Some Aspects of the Theory of the Firm's Optimal Capital Structure

Some Aspects of the Theory of the Firm's Optimal Capital Structure PDF Author: Osmo Kolehmainen
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789516831094
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Some Aspects of the Theory of the Firm's Optimal Capital Structure

Some Aspects of the Theory of the Firm's Optimal Capital Structure PDF Author: Osmo Kolehmainen
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789516831094
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description


Theories of Optimal Capital Structure

Theories of Optimal Capital Structure PDF Author: Oliver Hart
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 35

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Book Description
In the thirty or so years since the Modigliani-Miller theorem, scholars have worked to relax the theorem's assumptions in order to obtain a better understanding of the capital structure of firms. This work has produced some important insights but has not yet delivered a fully coherent theory of optimal capital structure. For example, at present we do not understand very well the distinguishing features of debt and equity or why these claims, as opposed to the many instruments that could be chosen, are most frequently issued by firms. Given this state of affairs, existing explanations of the debt-equity ratio must be seem as still preliminary, as must efforts to use these explanations to understand global trends such as the large increases in leverage in the United States and United Kingdom during the 1980s.In the first part of this paper, I will argue that one reason progress on understanding capital structure has been limited is that relatively few analysts have adopted an explicit agency-theoretic or managerial discretion perspective. In particular, although the literature, starting with the work of Michael Jensen and William Meckling, frequently refers to conflicts of interest, most of it does not emphasize the conflict of interest between a firm's management and its security holders. But I argue that this particular conflict of interest - that is, the idea that management is self-interested - is critical. In the absence of this conflict, optimal capital structure would look very different from what is observed in the world. In particular, firms would not issue senior or secured debt, whereas in fact a considerable amount of corporate debt has at least one of these features. That is, standard departures from the Modigliani-Miller framework that focus on the role of taxes, asymmetric information, or incomplete markets but ignore managerial self-interest are not sufficient to explain observed capital structure.In the second part of the analysis I will discuss what has been learned from the relatively few studies that have explicitly adopted an agency-theoretic perspective. This body of work, although itself quite preliminary, can explain the use of senior or secured debt or both, as well as shed light on some observe patterns of capital structure, including a number of findings from studies that measure the response of security prices to important events that affect optimal capital structure (quot;event studiesquot;).

Does capital structure influence firms value?

Does capital structure influence firms value? PDF Author: Ulrike Messbacher
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3638449475
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 12

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Essay from the year 2004 in the subject Business economics - Investment and Finance, grade: 1, University of Applied Sciences Kempten (University of Ulster), language: English, abstract: In accordance with the Signalling model by Ross (1977) an increase in gearing represents, in term of a company’s prospective cash flows, a positive signal to external investors. Because, due to the higher risk of financial distress, companies with less optimistic market prospective tend to avoid additional financial obligations. This implies that an increasing indebtedness means a higher quality of business and therefore better valuation. This leads, in turn, to the assumption that the corporate management can influence a firm’s value by changing its capital structure. If capital structure can affect value, how can firms identify an optimal capital structure and what will it look like? It is that mix of debt and equity that maximises the value of a firm and, at the same time, minimise overall cost of capital. In their seminal article, published in 1958 and 1963, Modigliani and Miller argue that under certain assumptions the value of a firm i s independent of its capital structure, but with tax-deductible interest payments, they are positively related. Moreover, there are other approaches with partly contradictory perceptions. For instance, Myers (1998, cited in Fairchild 2003, p.6) argues that there is no universal optimal mix of debt and equity; in fact it depends on firms or industries, and therefore should be considered on a case-by-case basis. Other researchers have added market imperfections, such as bankruptcy costs, agency costs, and gains from leverage- induced tax shields to the analysis and have maintained that an optimal capital structure may exist (Hatfieldet al.1994, p.1). First, this paper shows the basic determinants of a firm’s value in association with the impact of financial leverage on payoffs to stockholders. Secondly, it considers some arguments of capital structure theories, particularly the Modigliani and Miller theorem and the Traditional approach and contrasts them. Finally, the underlying factors of the model assumptions are examined and shown that they are important in the choice of a firm’s debt-equity ratio.

Capital Structure and Firm Performance

Capital Structure and Firm Performance PDF Author: Arvin Ghosh
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351530178
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 140

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Book Description
Capital structure theory is one of the most dynamic areas of finance and forms the basis for modern thinking on the capital structure of firms. Much controversy has resulted from comparisons of the theory of capital structure originally developed by Franco Modigliani and Merton Miller to real-world situations. Two competing theories have emerged over the years, the optimal capital structure theory and the pecking order theory.Arvin Ghosh begins with an overview of the controversies regarding capital structure theories, and then statistically tests both the optimal capital structure and pecking order theories. Using the binomial approach he analyzes the determinants of capital structure while discussing the role of market power in determining capital structure decisions. Ghosh probes the questions of new stock offerings and stockholders' returns, and analyzes capital structure and executive compensation. He then looks into debt financing ownership structure, and the controversal relationship between capital structure and firm profitability. Finally, he discusses the latest developments in the field of capital structure.A concise overview of a major issue in business economics and finance, this volume provides a fuller understanding of capital structure influence on the financial performance of firms, and will certainly stimulate further debate. While hundreds of scholarly articles have been written on the subject this is the first book to test competing theories against measurements of firms' performance and their underlying capital structure.

Capital Structure and Corporate Financing Decisions

Capital Structure and Corporate Financing Decisions PDF Author: H. Kent Baker
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118022947
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 504

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Book Description
A comprehensive guide to making better capital structure and corporate financing decisions in today's dynamic business environment Given the dramatic changes that have recently occurred in the economy, the topic of capital structure and corporate financing decisions is critically important. The fact is that firms need to constantly revisit their portfolio of debt, equity, and hybrid securities to finance assets, operations, and future growth. Capital Structure and Corporate Financing Decisions provides an in-depth examination of critical capital structure topics, including discussions of basic capital structure components, key theories and practices, and practical application in an increasingly complex corporate world. Throughout, the book emphasizes how a sound capital structure simultaneously minimizes the firm's cost of capital and maximizes the value to shareholders. Offers a strategic focus that allows you to understand how financing decisions relates to a firm's overall corporate policy Consists of contributed chapters from both academics and experienced professionals, offering a variety of perspectives and a rich interplay of ideas Contains information from survey research describing actual financial practices of firms This valuable resource takes a practical approach to capital structure by discussing why various theories make sense and how firms use them to solve problems and create wealth. In the wake of the recent financial crisis, the insights found here are essential to excelling in today's volatile business environment.

Corporate Capital Structures in the United States

Corporate Capital Structures in the United States PDF Author: Benjamin M. Friedman
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226264238
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 404

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Book Description
The research reported in this volume represents the second stage of a wide-ranging National Bureau of Economic Research effort to investigate "The Changing Role of Debt and Equity in Financing U.S. Capital Formation." The first group of studies sponsored under this project, which have been published individually and summarized in a 1982 volume bearing the same title (Friedman 1982), addressed several key issues relevant to corporate sector behavior along with such other aspects of the evolving financial underpinnings of U.S. capital formation as household saving incentives, international capital flows, and government debt management. In the project's second series of studies, presented at the National Bureau of Economic Research conference in January 1983 and published here for the first time along with commentaries from that conference, the central focus is the financial side of capital formation undertaken by the U.S. corporate business sector. At the same time, because corporations' securities must be held, a parallel focus is on the behavior of the markets that price these claims.

Capital Structure Theory

Capital Structure Theory PDF Author: Dilrukshi Yapa Abeywardhana
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 6

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Book Description
Capital structure is still a puzzle among finance scholars. Purpose of this study is to review various capital structure theories that have been proposed in the finance literature to provide clarification for the firms' capital structure decision. Starting from the capital structure irrelevance theory of Modigliani and Miller (1958) this review examine the several theories that have been put forward to explain the capital structure. Three major theories emerged over the years following the assumption of the perfect capital market of capital structure irrelevance model. Trade off theory assumes that firms have one optimal debt ratio and firm trade off the benefit and cost of debt and equity financing. Pecking order theory (Myers, 1984, Myers and Majluf, 1984) assumes that firms follow a financing hierarchy whereby minimize the problem of information asymmetry. But neither of these two theories provide a complete description why some firms prefer debt and others prefer equity finance under different circumstances. Another theory of capital structure has introduced recently by, Baker and Wurgler (2002), market timing theory, which explains the current capital structure as the cumulative outcome of past attempts to time the equity market. Market timing issuing behaviour has been well established empirically by others already, but Baker and Wurgler (2002) show that the influence of market timing on capital structure is regular and continuous. So the predictions of these theories sometimes acted in a contradictory manner and Myers (1984) 32 years old question “How do firms choose their capital structure?” still remains.

The Theory of Capital Structure - How theory meets practice in the German market

The Theory of Capital Structure - How theory meets practice in the German market PDF Author: Benjamin Friedrich
Publisher: ibidem-Verlag / ibidem Press
ISBN: 3838255399
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 138

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Book Description
The theory of capital structure is one of the most exciting and complex topics in corporate finance. After many years of debate it is still extremely difficult to provide a conclusive answer to the question which capital structure maximises the value of a company and what factors determine the optimal mix of debt and equity capital.This book provides a comprehensive introduction to capital structure theory and investigates its practical relevance in the German market. The main objectives are to explore the link between capital structure theory and corporate practice and to test determinants of capital structure choice empirically.The book has been written for students, researchers, and academics, but also for practitioners seeking empirical evidence of capital structure theory and an empirical model that can be used to estimate the optimal level of debt for an individual company in relation to an existing industry optimum.

Capital Structure Puzzle

Capital Structure Puzzle PDF Author: Stewart C. Myers
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Corporations
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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Book Description
This paper contrasts the "static tradeoff" and "pecking order" theories of capital structure choice by corporations. In the static tradeoff theory, optimal capital structure is reached when the tax advantage to borrowing is balanced, at the margin, by costs of financial distress. In the pecking order theory, firms preferinternal to external funds, and debt to equity if external funds are needed. Thus the debt ratio reflects the cumulative requirement for external financing. Pecking order behavior follows from simple asymmetric information models. The paper closes with a review of empirical evidence relevant to the two theories.

Critique on Optimal Capital Structure

Critique on Optimal Capital Structure PDF Author: Dr. Syed Shabib ul Hasan
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 2

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Book Description
The existence of an optimal capital structure for a firm has always remained a matter of serious discussion among financial analysts and academia. The conventional approach advocates the existence of optimal capital structure based on the relationship between the cost of capital and the capital structure of the firm. According to this approach the weighted average cost of capital falls initially with leverage as the increase in required return on equity does not completely offset the cheaper debt financing. However, later on when the increase in required return on equity is more than what it offset in the use of cheaper debt financing in the capital structure, the weighted average cost of capital starts to ascend which further increases once the cost of debt financing starts to go up as well. The conventional approach therefore holds that there is the possibility of the existence of “optimal capital structure” based on the relationship between cost of capital and the capital structure of the firm. However Modigliani & Miller in their significant and influential work on the effects of capital structure on the firm's value, conclude that where there is a perfect financial market “capital structure is irrelevant” considering no-tax case, which can be literally understood as the firm's value, being independent of its financial structure having no optimal capital structure. This paper aspires to evaluate the Modigliani and Miller corporate capital structure model and critically examine its validity in the context of its application in a real life situation, using the example of the UK. Another point of concern is what a firm takes into consideration when evaluating the financing options and why it prefers one alternative over the other, or else looks for optimal capital structure. Other things remaining equal, the rapid growth of borrowing increases the probability of the corporate sector facing difficulties in servicing its debt. Therefore it seems unlikely that corporate capital structure can be fully explained by any one theory, especially given that the theories are not mutually exclusive.