Strategy and Financial Policy in UK Small Firms

There is growing evidence that capital structure and firm strategy are linked but most studies to date have focused on large, publicly quoted firms, with little attention given to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). A major proposition of the study is that both strategic and financial factors are necessary to explain chosen debt levels. The empirical question adopted for this work, given the best financial model of capital structure, is – does strategy provide any additional explanatory power? Hence strategy and financial variables are seen as complementary rather than competing determinants of capital structure. There appears to be strong evidence supporting the proposition that competitive strategy affects the capital structure of SMEs, but there is little evidence of any impact from corporate strategic factors. The study also supports the notion that there is a 'pecking order' in SME financing and that variability in profits results in 'distress' borrowing. This study provides important empirical evidence to support work on the capital structure puzzle and the funding problems of SMEs.     

What You Don’t Know Might Hurt You: Some Unresolved Issues in the Design and Analysis of Discrete Choice Experiments

The papers and comments in this issue focus on four broad areas related to understanding and modeling choices: (1) The use of laboratory experiments to improve valuation methods; (2) The design of stated preference choice set and choice occasions; (3) Latent class models as means of identifying and accommodating preference heterogeneity; and (4) Accommodating uncertainty about the “true” model, modeling ranking and rating tasks and pooling data sources. In what follows I offer some comments on each area, and briefly discuss several unresolved issues associated with each area, closing with some comments about future research opportunities.     

A productivity model of city crowdedness

Population density varies widely across US cities. A simple, static general equilibrium model suggests that moderate-sized differences in cities' total factor productivity can account for such variation. Nevertheless, the productivity required to sustain above-average population densities considerably exceeds estimates of the increase in productivity caused by such high density. In contrast, increasing returns to scale may be able to sustain multiple equilibria at below-average population densities.     

Analyst Behavior Following IPOs: The "Bubble Period" Evidence

We examine over 7400 analyst recommendations made in the yearafter going public for IPOs from 1999 to 2000. Initiations ofcoverage at the end of the quiet period come almost exclusivelyfrom affiliated analysts, whereas initiations afterward arepredominantly from unaffiliated analysts. Contrary to previousfindings, we find no evidence that the market discounts recommendationsfrom affiliated analysts once we control for recommendationcharacteristics and timing. Moreover, analyst coverage in thefirst year is not affected by underpricing, and after the flurryof initiations at the end of the quiet period, the number ofanalysts covering a firm during the following 11 months is unrelatedto the number of managing underwriters. (JEL G12, G14, G24)     

Inventory management in the just-in-time age

JIT will change our conventional thinking concerning the management of inventories and streamline our methods for inventory control. Proper selection and implementation of these methods will yield substantial benefits by improving customer service, shortening delivery lead times, and significantly reducing inventory investment. It does not, however, eliminate the need for sound inventory planning.