Working capital management and firm’s valuation, profitability and risk

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben Le

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of working capital management on firm valuation, profitability and risk.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses a panel data set of 497 firms covering the period 2007 to 2016. The authors test the effects of working capital management on firm valuation, profitability and risk using the panel data methodology that includes firm and year fixed effects regressions.FindingsThe authors find a significantly negative relationship between net working capital (NWC) and firm valuation, profitability and risk. The results suggest that, in managing working capital, firm managers must make a trade-off between their objectives for profitability and risk control. Working-capital management is of particular importance in firms with less access to capital; it is also important when firms are expanding their investments during periods of economic recovery.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the literature in several ways. First, to my knowledge, it provides the most comprehensive investigation, to date, on the relationship between working capital management and firm valuation, profitability and risk in an emerging market. Second, this study documents the existence of an optimal level of NWC in an emerging market. Third, firm performance, as measured in both market and accounting value, can be improved with efficient working capital management. Finally, the study includes the impact of the business cycle in an analysis of the effects of working capital management on firm performance.

Author(s):  
Kumar Sanjay Sawarni ◽  
Sivasankaran Narayanasamy ◽  
Kanagaraj Ayyalusamy

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the impact of the efficiency of working capital management (WCM) on the performance of a sample of Indian companies and explore how the nature of the firm's business influences the significance and direction of this impact.Design/methodology/approachThe data for this study were collected for the period of 2012–2018 for 414 non-financial firms listed on the Bombay Stock exchange. Fixed-effect regression models were run by taking Tobin's Q and return on equity (ROE) as dependent variables, and net trade cycle (NTC) and its components as explanatory variables in the presence of liquidity, leverage, size, age and growth as control variables. Sample firms were segregated into manufacturing, trading and service groups, and regression models were used for all the groups to understand the effect of the nature of a firm's business.FindingsWCM efficiency has a significant impact on the performance of the sample firms. Non-financial Indian firms deliver better financial performance by maintaining lower NTC. Like NTC, its components also impact firm value and profitability. The results report that the significance of the relationship varies depending upon the nature of the firm's business.Originality/valueThe previous research studies had not used a sample of large number of Indian firms. Unlike previous studies, this study reports the influence of the nature of business on the relationship between WCM and firm performance. Further, this paper also examines how the individual components of working capital influence the performance of Indian firms.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 206-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nufazil Altaf ◽  
Farooq Shah

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between working capital management and firm performance for a sample of 437 non-financial Indian companies. In addition, this paper examines the impact of financial constraints on working capital management-performance relationship. Design/methodology/approach This study is based on secondary financial data of 437 non-financial Indian companies obtained from CAPITALINE database, pertaining to a period of ten years. This study employs the two-step generalized method of moments (GMM) technique to arrive at results. Findings Results of the study confirm the inverted U-shape relationship between working capital management and firm performance. In addition, the authors also found that the firms that are likely to be more financially constrained have lower optimal working levels. Originality/value Unlike prior studies, which found a linear relationship between working capital management and firm performance, this study provides newer evidence for an inverted U-shaped relation between investment in working capital and firm performance in India. In addition, this study also tests the impact of financial constraints on this relationship. In contrast to the prior studies, this study uses GMM to control the potential problems of endogeneity.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 136
Author(s):  
Rakibul Islam ◽  
Mohammad Emdad Hossain ◽  
Mohammad Nazmul Hoq ◽  
Md. Morshedul Alam

Working capital management plays centric role in enhancing operational efficiency and their ultimate profitability. Globally financial managers have been searching the proper way on how to utilize working capital components which prolong profitability. The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of working capital components on profitability indicators of selected pharmaceutical firms in Bangladesh. The paper used financial data of 9 pharmaceutical firms listed in Dhaka stock exchange (DSE) covered 2011-2015. Two methods were used in this study for analysis data set. Firstly, to measure the relationship between selected variables Pearson Correlation matrix was used. Secondly, multiple regression analysis was used to investigate the impact working capital components on profitability of selected pharmaceutical firms. The study also conducted Durbin Watson test to assess autocorrelation of selected variables. In this study the correlation matrix identified a negative correlation between working capital components and profitability, whereas regression analysis found number of days account receivable (AR) had significant positive and current ratio (CR) and debt ratio (DR) had appeared a significant negative impact on profitability.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1661 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zanxin Wang ◽  
Minhas Akbar ◽  
Ahsan Akbar

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of working capital management (WCM) and working capital strategy (WCS) on firm’s financial performance across different stages of the corporate life cycle (CLC). We use Pakistani non-financial listed firms nested in 12 diverse industries over a period of 2005–2014 as the research sample and employ the hierarchical linear mixed (HLM) estimator, which can process multilevel data where observations are not completely independent. The empirical findings reveal that, overall, WCM is negatively associated with firm performance. However, this association is not static across different stages of a firm’s life cycle. For example, a negative association is more pronounced at the introduction stage followed by growth and decline stages, whereas WCM does not significantly impact the performance of mature firms. Likewise, WCS also causes varying effects on the financial performance across the CLC. A conservative strategy at the introduction, growth, and decline stages negatively affects firm performance, suggesting that these firms should adopt an aggressive strategy. Nevertheless, management of sample firms did not account for the respective life cycle stage while formulating a WCM strategy, which can seriously compromise their financial sustainability. These findings suggest that firms require customized WCM policies and WCS to attain sustainable financial performance at each stage of firm life cycle. Thus, managers should not overlook the significant role of CLC stages in their financial planning to ensure the sustainable functioning of the enterprise.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gaurav S. Chauhan ◽  
Pradip Banerjee

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the existence of an optimal or target level of working capital for the Indian manufacturing firms, and whether firms intensely follow the target or not. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses cash conversion cycle as a measure of net working capital and employs partial-adjustment dynamic panel models to test its target-following behavior. Findings The empirical results show that there is no evidence of systematic target-following behavior of working capital for the Indian manufacturing firms. The results hold true even after dividing the sample into four groups depending on the sign and magnitude of deviation. The results further show that lack of target-following tendency is not quite influenced by varying firm-specific characteristics and, therefore, seems to be a systematic feature across firms in India. Research limitations/implications Scarcity of such working capital management studies across emerging economies, facing several financial constraints, limits the comparison of findings. Future studies should be conducted to confirm the results. Practical implications The findings imply that even though an optimal working capital might exist, emerging market firms may not be able to actively pursue it on account of several financial constraints and managerial considerations. Originality/value The study contributes to the scant existing literature on the target-following behavior of working capital management in the Indian manufacturing firms, representing a typical emerging market facing several financial constraints.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Singhania ◽  
Piyush Mehta

Purpose Excessive working capital or paucity of the same can impair the profits and health of an organization. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of working capital management (WCM) on the profitability of firms for a sample comprising of non-financial companies in countries of South East Asia, South Asia and East Asia. Design/methodology/approach Analytical modeling has been used to estimate the impact of WCM on profitability with the help of financial data of the companies listed in major indices of the target countries (India, Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Japan, China, South Korea and Taiwan). The mathematical model presented in the paper has been tested using two-step-generalized method of moments. Findings The study reveals a non-linear relationship between profitability of a firm and WCM for 11 economies of the Asia Pacific region. Research limitations/implications The results are subject to the differences in the market dynamics of different economies (countries). Moreover, the limitations of the specific statistical method used to verify the model apply to the model too. Practical implications The research can be used as a tool by the firms (global as well as local) to ameliorate their performance by understanding the effects of WCM on profitability in different global markets and adjusting their working capital accordingly. Originality/value The research on the impact of WCM on profitability of the firms of South East Asia, South Asia and East Asia is a new effort and tries to make the importance of WCM more luciferous.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Filipe Sardo ◽  
Zélia Serrasqueiro

PurposeThis study seeks to analyse the determinants of working capital of manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), particularly the effect of the probability of financial distress on working capital.Design/methodology/approachUsing panel data models, the authors analyse a sample of 3994 manufacturing SMEs for the period 2011–2017.FindingsThe results suggest that SMEs pursue conservative working capital management to avoid the failure to fulfil the commitments with creditors. Also, the positive impact of the probability of financial distress on SME working capital suggests that SMEs exposed to a higher probability of bankruptcy invest more in working capital to avoid the risk of default and financing imbalance.Originality/valueThe novelty of this study is to extend the consequences of aggressive or conservative working capital management by analysing the probability of financial distress on working capital.


2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 769-785 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khemaies Bougatef

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the impact of corruption on the asset quality of banks operating in emerging market economies over the period 2008-2012. This issue is of crucial importance given the role of banking systems in economic development and the worldwide spread of corruption. Using panel data set of 22 countries, our findings provide a strong and robust support to the hypothesis according to which corruption aggravates the problem with non-performing loans. This evidence suggests that corruption may hinder economic development through the misallocation of loanable funds. Other results are as follows: economic expansion and capitalization level improve the loan portfolio quality. By contrast, unemployment deteriorates the debt servicing capacity of borrower which in turn contributes to lower the bank asset quality. Design/methodology/approach The authors use panel data techniques on a sample of 22 emerging market economies over the period 2008-2012 to test the relevance of corrupt practices on the soundness of banks. Findings Their findings reveal a robust positive relationship between corruption and non-performing loans (NPLs). This evidence corroborates previous results on the detrimental effect of corrupt practices on financial development. The subdivision of our main sample into two groups on the basis of the level of corruption reveals the importance of the effectiveness of collateral and bankruptcy laws in reducing the effect of corruption on loan portfolio. Moreover, we find that the accessibility to more credit information is helpful only in low corrupt countries since it enhances the soundness of banks by facilitating lending decisions. Originality/value The novelty of this paper is to take into consideration the implications of corruption in investigating the determinants of credit risk.


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