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Alliance Formation and Firm Value

Author

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  • Luís Cabral

    (Economics and International Business, Stern School of Business, New York University, New York, New York 10012; Centre for Economic Policy Research, London EC1V 0DX, United Kingdom)

  • Gonçalo Pacheco-de-Almeida

    (Strategy and Business Policy, HEC Paris, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France; CNRS Unit GREGHEC, UMR CNRS 2959)

Abstract

We consider the formation of alliances that potentially create complementarities, that is, when the value function is supermodular in firm resources. We show that, in a frictionless world where information is perfect and managers optimize, firm alliances disproportionately increase the value of high-resource-level firms, resulting in higher variance and higher skewness of the distribution of firm value; moreover, higher-value alliances are subject to regression to the mean at a faster rate. These effects are magnified if the degree of complementarities is endogenously determined by each firm’s investment. We also consider alliances where matching and/or information about firm resources are imperfect, and show that complementarities are a necessary but not sufficient condition for alliances to cause an increase in firm value; and that complementarities are neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for alliances to be correlated with higher firm value.

Suggested Citation

  • Luís Cabral & Gonçalo Pacheco-de-Almeida, 2019. "Alliance Formation and Firm Value," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(2), pages 879-895, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ormnsc:v:65:y:2019:i:2:p:879-895
    DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2017.2954
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    3. Vrontis, Demetris & Basile, Gianpaolo & Simona Andreano, M. & Mazzitelli, Andrea & Papasolomou, Ioanna, 2020. "The profile of innovation driven Italian SMEs and the relationship between the firms’ networking abilities and dynamic capabilities," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 313-324.
    4. Li, Tingting & Chen, Junlin, 2020. "Alliance formation in assembly systems with quality-improvement incentives," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 285(3), pages 931-940.
    5. Chu, Xiang & Liu, Jun & Ren, Long & Gong, Daqing, 2020. "Optimal contract design with a common agency in last-mile logistics," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).

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