Investigating the relationship between working capital management and business performance: evidence from the 2008 financial crisis of EU-28

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali İhsan Akgün ◽  
Ayyüce Memiş Karataş
Keyword(s):  
Financial Crisis ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
2008 Financial Crisis ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The 2008 Financial Crisis ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeThis study examines the relationship between working capital management and business performance.Design/methodology/approachThe relationship between the working capital management and business performance is examined using panel data analysis for a sample of EU-28 listed firms for the period from 2003 to 2012. To examine this relationship, an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model is used to analyze the data obtained from the sample. The dependent variable consists of three measurements, namely return on asset (ROA), return on equity (ROE) and earnings before interest and taxes margin (EBITM), which are used as proxies for accounting-based measures of performance.FindingsThe authors examined the aforementioned relationship during the 2008 financial crisis. The OLS regression analysis suggests that there is a negative relationship between gross working capital and business performance for code law countries. The results also show that liquidity measures estimated by current ratio have a statistically significant impact on business performance indicated by ROA for all EU countries. The 2008 financial crisis had a significantly negative impact on ROA. Additionally, the findings regarding financial inclusion show a negative relationship between gross working capital and business performance among EU and other performer countries.Practical implicationsOverall, the empirical findings are consistent with Afrifa's (2016), who suggests that cash flow should increase investment in working capital to improve performance indicated by EBITM for old EU members.Originality/valueWhile many empirical studies investigate the relationship between working capital and firm profitability, most do not consider the impact of the 2008 financial crisis apart from Tsurate (2019). The authors examine whether legal origins are important determinants of working capital management policies and business performance. Thus, empirically, the code law countries have a negative relationship between gross working capital, business performance and EBITM.

Cash flow volatility and trade credit in Asia

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Harris ◽  
Scott Roark ◽  
Zhe Li
Keyword(s):  
Financial Crisis ◽  
Cash Flow ◽  
Trade Credit ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Firm Investment ◽  
2008 Financial Crisis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cash Flow Volatility ◽  
The 2008 Financial Crisis ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the relation between cash flow volatility and trade credit offered by firms in developing Asian economies.Design/methodology/approachThe study conducts country fixed effect regressions testing the relationship between cash flow volatility and firm investment in trade credit. The relationship is then examined with all firms separated into two groups based on firm size, and then again comparing the relation before and after the 2008 finasncial crisis.FindingsHigher levels of cash flow volatility are negatively related to the amount of trade credit offered. The negative relationship with cash flow volatility is greater amongst smaller firms that may have less access to external sources of capital. Additionally, the negative relationship is greater following the 2008 financial crisis.Practical implicationsTrade credit plays an important role in the business process, particularly in developing economies. However, these firms may not be able to maintain their investment in trade credit when experiencing greater levels of cash flow volatility. These results are especially pronounced after the 2008 financial crisis and for small firms.Originality/valueThis study identifies an important connection between cash flow volatility and firm investment in trade credit among firms in developing Asian economies.

scholarly journals Working Capital and Earnings Management among Manufacturing Firms: A Review of Literature

2020 ◽  
pp. 71-97
Author(s):  
Josiah Aduda ◽  
Morgan Ongoro
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Management Level ◽  
Accounting Accruals ◽  
The Relationship

This study critically reviewed literature on the relationship between working capital management and earnings management. The specific objectives of the study included determination of documented evidence on; the relationship between working capital management and earnings management, the existence of target working capital management level and target earnings management level and knowledge gaps between the two study variables. Findings on the first objective were conflicting with some researchers establishing a positive relationship, others a negative relationship whereas others were non-conclusive. Findings on the second objective were also conflicting. The divergence in findings were attributed to differences in conceptual, methodological and contextual setups with inconsistencies in operationalization of the study variables playing a pivotal role. The study revealed a biased inclination towards usage of accounting accruals as proxies for earnings management with no consideration for non-accounting accruals like real earnings managements. The study also identified lack of related studies in frontier economies as a potential research gap paving way for future related studies with expanded scope. The study further recommended future research on determination of an optimal working capital level that minimizes real earnings management.

Working capital management and firm profitability: a meta-analysis

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harsh Pratap Singh ◽  
Satish Kumar ◽  
Sisira Colombage
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Negatively Associated ◽  
Cash Conversion Cycle ◽  
Prior Literature ◽  
Narrative Literature Review ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this study is to quantitatively aggregate the findings of prior literature on the effect of working capital management (WCM) on corporate profitability using the meta-analysis technique developed by Hunter et al. (1982). Design/methodology/approach A set of 46 research articles that directly studied the relationship between WCM, and profitability was analyzed for the purpose. In addition to overall meta-analysis, a detailed subgroup study was also conducted to test whether the differences in results are due to moderating effects related to different profitability proxies, economic development of a specific country and size of the firms under study. Findings The findings of this meta-analysis confirm that WCM is negatively associated with profitability, which means an aggressive WCM policy leads to higher profitability. Overall, and in all the subgroup studies, the cash conversion cycle was found to be negatively associated with profitability. Originality/value Unlike narrative literature review papers, this meta-analysis provides quantitatively aggregate evidence on the relationship of WCM and firms’ profitability. To the best of authors’ knowledge, no previous meta-analysis paper is published on the topic.

Association between the availability of financial resources and working capital management with stock surplus returns in Iran

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 343-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahdi Salehi ◽  
Nadia Mahdavi ◽  
Saeed Zarif Agahi Dari ◽  
Hossein Tarighi
Keyword(s):  
Stock Returns ◽  
Firm Value ◽  
Financial Constraints ◽  
Cash Holdings ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between access to financial resources, working capital with surplus stock returns and value of the company in Iran. Design/methodology/approach The study population consists of 728 observations and 91 firms listed on the Tehran stock exchange during an eight-year period between 2009 and 2016. The statistical model used in this study is a multivariate regression model; further, the statistical technique used to test the hypotheses is panel data. Findings The results saw a negative and significant linkage between changes in cash and stock’ excess returns, whereas no meaningful association between changes in working capital and stock surplus returns was seen. In other words, an Iranian rial (Iran’s currency) invested in working capital worth less on average than a rial held in cash. Furthermore, the authors realized that in an inflationary economy, firms mainly pay more dividends so as to illustrate better their financial position and also to attract more investors’ trust. The results also indicated that the final value of working capital in the companies that are faced with financial constraints is more than companies that are not faced with financial constraints. Subsequently, after the elimination of the effects of inflation on stock returns, it was found there is not any significant association between the stock’s real return and firm value. Practical implications This is one of the most comprehensive research works in Iran that simultaneously surveys the impacts of access to finance and working capital on firm value. This research warns corporate managers to pay more attention to the importance of keeping cash to finance and manage working capital for profitability and sustainability of their company’s operations. Surely, by understanding the relationship between cash holdings, working capital management and stock surplus return, investors will be able to make appropriate decisions about the optimal choice of funds. Originality/value What really will fascinate other scholars about this paper is the time period of the study because there were unprecedented sanctions against Iran market and many manufacturing industries were in financial strain. Without hesitation, the paper will make aware investors and stakeholders of this fact that cash holdings will be a good way in reducing the corporate financial problems in emerging markets, particularly those markets face financial sanctions like Iran.

Working capital management, firm performance and nature of business

2020 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-200
Author(s):  
Kumar Sanjay Sawarni ◽  
Sivasankaran Narayanasamy ◽  
Kanagaraj Ayyalusamy
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Firm Value ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Age And Growth ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

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.

How does working capital management affect the profitability of Indian companies?

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 347-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nufazil Altaf ◽  
Farooq Ahmad Shah
Keyword(s):  
Method Of Moments ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Generalized Method Of Moments ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Firm Profitability ◽  
Potential Problems ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between working capital management (WCM) and firm profitability for a sample of 437 non-financial Indian companies. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on secondary financial data obtained from Capitaline database, pertaining to a period of ten years. This study employs two-step generalized method of moments (GMM) techniques to arrive at results. Findings The results of the study confirm the inverted U-shape relationship between WCM and firm profitability. In addition, the authors also found that the firms should complete its CCC on an average by 63 days. Originality/value Unlike prior studies that found a linear relationship between WCM and firm profitability. This study provides newer evidence for an inverted U-shaped relation between investment in working capital and firm profitability in India. In addition, this study uses GMM to control the potential problems of endogeneity.

scholarly journals Working capital management: evidence from Norway

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hakim Lyngstadaas ◽  
Terje Berg
Keyword(s):  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Return On Assets ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cash Conversion Cycle ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence of whether working capital management (WCM) has an effect on the profitability of small- and medium-sized Norwegian firms. Design/methodology/approach – The data comprise 21,075 Norwegian small- and medium-sized enterprises and 84,300 observations made between 2010 and 2013. Panel data regressions were applied with fixed effects and a two-stage least squares analysis was employed to control for endogeneity. Findings – The results indicate that reducing cash conversion cycle will increase profitability. Even though endogeneity may exist, this does not affect the results from the previous analysis. Similar results are also obtained when industry-specific effects are controlled for, supporting the robustness of the results. The relevance of quadratic dependencies of the profitability on independent variables was also identified and suggests a decreasing trend of return on assets with increasing values of the WCM’s characteristic variables. Research limitations/implications – Drawing on similar studies, this study confirms that WCM is relevant for firms’ profitability. Practical implications – The practice of aggressive working capital policy in Norwegian firms is confirmed by the results of this study. Originality/value – This study contributes to the current research on the relationship between WCM and profitability by using a large dataset to add further robustness to results, and thus verifying whether or not the results in previous studies may be confirmed or not. Moreover, this is the first published study about this relationship among Norwegian firms in different industries, thus filling a gap in similar research conducted in other European countries.

Working Capital Management and Firms' Profitability in the Midst of an Economic Crisis

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 66-80
Author(s):  
Dimitris Axiotis ◽  
Alina Hyz ◽  
Petros Kalantonis
Keyword(s):  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Financial Constraints ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Cash Conversion Cycle ◽  
Size Growth ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

The purpose of this article is to identify the relationship between working capital management and corporate performance in adverse economic circumstances. The results show positive relationship between profitability and cash conversion cycle, firm's size, growth and leverage and negative relationship between profitability and components of cash conversion cycle. Analysing the impact of the crisis it can observe that the companies can increase their profitability by reducing the period of credit granted to customers. The significance of this study stems from the fact that it sheds light for the desirable firms' policy during the period of financial constraints. Prior research on this subject has looked into various issues related to the linkage between working capital management and profitability, however, none has examined what this relationship looks like following a prolonged economic crisis.

scholarly journals Working Capital Management and Its Impact on the Profitability of Pukar International Co.Ltd.

NCC Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 141-147
Author(s):  
Puspa Raj Ojha
Keyword(s):  
Descriptive Analysis ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Return On Assets ◽  
Current Ratio ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
International Trading ◽  
Collection Period ◽  
The Relationship

This paper aims to report the results of an investigation of the relative importance of working capital management, measured by the Return on Assets (ROA), and its components (Current ratio, average collection period and average payment period) to the profitability of Pukar International Trading. This paper analyzes the effect of working capital Management on firm’s profitability in Nepal for the period 2071 to 2072. For this Purpose, financial data of four year is used. Pearson’s correlation and Descriptive analysis were used to establish the relationship between working capital management and firm’s profitability and components of working capital like Average collection period, Average payment period and Current ratio. The study finds a negative relationship between profitability and average collection period and average payment period, but appositive relationship between profitability and current ratio. Moreover, current ratio and firm size also have significant effects on the firm’s profitability. Based on the key findings from this study it had been concluded that the management of a firm could create value for their shareholders by reducing the number of day’s accounts collection. Firms could also take long to pay their creditors in as far as they did not worry their relationships with these creditors.

Working capital management and firm performance in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 546-562 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ting Ren ◽  
Nan Liu ◽  
Hongyan Yang ◽  
Youzhi Xiao ◽  
Yijun Hu
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Chinese Economy ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Capital Management ◽  
Working Capital ◽  
Working Capital Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ownership Structures

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between working capital management (WCM) and firm performance in the context of the Chinese economy. Specifically, it investigates the effects of ownership structures as an internal factor and of institutional environments (IE) as an external factor shaping this relationship. Design/methodology/approach The study applies two-way fixed effect regression models to a sample of Chinese listed manufacturing firms for the period of 2010 to 2017. WCM is measured by cash conversion cycles (CCC); profitability is measured by core profit ratios; ownership structures are classified based on state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and non-SOEs; and IEs are measured from dimensions of factor markets (FM) and legal systems (LS). Findings First, the results show a negative relationship between CCC and firm performance. Second, the negative relationship between CCC and profitability is significant for non-SOEs but not for SOEs. Third, both the FM and LS strengthen the negative association between CCC and profitability. Fourth, the moderating effect of FMs and LSs is evident for non-SOEs only. The results hold when using alternative measures of WCM and profitability and while controlling for additional variables. Originality/value The current study shows that while WCM has a significant effect on the profitability of Chinese firms, such an effect greatly depends on the ownership structures and IE involved. The results thus offer important implications in helping the Chinese government create better IEs and in allowing manufacturing firms to improve upon their WCM practices.

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