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Leaning against the wind: Debt financing in the face of adversity

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  • Brennan, Michael J.
  • Kraft, Holger

Abstract

We offer evidence of a new stylized feature of corporate financing decisions: the tendency of managers to rely more on debt financing when earnings prospects are poor. We term this 'leaning against the wind' and consider three possible explanations: market timing, precautionary financing, and 'making the numbers'. We find no evidence in favor of the first two hypotheses, and provisionally accept the 'making the numbers' hypothesis that managers who are under pressure because of unrealistically optimistic earnings expectations by analysts and deteriorating real opportunities, will rely more heavily on debt financing to boost earnings per share and return on equity.

Suggested Citation

  • Brennan, Michael J. & Kraft, Holger, 2016. "Leaning against the wind: Debt financing in the face of adversity," SAFE Working Paper Series 119, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE, revised 2016.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:safewp:119
    DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.2696886
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Capital structure; financing policy; managerial incentives;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates
    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill

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