The Strategic Behavior of Firms with Debt

2016 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 1611-1636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jérôme Reboul ◽  
Anna Toldrà-Simats

We empirically study the strategic behavior of levered firms in competitive and noncompetitive environments. We find that regulation induces firms to increase leverage, and this reduces their ability to compete when deregulation occurs. Large and small levered firms adopt different strategies upon deregulation. Whereas more levered small firms charge higher prices to increase margins at the expense of market shares, highly levered large firms prey on their rivals by increasing output and reducing prices to increase their market shares. The difference in their behavior is due to differences in their probability of bankruptcy and their financing constraints.

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 59-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brooke D. Beyer ◽  
Sandeep M. Nabar ◽  
Eric T. Rapley

SYNOPSIS Prior studies document both an improvement (Gunny 2010) and deterioration (Bhojraj, Hribar, Picconi, and McInnis 2009) in the future operating performance of firms engaging in real earnings management (REM) to meet earnings benchmarks. These results suggest that some firms use REM to signal their favorable prospects, whereas others use REM opportunistically. We hypothesize that firms with less robust information environments, more costly REM, and fewer incentives to meet short-term earnings benchmarks are more likely to engage in REM to signal future performance. Consistent with expectations, we find the positive relation between REM and future profitability is limited to firms that have less robust information environments (measured with stock return volatility, bid/ask spread, and analysts following), more costly REM (measured with market share and financial health), and fewer incentives to meet short-term earnings benchmarks (measured with market-to-book ratio, transient investors, and seasoned equity offering). In supplementary analysis, we note that Bhojraj et al. (2009) restrict their sample to relatively large firms, whereas Gunny's (2010) sample includes both large and small firms. Our analysis indicates that the difference in sample composition explains the differing results. We find that small firms use REM to signal positive future performance, but large firms do not. JEL Classifications: M40; M41.


2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (Special Edition) ◽  
pp. 129-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Waqar Wadho ◽  
Azam Chaudhry

In a knowledge-based economy, it has become increasingly important to better understand critical aspects of the innovation process such as innovation activities beyond R&D, the interaction among different actors in the market and the relevant knowledge flows. Using a sample of 431 textiles and apparel manufacturers, this paper explores the dynamics of firms’ innovation activities by analyzing their innovation behavior, the extent and types of innovation, the resources devoted to innovation, sources of knowledge spillovers, the factors hampering technological innovation and the returns to innovation for three years, 2013–15. Our results show that 56 percent of the surveyed firms introduced technological and/or nontechnological innovations, while 38 percent introduced new products, these innovations were generally incremental as the majority of innovations were new only to the firm. Furthermore, the innovation rate increases with firm size; large firms have an innovation rate of 83 percent, followed by medium firms (68 percent) and small firms (39 percent). Technologically innovative firms spent, on average, 10 percent of their turnover on innovation expenditure in 2015. Acquisition of machinery and equipment is the main innovation activity, accounting for 56 percent of innovation expenditures. Large firms consider foreign market sources (clients and suppliers) and small firms consider local market sources their key source of information and cooperation. 63 percent of technological innovators cite improving the quality of goods as their most important objective. Lack of available funds within the enterprise is the single most important cost factor hampering innovation, followed by the high cost of innovation. Our results show that 67 percent of the turnover among product innovators in 2015 resulted from product innovations that were either new to the market or new to the firm.


2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 297
Author(s):  
Richard V. Richard V. Llewelyn ◽  
Wang Sutrisno

The debate over which size industry is best suited for Indonesiacontinues with proponents of both large and small sizes pointing out the benefits of each. However, little empirical analysis has been done regarding economic matters such as technical efficiency. Nonparametric analysis of technical efficiency for three sizes of firms in seven manufacturing sectors is estimated using linear programming techniques. Aggregated input and output data from BPS from 1991 to 1997 are used.Household size firms are found to be most efficient relative to the other sizes for five of the seven sectors analyzed. Large firms are relatively more efficient in ‘Food, Beverage, and Tobacco’ sector. Small companies are relatively less efficient than household firms in all but one case, but relatively more efficient than large firms in five of seven sectors. The results validate and perhaps explain the duel economy in Indonesia with both large and small firms existing in the same industry.When each sector is analyzed for each firm size, the ‘Non-MetallicMineral Products Other Than Petroleum and Coal’ sector is most efficient for all sizes of firms. The least efficient sector is the ‘Chemical and Plastics’ industry.The results suggest that government policy should be focused oncreating a stable environment for business, which promotes growth of efficient businesses, either large or small. Specific policies and intervention for small business development are not necessary, given the relative efficiency of small firms in Indonesia.


2006 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 209-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martie-Louise Verreynne

ABSTRACTThis paper argues that individual small firms just like large firms, place differing emphasis on strategy-making and may employ different modes of strategy-making. It offers a typology of the different modes of strategy-making that seem most likely to exist in small firms, and hypothesises how this typology relates to performance. It then describes the results of an empirical study of the strategy-making processes of small firms. The structural equation analysis of the data from 477 small firms with less than 100 employees indicates among other results that the simplistic, adaptive, intrapreneurial and participative modes of strategy-making exist in these small firms. Of these modes, the simplistic mode exhibits the strongest relationship with firm performance.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 63
Author(s):  
Rawan Al Mohanna ◽  
Lama Al-Kayed

This paper explores the attitudes of large and small firms’ managers toward Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the motivations behind the implementation of such an initiative. The research revealed a gap in the minute number of studies exploring CSR practices the kingdom’s SMEs. There was a further gap in the managers’ motives towards CSR within the same region. As a way of responding to the four proposed research questions, the researchers surveyed 52 SME and large firms. Ideally, the results showed that large firms pursue traditional CSR practices and record their activities unlike SMEs, which follow a contemporary approach to CSR, with little regard to recording their activities. In addition, large firms significantly perceive CSR as an obligation, while SMEs rely on their board of management’s beliefs. This paper provides an insight for the policymakers to adopt different approaches for large and small firms in their implementation of CSR practices in pursuance of satisfactory reports.


2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 361
Author(s):  
Marwan Asri

Banz (1981) and Reiganum (1981) claim that, in terms of returncreation, small firms tend to perform better than large firms. They implicitly claim that the phenomena (which is known as size effect) is stable and exists over the period of examination. This study intends to investigate the existence of size effect in Indonesian market and more specifically, to test whether stages of economic cycle (expansion and contraction stages) determine the existence of the effect. The results of the study show that size effect does exist in the market for the whole period of observation (1991-2001). However, when the period is divided into two parts according to the stage of economic cycle, the  statistical analysis results are not supportive to the conclusion about the size effect.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 2844 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Li ◽  
Wei Liu ◽  
Yong Liu ◽  
Sang-Bing Tsai

A firm’s capability of raising funding is closely related to its sustainable development. With a more efficient allocation of funding among the whole society, social resources will be better utilized. Initial Public Offering (IPO) can indeed be an effective means of raising capital for corporate ventures. Using 1069 firms which completed IPOs on Chinese stock exchanges between 1st January 2004 and 1st January 2013, we investigate the difference in IPO underpricing before and after the 2008 financial crisis. Based on OLS regression models, we find that the IPOs are less underpriced in the post-crisis period. We examine the moderating effects of firm size on the difference in IPO underpricing between pre- and post-crisis periods, finding that small firms experienced less IPO underpricing than large firms after the financial crisis. After applying different model specifications such as Robust and OProbit regressions, the results remain consistent. Our study contributes to understanding the dynamics and influences of the financial crisis on firms’ IPO cost from the perspective of information asymmetry.


2009 ◽  
pp. 21-39
Author(s):  
Vittoria Cerasi ◽  
Lisa Crosato

- The paper analyzes the change in the size distribution of Italian banking groups over the period 1999 to 2007 following a wave of M&As among large banks. Had this process increased the degree of concentration we would have expected greater credit rationing for small firms, given the central role of Italian banks in financing small firms. We measure this change through widely used measures of concentration on branches. First, we observe a steady increase in concentration that can be captured only by looking at the overall size distribution. Other measures do not perceive this change until the year 2007, when the very large banks merged. Second, by focusing on the banking groups that have been active players in M&As we do see a decline in concentration, since smaller players have caught up with the larger ones in terms of rate of size increase. This contrasts with the role of the new entries and the disappearance of banks following mergers, that has increased the dispersion of market shares. The implications are that: i) there is a credit termination risk due to the rise in active players' size, but ii) credit rationing may not occur due to a substitution effect in credit supply from new entries. Keywords: bank market structure; size distribution of banks; measures of concentration; credit rationing of SME; mergers and acquisitions Parole chiave: struttura dell'industria bancaria; distribuzione per dimensione delle banche; misure della concentrazione; razionamento del credito alle PMI; fusioni e acquisizioni Jel Classification: G21 - L11


1977 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 13-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee E. Preston

Detailed study of a sample of more than 200 originally-small firms in a single major industrial area, plus an examination of new business successes as identified by Fortune, reveals five major types of small enterprises, only a minority of which can be described as successful “post-industrial” activities based on new areas of knowledge and new sources of demand. By far the overwhelming portion of the firms studied were found to be operating within traditional “small business industries”, in highly specialized activities with very small total demand, and in satellite roles to major industries or large firms.


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