DEBT AND TAXES: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

The literature currently proposes several capital structure theories whose predictions are generally mutually exclusive. Empirical testing to date has been subject to serious conceptual and econometric problems. The present study, which is carried out on a cross-section of industrial firms, attempts to overcome several deficiencies in earlier studies. Although the results are more consistent with Miller's 1977 hypothesis that the value of the firm is independent of leverage in the absence of leverage-related costs than they are with those theories which predict a value-maximizing optimum debt level, there is significant evidence that the value of the firm may be negatively related to leverage over a broad range of debt usage.     

EVIDENCE ON THE ROLE OF TAXES ON FINANCING CHOICE: CONSIDERATION OF MANDATORILY REDEEMABLE PREFERRED STOCK

In this study we examine the effect of firms' marginal tax rates on incremental and overall reliance on mandatorily redeemable preferred stock (MRPS). Similarities in the cash flows associated with debt and MRPS, as well as similarities in the claims of holders of debt and MRPS on the assets of issuing firms, suggest that MRPS may be viewed as a substitute for debt. However, important differences in the tax treatment of MRPS and debt suggest that firms that cannot make full use of interest tax shields may be able to finance more efficiently using MRPS instead of debt. The results indicate that, both incrementally and overall, firms with low marginal tax rates rely more heavily on MRPS than debt relative to firms with high tax rates. This finding is consistent with the proposition that firms that cannot make full use of interest tax shields finance incrementally using equity rather than debt.     

EVIDENCE OF THE EFFECT ON SHAREHOLDER WEALTH OF CORPORATE SPINOFFS: THE CREATION OF ROYALTY TRUSTS

Corporate spinoffs and divestitures cause positive revaluation of the firm by the market. This paper examines a particular kind of spinoff, one of mineral interests into a royalty trust. Royalty trusts are associated with abnormal returns that come from positive market revalution and from special tax incentives inherent to trusts.     

THE DIVIDEND PAYOUTS OF PRIVATE FIRMS: EVIDENCE FROM TAX COURT DECISIONS

To study the dividend payouts of private firms we extend the agency cost/external financing cost trade-off model of dividend payouts to include the accumulated earnings tax (AET). The firm's optimal dividend policy trades off the benefits from lower agency costs against external financing costs and the AET. Information from tax court records reveals that private firms' payouts are influenced by both agency costs and the AET.     

减低税费促进小微企业发展

近年来,随着改革开放的不断深入,我国小微企业,发展迅速,在扩大就业、繁荣经济、增加税收中发挥了重要作用。据算,同样的固定资产投资额,创办小企业提供的就业岗似是大企业的4倍多,小微企业已经成为扩大和解决就业的主要平台。在创新方面,小微企业也发挥了独特的作用,如在广州市96家技术先进型企业中,小食业占76％,存150家高新技术企业中,     

THE INFLUENCE OF PREDICTABILITY ON DIFFERENCES IN THE MARKET REACTION TO DEBT AND EQUITY ISSUE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Existing empirical evidence suggests that the announcement-day reaction to equity issuance is about 2.88 percent more negative than the reaction to debt. However, announcement-day returns do not accurately reflect investor reaction if issue announcements are anticipated. I re-examine the announcement-day reaction to equity and debt issues after controlling for the predictability of security type and for firms' previous issue experience. Results indicate that the reaction to a first-time seasoned equity issue is more than 4.15 percent more negative than the reaction to debt. This increase over the conventional estimate suggests that the reaction to equity may be more negative, relative to debt, than previously believed. The evidence supports the assertion that giving preference to debt over equity could reduce issue costs when asymmetric information is a problem. Timing and certification strategies for lowering issue costs appear to be relatively unimportant for debt issues.     

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE CAUSALITY AMONG FIRMS' DIVIDEND,INVESTMENT, AND FINANCING DECISIONS

In this paper we posit that information asymmetries and the resultant signaling implications make a firm's investment decision dependent on its dividend and financing decisions. By applying the vector autoregressive modeling technique to 100 firms randomly selected from ten four-digit SIC industries, we find evidence of interdependencies among the three decisions. The success of the model in predicting each of the three decision variables also suggests that these decisions should be analyzed in a simultaneous equation framework.     

资产管理公司债转股的成效与运作障碍分析

债转股作为我国处置不良资产的方式之一,一直存在着各种争议.今年以来,学界对其本身的关注已经开始转向更为广泛的领域;然而在实际操作部门,债转股并未行将结束,而是进入了更为关键的实质性操作阶段.现时我们既不能认为债权转股权之后大事已了,也无必要过于争论实施债转股的是与非,因为债转股原本就有其适用范围,不可能期望通过它解决所有的不良资产问题.真正有现实意义的是应通过跟踪债转股进程去分析研究在其中产生、存在的问题及障碍,积极探讨解决问题和清除障碍的办法与对策,从而提高债转股的运作效率,最大可能地实现债转股的目的,从而有助于国民经济进入良性循环.