Market-based Performance Measures Research Articles

Sustainable investment conditions and firm performance in the Middle East and North Africa: a holistic approach

ABSTRACT We analyze the effect of sustainable investment conditions on firm performance in the Middle East and North African countries. We measure sustainable investment conditions by the extent of market preparedness for sustainable investment and the percent of total assets under management qualifying for sustainable investment with and without Shariah-compliance characteristics. We use both accounting and market-based performance measures to capture alternative influences due to sustainable investment conditions. We control for firm-specific characteristics and country-level sustainability-related, economic, and institutional factors. We find that higher market preparedness is positively associated with all performance measures, whilst sustainable investment volumes are negatively associated with accounting measures of firm performance but positively associated with market performance. The effects remain broadly robust to various sensitivity tests and endogeneity analyses. Country-level institutions moderate the sustainability conditions effect. Our dominance analysis identifies the factors that are key in improving firm performance, providing clear directions for effective policy intervention.

Exploring the influence of financial technology on banking services in Nigeria

Purpose: This study explored the impact of fintech on Nigerian banking services. Research methodology: This study employed a quantitative research approach, analyzing data from the financial statements of selected Nigerian banks, and financial technology application statistics through econometric modelling and descriptive analysis. Results: The study found that Fintech positively impacts Nigerian banks' traditional and market-based performance measures. For example, statistically, a 1 per cent increase in ATM transactions could increase banks' earnings per share by up to N4 on average. This implies that fintech adoption in the Nigerian financial system can increase efficiency, reduce costs, improve the customer experience, and enhance financial inclusion. Limitations: This study had several limitations, such as the unavailability of data for some banks and the limited timeframe due to data unavailability. Contribution: This study contributes to the growing body of literature on fintech in emerging markets by providing insights into Nigeria’s evolving fintech landscape and its potential impact on traditional banking services. Novelty: This study is one of the first to investigate the impact of fintech on Nigerian banking services based on selected case studies and the quantitative research approach employed. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers, regulators, and industry practitioners seeking to promote a conducive environment for fintech growth in Nigeria’s banking sector.

The Heterogenous Effects of Carbon Emissions and Board Gender Diversity on a Firm’s Performance

This paper investigated the effects of carbon emissions and board gender diversity on firm performance using quantile regression. This approach explores the heterogeneity of the effect of carbon emissions on the performance of firms and overcomes some of the drawbacks of OLS regression. This research aimed to identify whether carbon emissions significantly impact firm performance using accounting- and market-based performance measures and how this impact varies according to a company’s size. Another objective was to determine how females on a board of directors could impact such a relationship. The data used were a sample of 1382 companies in emerging markets from 2008 to 2021. The findings show that carbon emissions negatively affect small-size companies consisting of both high-performing and low-performing companies; however, as the size of the companies increases, the effect of carbon emissions becomes positive regardless of whether they are high- or low-performing companies. The presence of females on a board has a minimally significant negative effect on a firm’s performance, irrespective of whether it is conditioned on size. This research contributes to the literature on the impact of carbon emissions on company performance, both conditional and unconditional on size. Furthermore, the results show that the relationship between carbon emissions and performance depends on size, as revealed using the novel econometrics model developed in this study. This study also shows the importance of the presence of females on a board of directors.

Corporate social responsibility and firm performance nexus: Moderating role of CEO chair duality.

This study aims to explore the link between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and firm performance in the presence of the moderating role of CEO chair duality. It is widely believed that CSR initiatives and firm performance are largely influenced by psychological factors and the behavior of the decision maker (manager/CEO). Hence, CEO chair duality may play an instrumental role in shaping CSR initiatives to enhance firm performance. For empirical investigation, the study used the dynamic panel data method with generalized method of moment (GMM) parameters. The study considered 131 firms listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), yielding 1508 firm-year observations, over the period 2006 to 2020. Our results reveal that the impact of CSR on book-based and market-based measures differs due to the asymmetry of information in the market. The market discounts CEO chair duality due to the concentration of power and translates it into negative impact of CSR on firm performance. Thus, firms should not only improve CSR activities but also take steps to reduce asymmetry in markets because the impact on book-based measures and market-based measures of performance are not consistent. Society should also play a role to convince firms in a better way to take CSR initiatives. The perception of transparency should also be improved as CEO chair duality is being negatively seen by the market.

Ownership structure and firm performance: evidence from Saudi Arabia

Purpose This study aims to examine the impact of ownership structure variables on the performance of Saudi listed firms. Design/methodology/approach The impact of ownership structure variables on firm performance is examined using fixed effects and dynamic panel generalised method of moments regression approaches for 70 listed firms over the period 2016–2021. Ownership structure variables are captured by examining government, institutional, insider, foreign and family ownership, and firm performance is gauged in terms of the accounting-based measures of return on assets and the return on equity and the market-based measures of Tobin’s Q and the market-to-book ratio. Findings The results show that government, institutional, insider and foreign ownership all positively affect both accounting and market-based performance measures, whereas family ownership exerts a negative impact across the models. The findings support resource dependence theory, agency theory and alignment effects arguments. Practical implications The findings have significant implications for Saudi regulators in their effort to improve domestic capital market efficiency and investor protection, while also highlighting the need for a corporate governance code to safeguard minority shareholders. The results demonstrate that government, institutional, insider and foreign ownership exert an important impact on firm operational and market performance. Originality/value This study expands the literature by examining how ownership structure variables affect performance in an interesting developing country corporate context.

Financing decision, ownership type and financial performance of listed non-financial companies in Ghana

The study aims to investigate the nexus between financing decision, ownership type and financial performance of listed non-financial companies in Ghana. Data were selected from 22 listed non-financial companies on the Ghana Stock Exchange from the years 2010 to 2021. A non-parametric estimation technique-robust OLS (Driscoll-Kraay) was employed to test the variables of interest. Findings indicate that long-term debt funding directly affects ROA, ROE and TQ negatively. Again, total debt funding posits a positive link with ROE and TQ. Moreover, the direct relationship between ownership type, financing decision and accounting-based performance measure (ROE) was insignificant but significant with market-based performance measure (TQ). Subsequently, the interaction role propelled ownership (foreign and state) to be significant on the relation between financing decision and financial performance. Largely, foreign-owned companies play a strong positive role on the link between financing decision and financial performance. Further, state ownership negatively affects the association between financing decision and financial performance. The study contributes to knowledge by considering the multiplier effect of ownership type on the relationship between financing decision and financial performance in Ghana. For policy implication, regulators specifically of state interest entities should formulate balanced frameworks for welfare seeking in public service delivery and performance for sustainability.

The Role of Ownership and Gender on Firms' Performance: Evidence from Portugal

This work aims to examine the relationship between corporate governance (CG) and corporate performance, considering the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. We consider a sample of Portuguese-listed firms for the period between 2010 and 2020 using a panel data methodology. The main results show that higher levels of managerial ownership and gender diversity may drive higher firm performance. However, no evidence was found that a representation of three or more female directors leads to an increase in performance. Moreover, the results suggest that there is a negative relationship between leverage and performance when we consider a market-based performance measure. Finally, the study found evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on corporate performance. This study sheds light on the role of ownership and gender on firms' performance. The results of this research can have some implications for academia and policymakers' decisions.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and firm performance in India

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the impact of environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance on the firm performance of select Indian companies.Design/methodology/approachThe present paper is a cross-section study based on secondary data with a sample of 222 Indian firms. The ESG performance for Indian companies is based on the Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL) ESG score, and the financial data are extracted from the ACE Equity database. Both accounting- and market-based measures of firm performance are used. Ordinary least squares and simultaneous quantile regression models are used for empirical investigation.FindingsThe study reveals that Indian firms focus much more on governance and social parameters than environmental ones. The results indicate that ESG performance and its components are positively associated with firm performance. The results of quantile regression show that the impact of ESG is different at different locations of the conditional distribution of firm performance and the positive impact is more pronounced at upper quantiles.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study in India based on the CRISIL ESG score for analyzing the ESG and firm performance relationship. Furthermore, in the Indian context, a modest attempt is made to study the influence of ESG performance at different locations of the distribution of firm performance by using quantile regression.

EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AND FIRM’S SUBSEQUENT PERIOD PERFORMANCE: A STUDY ON NON-FINANCIAL INDIAN LISTED FIRMS

While studies internationally have found an association between earnings management and the firm’s future performance, there is limited literature concerning Indian firms. Prior research in the Indian context has revealed the existence of opportunistic accruals management. However, its impact on a firm’s future performance remains unexplored. Thus, this study examines the impact of accrual-based earnings management on future performance among listed non-financial Indian firms. This study estimates accruals management proxies for 2006-2017 using the widely accepted modified-Jones model of discretionary accruals. Firm performance is measured using ROA, ROE, and PE ratio. This study uses a one-step System Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) to address the problem of endogeneity in the dynamic panel model. The result from the estimator indicates that discretionary accruals have a negative impact on accounting-based performance measures (ROA and ROE) and a positive impact on the market-based performance measure (PE ratio). These results are consistent for the three estimators (OLS, FE, and GMM), establishing a robust relationship between accrual management and firm performance. The findings of this study are consistent with the signaling hypothesis and suggest the likelihood of accruals reversal.

Board committees and financial performance: exploring the effects of gender diversity in the emerging economy of India

PurposeThis study aims to highlight the impact of introducing women directors to board committees, thereby empowering them to contribute to decision-making, and as a result, influence firms’ financial performance in an emerging economy.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a fixed-effects panel data regression model to test the impact of gender diversity on corporate boards as well as board committees on firms’ financial performance. Two widely used diversity measures, the Blau index and the Shannon index, have been used to enhance the robustness of the results.FindingsThe findings suggest that gender diversity on prominent board committees (remuneration committee and nomination committee) positively affects firms’ financial performance when measured by the market-based performance measure, but it is insignificant when measured through accounting-based performance indicator. Furthermore, the benefits of gender diversity accrue to the firms only when women are part of prominent committees and are engaged in governance mechanisms, rather than just being appointed on corporate boards as a means of tokenism.Originality/valueThis study is among the first to investigate the relationship between gender diversity and financial performance through the lens of committee assignments. Moreover, the unique cultural and institutional setting offered by India, which is an emerging economy, provides a fertile ground for understanding the role of women leaders in the workforce.

Relationship among Environmental Performance, R&D Expenditure and Financial Performance: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing Firms

The study is conducted to analyse the effect of environmental performance on the financial performance of 67 Indian manufacturing listed companies, categorized into most polluting and least polluting companies for the period of 7 years i.e. from 2014–15 to 2020–21. The present study has employed environmental performance as independent variable measured by various environmental performance measures. The content analysis has been conducted to estimate the environmental performance scores. The study covers both measures of financial performance, i.e. accounting-based measures (Return on Equity) and market-based performance measures (Market to Book value ratio) as dependent variables. The control variables used in the study are ownership structure (promoter ownership, institutional ownership and foreign ownership), firm size, leverage ratio, firm age and sale to asset ratio. By using the feasible generalized least square method, the study found a positive association of environmental performance with financial performance of both categories of companies. In contrast, an adverse effect of research and development expenditure on performance has been observed. The study witnessed the moderating impact of research and development expenditure on the relationship between environmental and financial performance. The study found the mixed effect of ownership structure on the financial performance of manufacturing companies.

Conditional Information Asymmetries and Board/CEO Ties in Outsider CEO Successions

The role of directors in CEO succession events has evolved in recent decades with the emergence of the newly created CEO labor market. In this context, directors can potentially assist companies to identify prospective CEOs in the interests of investors or use their expanded role to serve their own and management’s interests. We explore this issue through examining the impact of professional director/CEO relationships in 1,136 outsider CEO successions over the past three decades, spanning a range of institutional environments in developed and developing markets and across a range of company accounting and market-based financial indicators. We find that these relationships can serve both investors’ and management’s interests subject to the specific approach taken to corporate governance in Anglo-American, European, and Asian national institutional environments. Effects also differ across accounting- and market-based measures of financial performance. These findings reflect a previously unexplored conditional theoretical relationship between information asymmetries that affects investors, boards and CEOs. In characterizing the conditional nature of this relationship, this paper makes a unique theoretical contribution to the CEO succession literature’s understanding of the role of information asymmetry and its effect on board/CEO ties in the CEO labor market.

Community development and community food in Lincolnshire, United Kingdom: The limitations of neoclassical economics

ABSTRACT Community development in the UK has moved from private philanthropy in the early 20th Century through welfarism to a ‘marketisation’ in the 21st Century with both state contracts, and market-based performance measures. But neoclassical economics, on which such marketization is based, is an inadequate measure of community development practice as it does not accommodate a range of inequalities, spatial differences, changes over time, market failures and externalities, all of which are at the core of community food projects. Whilst community food projects address market failures, they can use innovative market mechanisms to “cushion” some of these neoclassical economics failings. A number of practical examples is offered, from Lincolnshire UK, of such innovations in relation to community food production, and environmental, food waste, and food poverty externalities.

SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING AND THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF BANKS IN AFRICA

Purpose– This study examined the relationship between sustainability reporting and bank performance in Africa. Unlike previous studies that solely dwelled on accounting measures of performance, this study adopted both accounting (i.e., return on assets) and market-based measures of firm performance (i.e., Tobin's Q). Methodology– The study relied on secondary data gathered from the audited financial statements of listed banks in Africa over ten years from 2010 to 2020. Notably, the financial statements of 20 listed banks (drawn from Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa) were subjected to quantitative content analysis to quantify the extent of sustainability content. It was guided by the sustainability reporting framework developed by the global reporting initiative. The content analysis aims to identify and classify the extent to which firms report on Economic, governance, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainability. Besides, the financial statement figures aided the computation of a performance measure (return on assets and Tobin's Q) for the banks. Concerning data analysis, the study utilized a panel fixed effect regression model to estimate the relationship between sustainability reporting and firm performance. Findings– The results suggest that economic, social, and governance reporting of sustainability content (in the financial statement) has a significant positive association with Tobin's Q and Return on Assets (ROA). Furthermore, the study's findings suggest that banks ' reportage of environmental sustainability content has a significant positive effect on ROA. However, it has no significant effect on Tobin's Q. Conclusion– Generally, the study concludes that increased sustainability reporting enhances bank performance in the long term. Among others, the study recommends that policymakers develop a sustainability framework specific to the banking industry's needs. Keywords: Sustainability, return on assets, bank performance, framework. JEL Codes: E44, F40, F43

Family-owned banks in Jordan: do they perform better?

PurposeFamily ownership is very common for Jordanian businesses, leading to a high level of involvement of family members in company management. There continues to be intense discussion on the pros and cons of family ownership, particularly as it focuses corporate control within a small family group. The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance of family- and non-family-owned banks that appear on the Amman Stock Exchange over the 2016 to 2020 period.Design/methodology/approachThe research on Jordanian domestic banks is based on data from the annual reports of banks listed on their websites which offers comprehensive data on finances, ownership and the board. Family-owned and non-family banks were analysed using multiple regression technique to identify any variations in their performance.FindingsUsing a sample of 16 domestic banks with 75 bank-year observations over the 2016 to 2020 period, the study supports other research in finding that family ownership is negatively related to bank performance. This is true for accounting-based and market-based performance measures, including return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE) and Tobin's Q test results. Additionally, analysis identifies greater negative consequences for performance within family-owned banks by board of directors.Originality/valueThis paper extends previous research on family businesses by investigating the impact of family ownership on the financial performance in the Jordanian bank sector. This research determined that devaluation is a consequence of higher levels of ownership concentration for domestic banks in Jordan.

Impact of board characteristics and ownership structure on firm performance: empirical evidence from India

This study attempts to assess the empirical relationship between corporate governance and the financial performance of firms in the Indian context by using a set of board and ownership characteristics as representatives of corporate governance practices. We employ a panel dataset comprising of a large sample of 1,347 Indian non-financial companies for the period 2010 to 2018. For studying firm performance, we use both accounting-based performance measures like return on assets (ROA) as well as market-based performance measures like Tobin's Q (TQ). Starting from the basic static panel estimation approach using the fixed-effects estimator, we gradually move on to dynamic panel estimation using different GMM and system GMM estimators to examine the various board characteristics that influence firm performance in India. Based on our final model estimated using system GMM, we infer that on one hand, board size, board activity, and promoter ownership are found to positively influence firm performance while on the other hand, board meetings are found to be negatively related to firm performance. For policymakers and corporates, our study provides valuable insights into the specific aspects of corporate governance that can be targeted and implemented effectively to improve the financial performance of firms.

Determints of CEO Bonus Compensation

Abstract The primary purpose of this study is to explore the determinants of CEO bonus compensation: to examine CEO bonuses and to explore whether or not the independent variables are associated with CEO bonus compensation. For the purposes of this study, a sample of 2,448 CEO bonus compensations across 1,622 firms from 1997 to 2002 was used to test several hypotheses. The dependent variable in this model is the CEO bonus compensation. Bonus is the dollar value of the bonus (cash and non-cash) earned by the named executive officer during the fiscal year. Corporate diversification was divided into two categories; international diversification and industry diversification. Firm performance is measured by both Market-based, Performance (RET) and Accounting-based, Performance (ACE). The results show that the higher the degree of international diversification, and the higher accounting earnings performance, the more CEOs receive in bonuses. In addition, this study found that international diversification is associated with a greater use of bonuses and with a greater reliance on accounting-based, rather than market-based measures of firm performance. The results also demonstrated that CEOs in firms with more investment opportunities will receive higher bonuses than CEOs in firms with fewer investment opportunities and CEOs in larger firms will receive higher bonuses than CEOs in smaller firms.

Do firm-level sustainability targets drive environmental innovation? Insights from BRICS Economies

This paper examines the relationship between sustainability targets and their impacts on corporate environmental innovation. Using data over the period 2009-2018 on 202 companies from BRICS countries, covering firm-level governance, social responsibility and sustainability this paper examines firm-level sustainability targets, and incentives encourage managers to engage in more environmentally friendly activities. Using panel data probit regression, and after controlling for country-level governance and institutional factors, the study finds that embedding environmental targets in corporate strategy does encourage corporate managers to design and develop eco-friendly products and services, and such firm-level commitments at the top motivates managers to promote, market, and label environmentally friendly products. The findings call for greater emphasis on aligning executive compensation with sustainability targets rather than focusing too much on short-term accounting and market-based measures of firm performance.

Corporate Governance and Firm Performance: Exploring the Mediating Role of Financial Slack

Purpose: Generally, prior literature merely focuses on the direct nexus of governance-performance, while ignoring the precise channels through which corporate governance has an effect on the firm performance. Specifically, this study has taken up this issue to capturing the governance-enterprise valuation following the indirect channel of financial slack in Pakistan.
 Design/Methodology/Approach: The study examined the corporate governance and enterprise performance linkage, employing financial slack as a mediating variable. A market-based performance measure “Tobin’s Q” and corporate governance index are used. For the years 2005-2019, this empirical study looks at a large number of 180 firms in the Pakistani non-financial sector. For analysis, a variety of alternative specifications and estimate approaches of panel data analysis are used.
 Findings: The empirical findings support the hypothesis that the association between corporate governance and Tobin’s Q is likely to be significant. The novelty of the study lies in the governance-value linkage considering financial slack resource as mediator. The study also confirms partial mediation of financial slack, between CG and FP. 
 Implications/Originality/Value: This study examines the corporate governance standards in Pakistan, a developing nation with a fledgling stock market. The findings show that the organizations with effective corporate governance principles strive to deliver the best financial and market performance. It emphasizes that efficient corporate governance policies curtail the agency conflicts and costs. It is also argued that firms with effective corporate governance can enhance the efficiency of financial slack resources to enhance the efficiency of the firms.

Global banking stability in the shadow of Covid-19 outbreak

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has been exerting negative effects on several economies in 2020. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to examine the impact of this pandemic on the global banking stability and to assess any potential recovery signals. This study is timely, in that we consider 1090 banks from 116 countries for quarterly periods across 2019–20. The results provide strong empirical evidence that, in the global banking sector, the Covid-19 outbreak has had detrimental impacts on financial performance across various indicators of financial performance (i.e., accounting-based and market-based performance measures) and financial stability (i.e., high-risk indicators including default risk, liquidity risk and asset risk). These results are consistently observed for various regions, countries (US, China and others), and different bank-level characterises, and across income-generation levels among countries. We also find differential effects of the pandemic on alternative banking systems (i.e., conventional and Islamic). Moreover, our trend analysis, based on bank average performance and financial stability over quarterly periods, identifies a signal of recovery for bank stability during the second quarter of 2020. The findings presented in this study offer important financial observations and policy implications to many stakeholders engaging with global banking.