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Why Do U.S. Firms Hold So Much More Cash Than They Used To?

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Author Info
Thomas W. Bates
Kathleen M. Kahle
Rene M. Stulz

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Abstract

The average cash to assets ratio for U.S. industrial firms increases by 129% from 1980 to 2004. Because of this increase in the average cash ratio, American firms at the end of the sample period can pay back their debt obligations with their cash holdings, so that the average firm has no leverage when leverage is measured by net debt. This change in cash ratios and net debt is the result of a secular trend rather than the outcome of the recent buildup in cash holdings of some large firms. It is concentrated among firms that do not pay dividends. The average cash ratio increases over the sample period because the cash flow of American firms has become riskier, these firms hold fewer inventories and accounts receivable, and the typical firm spends more on R&D. The precautionary motive for cash holdings appears to explain the increase in the average cash ratio.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 12534.

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Date of creation: Sep 2006
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:12534

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Capital and Ownership Structure
G35 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Payout Policy

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Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Froot, Kenneth A & Scharfstein, David S & Stein, Jeremy C, 1993. " Risk Management: Coordinating Corporate Investment and Financing Policies," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 48(5), pages 1629-58, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  2. Viral V. Acharya & Heitor Almeida & Murillo Campello, 2005. "Is Cash Negative Debt? A Hedging Perspective on Corporate Financial Policies," NBER Working Papers 11391, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. Jensen, Michael C, 1986. "Agency Costs of Free Cash Flow, Corporate Finance, and Takeovers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(2), pages 323-29, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Lee Pinkowitz & Rene M. Stulz & Rohan Williamson, 2003. "Do Firms in Countries with Poor Protection of Investor Rights Hold More Cash?," NBER Working Papers 10188, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Fama, Eugene F. & French, Kenneth R., 2001. "Disappearing dividends: changing firm characteristics or lower propensity to pay?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(1), pages 3-43, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. John Y. Campbell, 2001. "Have Individual Stocks Become More Volatile? An Empirical Exploration of Idiosyncratic Risk," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 56(1), pages 1-43, 02. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Smith, Clifford W. & Stulz, Ren? M., 1985. "The Determinants of Firms' Hedging Policies," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(04), pages 391-405, December. [Downloadable!]
  8. Minton, Bernadette A. & Schrand, Catherine, 1999. "The impact of cash flow volatility on discretionary investment and the costs of debt and equity financing," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(3), pages 423-460, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Opler, Tim & Pinkowitz, Lee & Stulz, Rene & Williamson, Rohan, 1999. "The determinants and implications of corporate cash holdings," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 3-46, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  10. Dittmar, Amy & Mahrt-Smith, Jan & Servaes, Henri, 2003. "International Corporate Governance and Corporate Cash Holdings," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 38(01), pages 111-133, March. [Downloadable!]
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. William Milberg, 2007. "Shifting Sources and Uses of Profits: Sustaining U.S. Financialization with Global Value Chains," SCEPA Working Papers 2007-9, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA), The New School. [Downloadable!]
  2. William Milberg and Deborah Winkler, 2009. "Financialization and the Dynamics of Offshoring in the U.S," SCEPA Working Papers 2009-5, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA), The New School. [Downloadable!]
  3. Mundaca, B. Gabriela, 2007. "Corporate investment, cash flow level and market imperfections: The case of Norway," Memorandum 03/2007, Oslo University, Department of Economics, revised 23 Feb 2009. [Downloadable!]
  4. Shu-Hua Chen & Jang-Ting Guo, 2008. "On the growth and velocity effects of money," Economics Bulletin, Economics Bulletin, vol. 5(13), pages 1-7. [Downloadable!]
  5. C. Fritz Foley & Jay C. Hartzell & Sheridan Titman & Garry Twite, 2006. "Why do firms hold so much cash? A tax-based explanation," NBER Working Papers 12649, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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