Real Options, Product Market Competition, and Asset Returns

We study how competition in the product market affects the link between firms' real investment decisions and their asset return dynamics. In our model, assets in place and growth options have different sensitivities to market wide uncertainty. The strategic behavior of market participants influences the relative importance of these components of firm value. We show that the relationship between the degree of competition and assets' expected rates of return varies with product market demand. When demand is low, firms in more competitive industries earn higher returns, whereas when demand is high firms in more concentrated industries earn higher returns.     

High-Technology Intangibles and Analysts' Forecasts

This study examines the association between firms' intangible assets and properties of the information contained in analysts' earnings forecasts. We hypothesize that analysts will supplement firms' financial information by placing greater relative emphasis on their own private (or idiosyncratic) information when deriving their earnings forecasts for firms with significant intangible assets. Our evidence is consistent with this hypothesis. We find that the consensus in analysts' forecasts, measured as the correlation in analysts' forecast errors, is negatively associated with a firm's level of intangible assets. This result is robust to controlling for analyst uncertainty about a firm's future earnings, which we also find to be higher for firms with high levels of internally generated (and expensed) intangibles. Given that analyst uncertainty increases and analyst consensus decreases with the level of a firm's intangible assets, we also expect and find that the degree to which the mean forecast aggregates private information and is more accurate than an individual analyst's forecast increases with a firm's intangible assets. Finally, additional analysis reveals that lower levels of analyst consensus are associated with high-technology manufacturing companies, and that this association is explained by the relatively high R&D expenditures made by these firms. Overall, our results are consistent with financial analysts augmenting the financial reporting systems of firms with higher levels of intangible assets (in terms of contributing to more accurate earnings expectations), particularly R&D-driven high-tech manufacturers.     

Cross-Subsidization,Cost Allocation,and Tacit Coordination

This paper considers the prospect that multiproduct firms facing each other in separate markets might tacitly coordinate their production through strategic common service cost allocations and mutually benefit from such action as a consequence. Our analysis suggests that decentralization cum tacit coordination may be possible in equilibrium, with or without public disclosure of allocation choices. In turn, tacit coordination may contribute to explanations for multiproduct firms' decisions to decentralize. The implications for trade oversight bodies are ambiguous. While tacit coordination results in an anti-competitive distortion toward monopolies, it also induces greater specialization which reduces the diseconomies of scope.     

Consistency of firms' past financial performance measures and future returns

In this study, I show that growth consistency in firms' past financial performance measures is useful in predicting future stock returns. Firms consistently ranking in the lowest 30 percent of past financial growth measures have greater rates of returns relative to their inconsistent low-growth firm counterparts. The return differential between these two groups increases uniformly with the length of estimation intervals of past performance data. Firms consistently ranking in the top 30 percent of growth rates earn slightly lower returns than inconsistent high-growth firms. These findings indicate that investors overreact to consistency in financial metrics, but this overreaction is more pronounced and persistent for consistent low-growth firms than that for consistent high-performing firms. Regression analyses reveal that consistency of firms' past financial performance predicts subsequent price movement. This association between past growth consistency and future returns is stronger for consistent low-growth firms relative to consistent high-growth firms.     

企业履行社会责任的共赢效应——基于精准扶贫的视角

本文以沪深A股非金融上市公司作为样本,研究实施精准扶贫对扶贫企业以及被扶贫地区的影响。研究发现,对于扶贫企业而言,实施精准扶贫能够显著缓解其融资约束。从扶贫方式来看,产业扶贫和教育扶贫的效果最为明显。从经济后果来看,实施精准扶贫不仅提高了扶贫企业的经营业绩,而且增加了股东的财富水平。对于被扶贫地区而言,精准扶贫显著提高了地区经济发展和居民可支配收入的增长速度,更重要的是,该地区的生态环境并未遭受明显破坏。在企业实施精准扶贫的动机方面,本文发现管理者私利动机并不能解释企业的精准扶贫行为。上述结果表明,与慈善捐赠有所不同,企业实施精准扶贫并不是企业自利的工具,而是利他性动机与战略性动机的结合,能够实现企业、社会与环境三者的共赢。     

Externalities of public firm presence: Evidence from private firms' investment decisions

Public firms provide a large amount of information through their disclosures. In addition, information intermediaries publicly analyze, discuss, and disseminate these disclosures. Thus, greater public firm presence in an industry should reduce uncertainty in that industry. Following the theoretical prediction of investment under uncertainty, we hypothesize and find that private firms are more responsive to their investment opportunities when they operate in industries with greater public firm presence. Further, we find that the effect of public firm presence is greater in industries with better information quality and in industries characterized by a greater degree of investment irreversibility. Our results suggest that public firms generate positive externalities by reducing industry uncertainty and facilitating more efficient private firm investment.     

The effects of management controls and national culture on manufacturing performance: An experimental investigation

The increasing dominance of Asian manufacturing firms in the global economy has raised an important issue: whether these firms' superior manufacturing performance is caused by their management control systems, the national culture of their employees, or the interaction of these two factors. This experimental study provides a direct test of the effects of national culture and management control system on manufacturing performance. The dimension of national culture studied was individualism (vs collectivism) because this work-related attribute has been noted as a major difference between Asian and Western cultures. In turn, the focus on cultural individualism motivated a study of two aspects of management controls: work flow interdependence and pay interdependence. The results are consistent with cultural individualism and management controls having independent, but not interactive, effects on manufacturing performance. The potential implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

The Spanish privatisation process: Implications on the performance of divested firms

This paper reviews the main characteristics of the Spanish privatisation and liberalisation processes and their consequences for the performance of privatised firms. Conventional pre- versus post-privatisation comparisons fail to indicate significant improvements in privatised firms' profitability and operating efficiency over a medium-term horizon once industry effects are taken into account. In contrast, they do highlight significant improvements in divested firms' industry-adjusted profitability and efficiency over a long-term horizon. Furthermore, the results of the study suggest that the economic environment may play an important role in the success of privatisation processes, and that profitability and efficiency gains seem to take place in firms operating in competitive markets and in firms that were privatised during periods of macroeconomic growth. Our results also partially support the influence of restructurings before privatisation on firms' performance.     

减税政策对小微企业债务期限结构的影响

本文主要探讨减税政策对小微企业债务期限结构的影响。理论上,减税政策对企业债务期限结构产生两种方向相反的效果:一是减税后企业盈利状况改善,激励银行通过延长债务期限以争取企业客户;二是减税后企业可支配现金流增加,加剧银行与企业间的委托代理问题,促使银行缩短债务期限以便加强企业监督。本文以所得税减半征收政策作为自然实验,基于全国税收调查数据库(2010-2015)考察了减税政策对小微企业债务期限结构的影响。实证结果显示:减税后企业的债务期限整体得以延长;如果减税后企业的盈利状况改善更多,或可支配现金流增长更缓,企业债务期限延长幅度更大。此外,本文发现在快速扩张行业、有产能过剩风险行业以及房地产上下游关联行业中的企业往往会因为较强的代理成本效应而面临减税后债务期限的边际缩短。本文研究结论对改善企业融资结构,特别对提高小微企业获取中长期贷款能力,有一定的参考意义。     

Intangible Assets and Firms' Disclosures: An Empirical Investigation

This study examines how research and development (R&38;D) and advertising expenditures affect firms' disclosures. Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) mandate that these expenditures be immediately expensed in financial reports, despite the fact that they often benefit the firm for longer periods. Prior studies find, however, that investors consider intangible assets in their valuation of firms. These studies argue that current GAAP, by not recognizing the value generated by these assets, severely impairs the usefulness of accounting reports. I investigate if firms with higher levels of R&38;D and advertising expenditures place greater reliance on voluntary, and therefore more flexible, disclosures such as voluntary publications and investor relations. Using analysts' ratings of firms' disclosures, I find that firms with higher levels of intangible assets are more likely to receive significantly higher ratings for their investor relations programs or voluntary publications than for their annual reports. These findings suggest that firms with higher levels of intangible assets emphasize supplemental disclosures because mandated accounting disclosures inadequately present their financial performance. These results have important policy implications for regulators and investors since they indicate that voluntary disclosures, which are unregulated and unaudited, are an important means of disclosure for these firms.     

Law, Finance, and Firm Growth

We investigate how differences in legal and financial systems affect firms' use of external financing to fund growth. We show that in countries whose legal systems score high on an efficiency index, a greater proportion of firms use long-term external financing. An active, though not necessarily large, stock market and a large banking sector are also associated with externally financed firm growth. The increased reliance on external financing occurs in part because established firms in countries with well-functioning institutions have lower profit rates. Government subsidies to industry do not increase the proportion of firms relying on external financing.     

经济政策不确定性如何影响企业出口决策？——基于出口频率的视角

出口频率作为出口决策的重要一环,是企业出口扩张的新边际,也是出口变化的“晴雨表”。本文在随机存货模型的基础上,考察了经济政策不确定性对企业出口频率的影响及其传导渠道,并采用2000-2006年工业企业数据库与海关数据库的匹配数据进行实证检验,结果发现:目的国经济政策不确定性增加会显著降低企业出口频率,且这一影响存在部分惯性效应;经济政策不确定性通过贸易成本、存货成本和市场需求波动共同影响企业出口频率的中介效应十分显著,其中贸易成本是最重要的传导渠道,占比达到19%以上;如果进一步考虑目的国、产品和企业异质性,会发现出口目的国经济发展水平较高、出口产品为中间品和消费品的企业,其出口频率受经济政策不确定性的影响较小。因此,政府和企业应高度关注出口频率的变化趋势,合理应对经济政策不确定性对出口决策的外部冲击。     

劳动力保护与企业风险——来自2008年新《劳动合同法》的证据

本文利用2003—2015年我国A股上市公司数据,借助2008年新《劳动合同法》的实施对劳动密集度不同的行业影响不同,识别了劳动力保护对以股价波动性衡量的企业风险的因果影响。结果显示,受新《劳动合同法》实施影响越大的企业,其股价波动性越小,即劳动力保护降低了企业风险。这一结论在经过平行趋势检验、排除同期其它政策的影响、使用不同方法计算企业风险和劳动密集度、使用平衡面板等一系列稳健性检验后,仍然成立。机制分析表明,新《劳动合同法》的实施会增加企业的杠杆率和违约概率,企业出于“风险规避”的动机会增加现金持有,以抓住未来的优良投资机会。由于国有企业对劳动力保护制度的执行度更强,杠杆率高和流动比率低的企业有更强的“风险规避”动机,因此新《劳动合同法》实施后,国有企业风险出现更大幅度的下降。本文的结论表明,在防范控制企业风险过程中,劳动力保护措施是可选的有效政策工具。     

An empirical analysis of the levers of control framework

The purpose of this paper is to use the levers of control framework to explore the antecedents of control systems – various facets of strategy that drive the use of controls; to explore the relations among control systems; and to explore the costs and benefits of control systems – costs in terms of consumption of a constrained resource (i.e., management attention) and benefits (i.e., learning). Using data from a survey of 122 Chief Financial Officers, this study tests a structural equation model that relates strategic risk and uncertainty to control systems (i.e., beliefs, boundary, diagnostic, and interactive control systems), which in turn are hypothesized to affect learning and attention, and ultimately firm performance. The evidence suggests that there are multiple inter-dependent and complementary relations among the control systems. I find that strategic risk and uncertainty drive both the importance and use of performance measures in diagnostic or interactive roles. Moreover, it appears that in certain strategic conditions information processing needs are such that firms use performance measures both interactively and diagnostically. Finally, I conclude that although there is a cost of control, there is a positive effect on firm performance.     

The uncompromising leader

Managing the tension between performance and people is at the heart of the CEO's job. But CEOs under fierce pressure from capital markets often focus solely on the shareholder, which can lead to employee disenchantment. Others put so much stock in their firms' heritage that they don't notice as their organizations slide into complacency. Some leaders, though, manage to avoid those traps and create high-commitment, high-performance (HCHP) companies. The authors' in-depth research of HCHP CEOs reveals several shared traits: These CEOs earn the trust of their organizations through their openness to the unvarnished truth. They are deeply engaged with their people, and their exchanges are direct and personal. They mobilize employees around a focused agenda, concentrating on only one or two initiatives. And they work to build collective leadership capabilities. These leaders also forge an emotionally resonant shared purpose across their companies. That consists of a three-part promise: The company will help employees build a better world and deliver performance they can be proud of, and will provide an environment in which they can grow. HCHP CEOs approach finding a firm's moral and strategic center in a competitive market as a calling, not an engineering problem. They drive their firms to be strongly market focused while at the same time reinforcing their firms' core values. They are committed to short-term performance while also investing in long-term leadership and organizational capabilities. By refusing to compromise on any of these terms, they build great companies.     

中国实体企业金融化:货币扩张、资本逐利还是风险规避?

本文构建了一个刻画实体企业在流动性金融资产和固定资产之间进行权衡的投资组合选择模型,并创新性地将货币扩张的宏观因素引入微观模型,推演中国实业部门金融化的驱动逻辑。理论模型显示:货币扩张、资本逐利和风险规避本质上是宏观和微观两个不同层面的要素变量,但都卷入实业部门金融化的驱动机制中,然而驱动效应的表现形式要比已有文献的理论模型更加复杂。基于上市公司面板数据总体样本的实证结果表明:货币扩张、资本逐利和风险规避均是企业金融化的关键影响因素,但货币扩张表现为直接抑制和间接促进两种效应。进一步引入宏观风险因素和根据企业所有权性质划分样本的稳健性检验则给出了更为细致的信息:货币因素可能通过宏观风险因素间接作用于企业金融化;所有权性质不同的企业的金融化驱动机制也表现出明显的异质性:国有企业金融化主要受货币因素和风险规避因素影响;民营企业金融资产占比层面的金融化驱动因素是风险规避和资本逐利,而金融渠道获利占比层面的金融化则受到货币因素的显著影响;其他类型企业的金融化主要受货币因素的显著影响。     

The relations among competition, delegation, management accounting systems change and performance: A path model

This paper is concerned with an empirical investigation into the relations among competition, delegation, management accounting and control systems (MACS) change and organizational performance. It follows a standard contingency type path modeling to propose that intensity of competition causes firms to change their MACS and that this change enhances their performance. Delegation of authority is implicated in the model as competition encourages delegation, and this in turn causes the change in MACS, as well as enhancing performance directly. The results from a sample of Australian strategic business units indicate that (1) increased competition results in improved organizational performance indirectly through a greater number of changes in MACS, and (2) increased delegation of authority to lower level management leads to higher organizational performance. These results contribute to the management accounting change literature by providing empirical evidence that the relationship between competition and organizational performance is mediated by a decentralized organizational form and changes in MACS of the firm.     

汇率不确定性与企业跨境并购

本文立足外部不确定性视角,提出汇率不确定性对企业重要涉外经济行为(跨境并购)影响的实物期权与风险对冲效应。本文以2000～2019年A股上市公司宣告的跨境并购为研究对象,分析发现人民币兑美元名义汇率不确定性显著降低了企业跨境并购的可能性,实物期权效应占主导;人民币名义有效汇率不确定性与企业跨境并购决策正相关,风险对冲效应占主导。横截面检验发现,人民币兑美元名义汇率不确定性对跨境并购的抑制作用在汇率交易风险和折算风险更高以及存在融资约束的企业中更为明显;有效汇率反映一国贸易条件,行业竞争激烈与汇率经济风险更高的企业,在人民币名义有效汇率不确定性加剧时更有可能进行跨境并购。最后,汇率不确定下的企业跨境并购取得了较好的财务绩效(汇率风险约束使企业并购行为更审慎高效),降低了有效汇率风险敞口。本文区分了双边汇率与有效汇率的差异,拓展了汇率波动的经济后果与跨境并购影响因素的研究范畴,为“双循环”下我国推进高质量对外开放与汇率市场化改革、有效引导国际资本流动以及企业在不确定环境下提升并购效率,提供了理论依据。     

老赖越多,贷款越难?——来自地区诚信水平与上市公司银行借款的证据

本文首次利用最高人民法院发布的失信被执行人数据(俗称“老赖”)度量地区诚信水平,并以2003—2014年A股上市公司为样本实证检验地区诚信水平对上市公司银行借款比例的影响。研究发现,相比诚信水平较高的地区,上市公司在失信环境下能够获得更多的银行借款。机制检验的结果表明,上市公司信息透明度更高、受外部监督更多,能够缓解失信环境下企业违约风险的提高。进一步研究还发现,当银行作为原告方的诉讼中“老赖”比例越高时,失信环境对上市公司银行借款比例的作用更加显著;而当企业遭遇行业危机或企业所在城市信用体系建设相对完备时,地区诚信水平的影响会被削弱。该结论在经过一系列内生性和稳健性检验之后,依然成立。本文从银企借贷的视角解释了地区诚信水平对企业融资和发展的作用,也为企业获取信贷资源、缓解融资难问题提供了可行路径。     

上市企业员工满意度与创新——来自“中国年度最佳雇主100强”的经验证据

本文以2011－2017年沪深两市的A股上市企业为研究对象,以是否入选“中国年度最佳雇主100强”榜单衡量上市企业的员工满意度,考察员工满意度对企业创新的影响。研究表明,入选榜单的企业平均而言比其它主要特征相似的匹配企业的专利申请总数高约47%。这一效应主要体现在发明专利和实用新型专利上,而在外观设计专利上不显著。进一步地,员工满意度可以通过提高失败容忍度来提升企业创新。最后,经济后果检验表明,员工满意度的提高可以显著提升员工的创新效率和企业全要素生产率,说明较高的员工满意度有助于企业效率和长期价值的提升。