Organizational Form and Corporate Payout Policy

2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 789-813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bradford D. Jordan ◽  
Mark H. Liu ◽  
Qun Wu

We examine how organizational form affects corporate payouts. Conglomerates pay out more than pure plays in both cash dividends and total payouts (cash dividends plus share repurchases). Furthermore, their payouts are more sensitive to cash flows compared to pure-play firms. The sensitivity of payouts to cash flow increases as the cross-segment correlation in a conglomerate decreases. Corporate payouts increase after mergers and acquisitions (M&As), especially among M&As in which acquirers and targets are less correlated. These results suggest that the coinsurance among different divisions of a conglomerate allows them to pay out more cash flow to their shareholders than pure-play firms.

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Apedzan Emmanuel Kighir ◽  
Normah Haji Omar ◽  
Norhayati Mohamed

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the debate and find out the impact of cash flow on changes in dividend payout decisions among non-financial firms quoted at Bursa Malaysia as compared to earnings. There has been renewed debate in recent finance and accounting literature concerning the key determinants of changes in dividends payout policy decisions in some jurisdictions. The conclusion in some is that firms base their dividend decisions on cash flows rather than published earnings. Design/methodology/approach – The research made use of panel data from 1999 to 2012 at Bursa Malaysia, using generalized method of moments as the main method of analysis. Findings – The research finds that Malaysia non-financial firms consider current earnings more important than current cash flow while making dividends payout decisions, and prior year cash flows are considered more important in dividends decisions than prior year earnings. We also found support for Jensen (1986) in Malaysia on agency theory, that managers of firms pay dividends from free cash flow to reduce agency conflicts. Practical implications – The research concludes that Malaysian non-financial firms use current earnings and less of current cash flow in making changes in dividends policy. The policy implication is that current earnings are dividends smoothing agents, and the more they are considered in dividends payout decisions, the less of dividends smoothing. Social implications – If dividends smoothing is encouraged, it could lead to dividends-based earnings management. Originality/value – The research is our novel contribution of assisting investors and government in making informed decisions regarding dividends policy in Malaysia.


2008 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 213-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jim Hsieh ◽  
Qinghai Wang

AbstractThis paper investigates whether corporate payout policy is associated with insiders' share holdings and their tax preferences. We find that insider ownership and the implied tax liabilities are positively related to a firm's propensity to employ share repurchases. Firms with higher levels of or greater increases in insider ownership prefer stock repurchases to cash dividends. This relation is more significant in years when dividends were more tax disadvantaged relative to capital gains. Our findings are robust to the endogeneity of insider ownership and the inclusion of various control variables such as firm size, permanence of cash flows, growth opportunities, institutional ownership, and executive stock options. Overall, our results suggest that personal tax considerations from insiders affect corporate payout decisions.


2009 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-318
Author(s):  
Safieddine Bouali

Governance arrangement between shareholders, debtholders and managers fix the reinvestment ratio of profits. Residual earnings will appear as excess cash flow to disgorge in dividend disbursements or share repurchases. However, financial crisis stimulates corporation to express highest aversion both to overinvestment or underinvestment, probably in an identical degree. Besides, dissuasion to commit fraud pushes ownership to select a strong dynamical mechanism adjusting held earnings to the preferred reinvestment rate. Focus? Immediate disbursement of free cash flows. This paper shows that self-imposed discipline targeting fixed reinvestment rate under nonlinear adjustment speed can inject itself a “strange” dynamics to the firm, leading to critical losses and a bankruptcy threat. However, one way to reduce this instability is determining carefully the “normal” cash flow which does not trigger the payout.


2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 643-679
Author(s):  
Jin Park ◽  
Hyunseok Kim ◽  
Jungwon Suh

This study examines Korean listed firms’ share repurchasing activities over the period 2006~2016 using the amount of net share repurchases from annual statements of cash flow. Korean firms use dividends rather than share repurchases as their primary payout method. Each year, the proportion of share repurchasing firms is lower than 20%, whereas the proportion of dividend-paying firms is around 70% or higher. Univariate analysis and Tobit regressions reveal that the incidence and amount of share repurchases increase with firm value, size, and cash flow. Our findings do not suggest that low valuations (or poor stock performance) or low debt ratios motivate share repurchases. Korean firms use primarily internal funds to finance share repurchases, as share repurchasing firms experience substantial increases in retained earnings. Share repurchasing firms do not invest less than other firms do, suggesting that share repurchases do not result in underinvestment. Compared to dividends, share repurchases are more positively associated with firm value. Compared to share repurchase, dividends are more positively associated with cash flow and financial maturity, but more negatively associated with stock return volatility. Finally, firms with high controlling shareholders’ ownership tend to choose dividends over share repurchases in their payout policy.


2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 591-617
Author(s):  
Sungmin Kim ◽  
Yongwon Jang

Firms can use dividends and/or share repurchases to distribute cash to shareholders. Jagannathan, Stephens, and Weisbach (2000) argue that managers tend to use dividends to pay out permanent cash flows and repurchases to pay out temporary cash flows. This paper examines Korean firms’ decisions on their choices between paying out cash flows in the form of dividends or share repurchases. We focus on the permanence of cash flows. To complete this analysis, we decompose cash flows into a transitory component and a permanent one of each firm, employing the approach of Beveridge and Nelson (1981). We find that higher permanent cash flows increase the probability of a dividend increase, while higher temporary cash flows increase the probability of repurchases. And Korean firms tend to choose both dividend change and repurchases when temporary cash flows increase, rather than to choose only repurchases without dividend change. These empirical results show that Korean firms take into consideration of permanence of cash flows in the choice of their payout methods.


2016 ◽  
Vol 42 (11) ◽  
pp. 1054-1072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Walkup

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of market-level uncertainty on dividend and repurchase decisions. Design/methodology/approach Using a large data set over a nearly 50-year period, the author examines the choice to pay dividends and repurchase shares using logit and multinomial logit regressions. Findings Market-level uncertainty (measured by a GARCH estimate of volatility, as well as the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index) is shown to have a statistically significant impact on firms’ payout policy decisions. This impact is different for dividends and repurchases as well as for firms with differing levels of cash flows. As market uncertainty increases, firms with low cash flow levels tighten dividend policy to conserve cash while firms with high cash flow levels become opportunistic through the use of share repurchases. Practical implications The findings allow investors to better understand the connection between shifts in market-level uncertainty and corporate payout policy, specifically through the differing use of dividends and repurchases. Originality/value While prior literature on payout policy has focused on firm-level determinants, this study demonstrates that market-level uncertainty impacts firms’ payout policy decisions uniquely. Furthermore, this is, to the author’s knowledge, the first study to differentiate by relative cash flow level, demonstrating that not all cash flow levels react in the same manner.


2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 373-383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Redhwan Ahmed AL-Dhamari ◽  
Ku Nor Izah Ku Ismail ◽  
Bakr Ali Al-Gamrh

This study investigates the effect of board diversity in terms of gender and ethnicity on dividend payout policy when a firm has free cash flow agency problem. It also tests whether the probability of diverse boards would minimize free cash flow agency problem through making large dividend payments is more pronounced in firms with high ownership concentration. We find that our results differ based on how corporate dividend policy is measured, and vary by the level of free cash flows and ownership concentration. More specifically, we find that women’s (Malays’) presence on boards has positive impact on dividend yield (dividend payout), and this effect conditional on the level of free cash flows generated by firms. Our results also show that the role of female and Malay directors in forcing controlling shareholders of firms with substantial free cash flows to cash out the firms’ resources through making higher dividend payments is more prominent when the firms’ ownership structure is concentrated in the hand of largest shareholders. The findings of our study, to some extent, support the government calls for increasing the number of women participation on corporate boardrooms and the participation of Malays in corporate sector.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 1101-1120
Author(s):  
O.V. Shimko

Subject. The article investigates key figures disclosed in consolidated cash flow statements of 25 leading publicly traded oil and gas companies from 2006 to 2018. Objectives. The focus is on determining the current level of values of the main components of consolidated statement of cash flows prepared by leading publicly traded oil and gas companies, identifying key trends within the studied period and factors that led to any transformation. Methods. The study draws on methods of comparative and financial-economic analysis, as well as generalization of materials of consolidated cash flow statements. Results. The comprehensive analysis of annual reports of 25 oil and gas companies enabled to determine changes in the key figures and their relation in the structure of consolidated cash flow statements in the public sector of the industry. It also established main factors that contributed to the changes. Conclusions. In the period under study, I revealed an increase in cash from operating activities; established that capital expenditures in the public sector of the industry show an overall upward trend and depend on the level of oil prices. The analysis demonstrated that even integrated companies’ upstream segment prevail in the capital expenditures structure. The study also unveiled an increase in dividend payments, which, most of the time, exceeded free cash flows thus increasing the debt burden.


Wahana ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 98-109
Author(s):  
Ida Musdafia Ibrahim ◽  
Arif Haryono

This study aims to analyze economic exposures and its factors namely exchange rates and inflation, that influence firm value as reflected through firm cash flow. Analytical method used Ordinary Least Square and eviews as analytical tool. This study used secondary data and cigarette industry companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange as samples along 2008 to 2017. Samples choosing method used purposive sampling based on determined criterias. The results showed that partially economic exposure had positive effects on firm value but insignificant. These could be seen from the economic exposure factors influncenced namely exchange rates and inflations.The exchange rate risk has low influenced cash flow was caused of the tobacco industry has low level of export/import.Enhance,inflation also had low effect on cash flow was caused of the tendency of cigarette consumers will continue to buy cigarettes even though its price increases. In short, economic exposure in the tobacco industry has low influence toward firms value. Hence, simultaneously changes in exchange rates and inflation which are economic exposure indicators have a significant effect on cash flows.  Keywords: Economic Exposure, Exchange Rate Risk, Inflation Risk, Firms Value, Cash Flow


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