Effects of personal taxes and equity issuing costs on the firm's investment decision

The existence of preferential taxes on capital gains relative to ordinary income is widely understood to create a systematic preference for internal rather than external equity financing. This preference is magnified by the existence of issuing costs on new equity. This paper develops a procedure to account for these market imperfections in terms of an adjusted net present value that directly adjusts a project's net present value calculated without regard to the imperfections. Once the correct adjustment procedure is developed, the practical implications of personal taxes and issuing costs on the firm's investment behavior clearly emerges. These market imperfections have created a discontinuous function for the firm in obtaining equity capital. Many rational wealth-maximizing firms are forced to make investment decisions in a situation similar to capital rationing as the separation theorem between investing and financing does not generally hold. This explanation of a potentially long-run need for capital rationing is consistent with otherwise perfect capital markets.     

Problems in the choice of a system for costing and pricing of in-house computer services

The problem of pricing computer services has been discussed in the literature since the early days of computing. Costing and pricing have often been interchanged in the discussions. After a discussion of the problems of measurement of resource usage, pricing for cost recovery and for resource allocation are discussed. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research and a brief summary.     

Coefficient of determination in a simultaneous equation model: A pedagogic note

The simultaneity of the market for securities has been recognized by a number of finance authors. Simkowitz and Jones [10] advocate the use of a simultaneous equation system to capture some of the relationships among the securities in a homogeneous set. Simkowitz and Logue [11], and Jones and Simkowitz [6], have performed studies using a simultaneous equation system in a capital asset pricing framework. Marcis and Smith [9] call for the use of the simultaneous methodology when there is a strong residual correlation between securities. Simultaneous equation systems have been used in other areas of finance by authors such as Barnea [1], Herbst [5], and Logue and Lindvall [8]. This note explores how anomalies concerning the coefficient of determination (R²) mentioned in previous research could have occured. Conditions under which the (R²) does not have its usual properties and an example is given.     

Does source affect response to direct advocacy print advertisements?

This posttest-only experiment examined how source attribution and the personality characteristic of fatalism affect evaluate and behavioral intention responses to direct advocacy print advertisements. Two commercial sources, a noncommercial source, and no source were manipulated in an identical print advocacy ad. Regression analysis revealed that subjects exposed to the two commercial source treatments evaluated the ad more negatively than subjects exposed to the noncommercial and no source treatments. The commercial and trade association source treatments also produced a negative intent to respond to the advocated request. Fatalism was found to be significantly related to behavioral intention, but not the message evaluation. Overall, the results indicate that commercial sponsors should employ direct advocacy print advertisements with the knowledge that their commercial identification elicits critical and negative responses from uncommitted audience members.     

Identifying innovative behavior patterns using canonical analysis

Marketers are vitally interested in the relationships between personal attributes and consumer behavior. This study was developed to examine, using canonical analysis, the relationships of personality and socioeconomic data with innovative behavior of housewives. The Gordon Personal Profile and Inventory provided the personality variables, and socioeconomic variables used were age, marital status, income, and number of children living at home. All respondents were women who represented middle-class housewives in the Columbia, South Carolina, metropolitan area. An initial sample was used to scale a list of products as to their degree of innovativeness in their effect on consumption and usage patterns. A sample of 152 middle-class housewives were then contacted and 142 of these supplied completed questionnaires suitable for analysis. A great many combinations of innovative products and personality and socioeconomic variables were run. Several strong relationships were found. The major ones were between products and socioeconomic variables. However, one analysis showed the most significant levels of association with the innovative products when personality variables were used alone. A brief analysis of the major canonical root for this analysis indicates a woman who uses more malt liquor and club cocktails and who has a microwave oven. Associated with these innovative products are the personality variables of ascendancy, slightly irresponsible, less cautious, and highly sociable. This interpretation might indicate the profile of a woman who is on the way up and likes to socialize without regard to what others think. Many other interesting profiles are also described. The study is exploratory in nature but provides stimulus for additional research and also provides support for previous consumer behavior findings.     

Property and liability stockholder yields and accounting profits

The market rate of return and related risk of a group of 23 property-liability insurers are explored. The focus is on the return earned by the stockholders of these firms. Previous studies have only examined the accounting rate of return. This study compares the accounting rate of returns to stockholder yields. Several factors that effect the return earned by shareholders are reviewed.The average return on the property-liability stocks studies was 4.0 percentage points greater than the accounting rate of return (0.14 vs 0.10). This evidence suggests that studies based only on accounting rates of return under-estimate returns earned by property-liability shareholders. On a risk-return basis property-liability profits were found not to be significantly different from the general stock market. However, several individual firms had superior stockholder yields. The beta for the group of firms was 1.09.     

Ethical Climate Theory,Whistle-blowing,and the Code of Silence in Police Agencies in the State of Georgia

This article reports the findings from a study that investigates the relationship between ethical climates and police whistle-blowing on five forms of misconduct in the State of Georgia. The results indicate that a friendship or team climate generally explains willingness to blow the whistle, but not the actual frequency of blowing the whistle. Instead, supervisory status, a control variable investigated in previous studies, is the most consistent predictor of both willingness to blow the whistle and frequency of blowing the whistle. Contrary to popular belief, the results also generally indicate that police are more inclined than civilian employees to blow the whistle in Georgia – in other words, they are less inclined to maintain a code of silence. Gary R. Rothwell is the Special Agent in Charge of Region 13 of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, an office serving ten counties in middle Georgia. He holds a Doctorate of Public Administration from The University of Alabama, and his research interests include organization climates, code of silence, and whistle-blowing behavior. J. Norman Baldwin is an associate professor and the director of the Master of Public Administration program at The University of Alabama. His research interests include differences between public and private organizations, whistle-blowing behavior, and equal promotion opportunity in race- and gender-dominant organizations.     

Foreign Product Purchase Behavior in Transition Economies: An Empirical Analysis of Product Information Sources Among Georgian Consumers

SUMMARY

This article analyzes the product information sources that consumers in transition economies, specifically in Georgia, utilize when they consider purchasing foreign products. We surveyed 313 consumers in Georgia regarding 9 sources of product information (experiential knowledge, word of mouth, in-store promotions, television, packaging information, radio, newspapers and magazines, salespeople, and billboards). The findings indicated that personal experience and word of mouth are the 2 most frequently used and highly valued sources of information while salespeople and radio are the 2 least frequently used and least influential sources of information. Education, age, and ethnocentrism exhibited significant impact on the experience source.     

略论资本内涵及资本确认

无论在古典经济学中 ,还是在现代经济学中 ,都很难找出一个确切的资本定义。但是 ,“资本”却是经济学所有学科当中出现频率最大的概念之一。在分析一些代表性定义的基础上 ,提出资本必须由一个双重体系加以确认 ,即法律上的权益认定和会计上的权益计量 ,体系中任何一种缺陷将会造成权益界限不清的后果。     

Venture planning and analysis: An integrated approach to investment evaluation and product pricing

The venture planning and analysis (VPA) system is a quantitative analysis useful for developing pricing policy, projecting financial results, and comparing various investment opportunities. It is an integrated approach to product (investment) evaluation utilizing both marketing and cost information to determine an optimum pricing strategy.A venture plan is developed which covers several years of the anticipated life of the product (venture). The pricing strategy is determined by identifying the relationship between price, volume, and variable cost which yields the greatest positive cash flow. Revenue, variable expense, fixed expense, and engineering expense are input by fiscal year.The VPA system computes interest expense/income and cash flows. Ratios of the venture's quality-marginal investment quality factor and investment quality factor-are displayed, as are matrices which indicate the sensitivity of the venture to changes in the input data. Computer generated plots also help illustrate the cash flow and optimum level of production for each fiscal year of the analysis.     

What's in a change in an industrial bond rating?

Bond quality rating changes (BQRC) for industrial bonds are analyzed using both univariate statistical methods and discriminant analysis to find significant variables and their relationship with the changes. The single most important explanatory variable is found to be the rate of return on assets (ROA), followed by the trend in the return on assets (ROATREND). The univariate analysis found six of the seven proposed explanatory variables significant beyond the 0.01 level. The two-group discriminant analysis model achieved a correct classification rate of over 77%. The paper shows how the results of the two-group discriminant analysis can be used for a three-way prediction (upgrade, downgrade, or no change of bond ratings). The results of this study show that models based on financial statement data can predict rating changes with good accuracy and therefore may be a useful tool for rating agencies, at least as an initial screening device.     

Food capacity in alternative food markets: visceral encounters,bodily interactions and contagious magic

ABSTRACT

Taking inspiration from assemblage thinking and the vitality of matter, this study examines the negotiated, contested and nonlinear formation of highly marginalised and stigmatised alternative food market. The analysis of an ethnographic case study shows that tensions of disorder, abjection and dangerisation spark when components of an alternative food market assemblage misaligns with prevailing social norms, values and institutional arrangements. Although these tensions threaten the alternative food market assemblage, further analysis reveals the capacity of food to assuage these tensions and this occurred, in part; because food catalyses human engagement through visceral encounters, bodily interactions and contagious magic. To that end, the study sets a new agenda for alternative market research to consider the sensory, corporeal and magical capacity of matter to provoke in humans a new sensitivity to our wasteful practices, endangered planet, social inequalities and prejudices.     

Bank profitability and interest rate risk

It is frequently asserted that the profitability of institutions that lend long and borrow short is restricted during periods of rising interest rates. In banking circles this assertion has been translated into a concern primarily for the soundness of smaller banks, which are commonly thought to hold a large proportion of their portfolios in longer term fixed-rate loans and thus face considerable interest rate risk. Moreover, with the popularity of the new “NOW” accounts and competing money market mutual funds, there is a fear that a potential profit squeeze at these institutions has been made more probable. The present study examines the issue of the interest rate sensitivity of commercial bank profitability at a theoretical level and attempts to measure empirically the extent to which the profitability of different size classes of banks has been affected by periods of changing interest rates since 1976. This study finds that small commercial banks as a group have actually experienced increased profitability both absolutely and relative to large banks in recent periods (since 1976) of rising interest rates. However, this variation is numerically small. This finding calls into question both the usefulness of the maturity composition model as a predictor of interest rate risk and the concern for the supposed plight of small banks during periods of rising interest rates.     

Ethics Sensitivity and Awareness Within Organizations in Kuwait: An Empirical Exploration of Epoused Theory and Theory-in-Use

This article explores the ethics sensitivity and awareness of a sample of employees in six organizations in Kuwait. We identify which sorts of questionable organizational behaviors are believed to be most unethical by these employees, as well as which behaviors are reported to occur most often within the organizations. On the whole, the employees evidence a high level of ethical sensitivity, perceiving the moral hazards of all of the behaviors presented to them. At the same time, the reported occurrence of these behaviors within the sampled organizations is relatively high. We produce conclusions about the correspondence between moral theory and moral practice within the Kuwaiti workplace. We find a basic correspondence between what is believed to be wrong within these organizations, and the types of unethical behavior reported within them. In general, behaviors thought to be most unethical occur less frequently within the organizations.     

Mapping market mobility: Psychographic profiles and media exposure

Are there households in trading areas that have unique mobility predispositions? Can mobility types be monitored? And does mobility type relate to the life style and consumption patterns of households? This study examines the mobility and life style characteristics of suburbanites in a medium-sized city in an effort to discover the answers to these and other questions.In particular, the article suggests that mobility relates to life style and media usage, which in turn largely determines the quality of consumer demand and the most efficient media to reach such a market. If the composition of mobility types within a shopping area is changing, retailers should monitor these changes so that they can better predict retail demand—both quality and quantity.A self-administered questionnaire was designed to measure (1) the mobility characteristics of consumers—including their local moves, long-distance moves, and their predisposition to move; (2) the life styles and socioeconomic characteristics of consumers; and (3) the median exposures of households. The instrument was administered by personal interviews with 322 suburban housewives within a medium-sized trading area. The usage sample included 304 cases.The data support the hypotheses of the study; mobility types emerged from the analysis and these had distinctive life styles and media habits. Periodic sampling of households is suggested as an approach to monitoring mobility composition within the trading area.     

Italian consumer awareness of layer hens' welfare standards: a cluster analysis

Animal welfare has assumed in recent years an increasing significance for European consumers, becoming part of the Community Agricultural Policy strategy that encourages farmers to achieve higher standards of animal welfare. Undoubtedly, the superior social sensitivity towards animal welfare has produced over time notable changes within European Union (EU) Policy. However, while EU legislation has progressively focused on granting animals better possibilities to express their behavioural repertoire, recent analysis shows that consumer knowledge of animal welfare compulsory standards is still quite limited. Drawing on the results of a direct survey on 300 Italian food shoppers, our research analyses consumer knowledge of the welfare standards of laying hens. Our findings highlight important market opportunities and policy implications. Our research shows that, although the majority of the sample expressed concern on hen husbandry systems, most of respondents were unaware of the current mandatory labelling system for eggs. Through cluster analysis three segments were found: the inactive consumer cluster, the conflicted consumer cluster and the ethically competent consumer cluster. This segmentation is especially valuable for producers of ‘animal‐friendly’ eggs to identify market opportunities and formulate appropriate marketing strategies.     

The WTO trade effect

This paper re-examines the GATT/WTO membership effect on bilateral trade flows, using nonparametric methods including pair-matching, permutation tests, and a Rosenbaum (2002) sensitivity analysis. Together, these methods provide an estimation framework that is robust to misspecification bias, allows general forms of heterogeneous membership effects, and addresses potential hidden selection bias. This is in contrast to most conventional parametric studies on this issue. Our results suggest large GATT/WTO trade-promoting effects that are robust to various restricted matching criteria, alternative GATT/WTO indicators, non-random incidence of positive trade flows, inclusion of multilateral resistance terms, and different matching methodologies.     

Leadership, Ethics and Responsibility to the Other

Of recent time, there has been a proliferation of concerns with ethical leadership within corporate business not least because of the numerous scandals at Enron, Worldcom, Parmalat, and two major Irish banks – Allied Irish Bank (AIB) and National Irish Bank (NIB). These have not only threatened the position of many senior corporate managers but also the financial survival of some of the companies over which they preside. Some authors have attributed these scandals to the pre-eminence of a focus on increasing shareholder value in Western business schools and/or to their failure to inculcate ethical standards. In this paper, we challenge these accounts and the aetiological view of knowledge from which they derive but are grateful for the consensus that they convey regarding the importance of business ethics. The paper focuses on different approaches to ethical leadership concluding with a view that some hybrid of MacIntyre’s virtue ethics and Levinas’s ethics of responsibility may serve as an inspiration for both educators and practitioners. Dr. David Knights is a Professor of Organisational Analysis in the School of Economic and Management Studies at Keele University. He previously held chairs in Manchester, Nottingham and Exeter Universities. He is a founding and continuing editor of the journal Gender, Work and Organisation and his most recent books include: Management Lives, Sage, 1999 (with H. Willmott) and Organization and Innovation, McGraw-Hill, 2003 (with D. McCabe). Majella O’Leary is a Lecturer in Management at the University of Exeter. Her research interests include corporate scandals, ethical leadership, disaster sensemaking, and organizational storytelling. Majella’s most recent publications have appeared in Human Relations and European Journal of Business Ethics.     

我国城乡居民文化消费与收入的敏感性分析

大量的实证研究表明,我国现阶段的居民消费呈现＂过度敏感性＂特征。利用省际面板数据实证分析发现,我国城乡居民文化消费也具有＂过度敏感性＂特征,且城镇居民的敏感系数要高于农村居民。因此,政府应从提高居民收入水平、培育文化消费主体以及统筹城乡文化产业发展等方面着手,促进文化产业发展。     

法社会学法人类学“面向中国”过程中的自我汉学化——以《秋菊打官司》诸法律影评为分析文本

《秋菊打官司》不仅是中国法学界关注最多的一部电影,也是关注最多的一个文学作品,是“在中国讨论‘法律与社会’的一个经典电影文本”。这部电影的诸法律影评对此进行了过度解释。在法社会学法人类学研究者面向中国的过程中,可能存在某些立场上的知识偏差,表现为自我汉学化、自我“他者”化的隐性姿态。因此,“面向中国”仍然是个需要不断进行反思和动态回答的问题。