growth and Shock Responsiveness

Abstract: We study the leverage of U.S. firms over their life-cycles, and the connection between firm leverage, firm growth, and aggregate shocks. We construct a new dataset that combines private and public firms’ balance sheets with firm-level data from U.S. Census Bureau’s Longitudinal Business Database (LBD) for the period 2005–2012. Public and private firms exhibit different leverage dynamics over their life-cycles. Firm age and size are systematically related to leverage for private firms, but not for public firms. We show that private firms, but not public ones, deleveraged during the Great Recession, and that this deleveraging is associated with a reduction in firm revenue and employment growth. Exploiting sectoral variation, we find that the leverage dynamics of firms is also relevant for aggregate fluctuations.

Aggregate Implications of Corporate Debt Choices

Abstract: This article studies the transmission of financial shocks in a model where corporate credit is intermediated via both banks and bond markets. In choosing between bank and bond financing, firms trade-off the greater flexibility of banks in case of financial distress against the lower marginal costs of large bond issuances. I find that, in response to a contraction in bank credit supply, aggregate bond issuance in the corporate sector increases, but not enough to avoid a decline in aggregate borrowing and investment. Keeping leverage constant while retiring bank debt would expose firms to a higher risk of financial distress; they offset this by reducing total borrowing. A calibration of the model to the Great Recession indicates that this precautionary mechanism can account for one-third of the total decline in investment by firms with access to bond markets.

Impact of financial leverage on profitability of listed manufacturing firms in China

Abstract: The purpose of the study is to explore how financial leverage influences profitability of 1,503 listed manufacturing firms in China.,The sample of the study is composed of the listed manufacturing firms in China. For the manufacturing firms, the annual financial information from 2008 to 2016 is obtained from the ORBIS database. In this study, initially a simultaneous equation approach is used to control for potential endogeneity. Then, additional regression analyses are conducted with panel data over the period of 2008-2016 using OLS, Fixed-effects, First-difference, Random-effects and Arellano and Bond’s (1991) two-step Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) methods.,The results reveal that the impact of leverage on profitability is inverted U-shaped. In this inverted U-shaped relationship, the positive impact of financial leverage on profitability could be attributed to tax shield, whereas the negative impact might be because of bankruptcy cost, financial distress, severe agency problems and information asymmetry that the listed Chinese firms suffer from because of some institutional characteristics of China.,First, this study focuses on only listed manufacturing firms in China. Second, ownership types are not taken into account in this study.,First, the Chinese government should direct its efforts toward developing the bond markets and promoting alternative privately owned loan creditors to state-owned banks. Parallel to this, the transformation process toward market economy should be accelerated to facilitate the privatization of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). In addition to this, development of the bond market and privatization of SOEs will also mitigate the agency conflict between creditors and managers and between shareholders and managers.,To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study which investigates the impact of capital structure on profitability of the listed firms in China.

Buffett's Alpha

Abstract: Berkshire Hathaway has realized a Sharpe ratio of 0.76, higher than any other stock or mutual fund with a history of more than 30 years, and Berkshire has a significant alpha to traditional risk factors. However, we find that the alpha becomes insignificant when controlling for exposures to Betting-Against-Beta and Quality-Minus-Junk factors. Further, we estimate that Buffett’s leverage is about 1.6-to-1 on average. Buffett’s returns appear to be neither luck nor magic, but, rather, reward for the use of leverage combined with a focus on cheap, safe, quality stocks. Decomposing Berkshires’ portfolio into ownership in publicly traded stocks versus wholly-owned private companies, we find that the former performs the best, suggesting that Buffett’s returns are more due to stock selection than to his effect on management. These results have broad implications for market efficiency and the implementability of academic factors.

The Impact of Enterprise Risk Management on Firm Value: Empirical Evidence from Romanian Non-financial Firms

Abstract: Enterprise risk management (ERM) represents a significant change in the way firms manage risks. In the last years an increasing number of non-financial firms from emerging economies started to implement a holistic framework for risk management. The aim of the paper is to investigate the effects of ERM implementation on the firm value in different economic environments. Using a sample of Romanian listed firms for the pre-crisis period (2001-2007), we found that ERM adoption is associated with higher firm values, indicated by a Tobin’s Q premium of roughly 46.5%. We also found a positive and statistically significant relationship between size, leverage, on one hand, and firm value, on the other hand. Extending our sample over the financial crisis period (2001-2011), we found that ERM does not affect firm value in any significant manner. Our results lend support for the recent pressure on firms to adopt more integrated and comprehensive risk management systems.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ee.29.2.16426

Investor sentiment and price discovery: Evidence from the pricing dynamics between the futures and spot markets

Abstract: This study examines the role of investor sentiment in the pricing dynamics between the spot and futures markets The empirical evidence suggests that investor sentiment has a positive impact on price volatility and the bid–ask spread on both the spot and futures markets, which induces higher arbitrage risk and trading costs during high sentiment periods Consequently, during high sentiment periods, informed traders become less willing to leverage their information advantages on the futures market, which diminishes the futures markets’ leading informational role and contributions to price discovery Our findings provide support for the theory of limits to arbitrage

Climate Transition Risk and Development Finance: A Carbon Risk Assessment of China's Overseas Energy Portfolios

Abstract: The role of development finance institutions in low‐income and emerging countries is fundamental to provide long‐term capital for investments in climate mitigation and adaptation. Nevertheless, development finance institutions still lack sound and transparent metrics to assess their projects' exposure to climate risks and their impact on global climate action. To attempt to fill this gap, we develop a novel climate stress‐test methodology for portfolios of loans to energy infrastructure projects. We apply the methodology to the portfolios of overseas energy projects of two main Chinese policy banks. We estimate their exposure to economic and financial shocks that would result in government inability to introduce timely 2°C‐aligned climate policies and from investors' inability to adapt their business to the changing climate and policy environment. We find that the negative shocks are mostly concentrated on coal and oil projects and vary across regions from 4.2 to 22 percent of the total loan value. Given the current leverage of Chinese policy banks, these losses could induce severe financial distress, with implications on macroeconomic and financial stability.

The impact of family ownership on capital structure of firms: Exploring the role of zero-leverage, size, location and the global financial crisis:

Abstract: In this article, we investigate the influence of family ownership on firm leverage across different subgroups of family and non-family firms. In addition, we examine the influence of firm size, geographical location and the 2008 global financial crisis on the capital structure of family firms. In both cases, we study the probability of firms using debt and, conditional on its use, the proportion of debt issued. We find that family ownership affects both decisions positively, namely, when the firm is large or located in a metropolitan area. For small firms located outside metropolitan areas, there is no clear family ownership effect. We also find the 2008 crisis had a substantial, but diversified, impact on family firm leverage. On the one hand, all family firms were more prone to use debt after 2008; on the other, the proportion of debt held by levered family firms decreased for micro and small firms, but increased for large firms. Overall, the crisis effects on family firm leverage seem to be the result ...

Do Commodities Add Economic Value in Asset Allocation? New Evidence from Time-Varying Moments

Abstract: We conduct a comprehensive out-of-sample assessment of the economic value adding of commodities in multiasset investment strategies that exploit the predictability of asset return moments. We find that predictability makes the inclusion of commodities profitable even when short selling and high leverage are not permitted. For instance, a mean-variance (non-mean-variance) investor with moderate risk aversion and leverage, rebalancing quarterly, would be willing to pay up to 108 (155) basis points per year after transaction cost for adding commodities to her stock, bond, and cash portfolio. Previous research had reached mixed or even opposite conclusions, especially in an out-of-sample context.

Corporate governance, globalization and firm performance in emerging economies: Evidence from India

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine relationship between corporate governance (CG) and firm performance for a set of 255 foreign-funded firms in the form of foreign direct investment (FDI) and private equity (PE). The authors employ a wide range of CG measures including board size, meetings, board gender and foreign ownership which are used as the proxy of globalisation and control variables like firm age, leverage, firm size and capital expenditure to arrive at a conclusion.,Panel data set of 255 (187 companies funded by foreign capital in the form of FDI, and 68 companies having foreign capital in the form PE) companies listed on Bombay Stock Exchange, for the period of eight years (2008–2015) are analysed by using static (fixed and random effects) and dynamic (generalised method of moments (GMM)) panel data specifications to examine the relationship among CG, globalisation and firm performance.,The empirical results of static model indicate the relationship between CG and performance of foreign firms, which are not very strong in India. This is due to the fact that most of the firms are not following the guidelines and regulations strictly in the initial period of sample years. Diversity in board is found as an important variable in accessing firm performance. And the authors also found that foreign firms are very particular about the implementation of CG norms. The results of GMM model highlight the interaction term of foreign ownership with governance indicators. CG is having a positive and significant impact over performance, inferring that higher foreign ownership (in the form of FDI and PE) in firm leading to positive effect on profitability.,The investor’s preference of financing a unit is guided by the performance of a firm. Investors are more inclined towards high-performing firms, and hence higher profitability leads to higher inflow of capital. The result indicates that higher accounting and market performance may be achieved by good governance practices, in turn, leading to reduced agency costs. Countries with high governance scores attract more of foreign capital. Similar to the best governed countries, the companies having good governance practices attract more foreign inflows in the form of capital.,While previous literature considered a single measurement framework in the form of a CG index, the authors tried to incorporate a range of CG indicators to study the effect of globalisation and CG on firm performance. The authors segregated foreign-owned funds into two parts, especially FDI and PE. This paper examined heterogeneity in the form of FDI-funded and PE-funded firms, as no prior literature is available which has evaluated different sets of foreign funds simultaneously on CG.

Payments, credit and asset prices

Abstract: This paper studies a modern monetary economy: trade in both goods and securities relies on money provided by intermediaries. While money is valued for its liquidity, its creation requires costly leverage. In ation, security prices and the transmission of monetary policy then depend on the institutional details of the payment system. The price of a security is higher if it helps back inside money, and lower if more inside money is used to trade it. In ation can be low in security market busts if bank portfolios suffer, but also in booms if trading absorbs more money. The government has multiple policy tools: in addition to the return on outside money, it affects the mix of securities used to back inside money.