Sticky costs in cost behavior of the largest companies in Brazil, Chile and Mexico

Abstract

The study investigates the costs behavior of the 50 largest publicly traded companies in Brazil, Chile and Mexico respectively listed on the BM&FBovespa, the Santiago Stock Exchange and Mexican Stock Exchange, with emphasis on analysis of sticky costs. Research was carried out with documentary analysis and quantitative data approach, making use of statistical methods for analysis as panel data. A collection from a longitudinal analysis of economic and financial information provided by companies in the reports published between 2002 and 2013 was endured. It was found that the cost behavior of the largest Brazilian companies on the average of 12 years has the lowest relationship between Total Costs (TC)/Net Sales Revenue (NSR), however, in the last two years of analysis, 2012/2013, the Mexican companies showed better relationship between TC/NSR. The trend of TC/NSR relation to Brazilian companies is growing, with steeply sloping, while for Mexican companies is gently descending. Chilean companies mostly had the highest TC/NSR, with a growing trend, which indicates that they operate with lower operating profit margin compared to other Brazilian and Mexican companies. Regarding the sticky costs, it is concluded that the behavior of costs in the largest publicly traded companies in Brazil, Chile and Mexico are asymmetrical and rising costs through to the increase in net sales is higher when compared with the reduction of costs due to a proportional reduction in net sales, accepting the understanding of the sticky costs approach. On the whole, total costs are less rigid in Brazilian companies when compared with other companies, being the Chilean the ones with greater rigidity. Finally, it appears that macroeconomic factors are important in determining the differences in the behavior of asymmetric costs of firms in different countries.