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On the Role of External Financing Costs in Optimal Investment Decisions

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Listed:
  • Mohamed Belhaj

    (GREQAM - Groupement de Recherche en Économie Quantitative d'Aix-Marseille - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AMU - Aix Marseille Université - ECM - École Centrale de Marseille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Nataliya Klimenko

    (GREQAM - Groupement de Recherche en Économie Quantitative d'Aix-Marseille - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AMU - Aix Marseille Université - ECM - École Centrale de Marseille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

Abstract

This paper brings into focus a link between the investment and financing decisions of a firm which has an access to costly debt financing. Our analysis shows that lump-sum debt issuance costs play a prominent role in a determination of the optimal investment strategy. Faced with larger lump-sum debt issuance costs, a firm will optimally set up a higher-scale investment project in order to "compensate" dead-weight financing costs by higher return. Moreover, in the presence of lump-sum debt issuance costs, the optimal investment scale of financially constrained firms exhibits an inverted U-shaped relationship with the firm's borrowing capacity, so that relatively more/less constrained firms will realize smaller investment projects, whereas firms with an intermediate borrowing capacity will undertake larger investment.

Suggested Citation

  • Mohamed Belhaj & Nataliya Klimenko, 2012. "On the Role of External Financing Costs in Optimal Investment Decisions," Working Papers halshs-00793688, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-00793688
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00793688
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nishihara, Michi & Shibata, Takashi, 2013. "The effects of external financing costs on investment timing and sizing decisions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 1160-1175.
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    6. Steven M. Fazzari & R. Glenn Hubbard & Bruce C. Petersen, 1988. "Financing Constraints and Corporate Investment," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 19(1), pages 141-206.
    7. Mohamed Belhaj & Bertrand Djembissi, 2009. "Optimal Investment under Credit Constraints," Annals of Economics and Statistics, GENES, issue 93-94, pages 233-257.
    8. Whited, Toni M, 1992. "Debt, Liquidity Constraints, and Corporate Investment: Evidence from Panel Data," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 47(4), pages 1425-1460, September.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    credit constraints; debt issuance costs; investment intensity; real options;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G31 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G33 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Bankruptcy; Liquidation

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