IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/bracre/v44y2012i4p207-220.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Expropriation of minority shareholders and payout policy

Author

Listed:
  • De Cesari, Amedeo

Abstract

This paper studies the payout policy of Italian firms controlled by large majority shareholders (controlled firms). The paper reports that a firm's share of dividends in total payout (dividends plus repurchases) is negatively related to the size of the cash flow stake of the firm's controlling shareholder and positively associated with the wedge between the controlling shareholder's control rights and cash flow rights. These findings are consistent with the substitute model of payout. One of the implications of this model is that controlled firms with weak corporate governance set-ups, in which controlling shareholders have strong incentives to expropriate minority shareholders, tend to prefer dividends over repurchases when disgorging cash.

Suggested Citation

  • De Cesari, Amedeo, 2012. "Expropriation of minority shareholders and payout policy," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 207-220.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:bracre:v:44:y:2012:i:4:p:207-220
    DOI: 10.1016/j.bar.2012.09.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890838912000571
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.bar.2012.09.002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Eugene F. Fama & Kenneth R. French, 2001. "Disappearing Dividends: Changing Firm Characteristics Or Lower Propensity To Pay?," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 14(1), pages 67-79, March.
    2. Skinner, Douglas J., 2008. "The evolving relation between earnings, dividends, and stock repurchases," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(3), pages 582-609, March.
    3. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐De‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert Vishny, 2002. "Investor Protection and Corporate Valuation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(3), pages 1147-1170, June.
    4. Fodil Adjaoud & Walid Ben‐Amar, 2010. "Corporate Governance and Dividend Policy: Shareholders’ Protection or Expropriation?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(5‐6), pages 648-667, June.
    5. Jagannathan, Murali & Stephens, Clifford P. & Weisbach, Michael S., 2000. "Financial flexibility and the choice between dividends and stock repurchases," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(3), pages 355-384, September.
    6. Clifford P. Stephens & Michael S. Weisbach, 1998. "Actual Share Reacquisitions in Open-Market Repurchase Programs," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 53(1), pages 313-333, February.
    7. Aharony, Joseph & Swary, Itzhak, 1980. "Qtrly Dividend and Earnings Announcements and Stockholders' Returns: An Empirical Analysis," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 35(1), pages 1-12, March.
    8. Zingales, Luigi, 1994. "The Value of the Voting Right: A Study of the Milan Stock Exchange Experience," Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 7(1), pages 125-148.
    9. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐de‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 2000. "Agency Problems and Dividend Policies around the World," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(1), pages 1-33, February.
    10. Brav, Alon & Graham, John R. & Harvey, Campbell R. & Michaely, Roni, 2005. "Payout policy in the 21st century," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(3), pages 483-527, September.
    11. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1998. "Law and Finance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1113-1155, December.
    12. Fodil Adjaoud & Walid Ben-Amar, 2010. "Corporate Governance and Dividend Policy: Shareholders' Protection or Expropriation?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(5-6), pages 648-667.
    13. Luc Laeven & Ross Levine, 2008. "Complex Ownership Structures and Corporate Valuations," Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 21(2), pages 579-604, April.
    14. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐De‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer, 1999. "Corporate Ownership Around the World," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(2), pages 471-517, April.
    15. Noronha, Gregory M. & Shome, Dilip K. & Morgan, George E., 1996. "The monitoring rationale for dividends and the interaction of capital structure and dividend decisions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 439-454, April.
    16. Stijn Claessens & Simeon Djankov & Joseph P. H. Fan & Larry H. P. Lang, 2002. "Disentangling the Incentive and Entrenchment Effects of Large Shareholdings," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(6), pages 2741-2771, December.
    17. Chay, J.B. & Suh, Jungwon, 2009. "Payout policy and cash-flow uncertainty," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(1), pages 88-107, July.
    18. Michael S. Rozeff, 1982. "Growth, Beta And Agency Costs As Determinants Of Dividend Payout Ratios," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 5(3), pages 249-259, September.
    19. Gugler, Klaus & Yurtoglu, B. Burcin, 2003. "Corporate governance and dividend pay-out policy in Germany," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(4), pages 731-758, August.
    20. Faccio, Mara & Lang, Larry H. P., 2002. "The ultimate ownership of Western European corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(3), pages 365-395, September.
    21. Jensen, Gerald R. & Solberg, Donald P. & Zorn, Thomas S., 1992. "Simultaneous Determination of Insider Ownership, Debt, and Dividend Policies," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 27(2), pages 247-263, June.
    22. Chae, Joon & Kim, Sungmin & Lee, Eun Jung, 2009. "How corporate governance affects payout policy under agency problems and external financing constraints," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(11), pages 2093-2101, November.
    23. Larry H. P. Lang & Mara Faccio & Leslie Young, 2001. "Dividends and Expropriation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(1), pages 54-78, March.
    24. Hu, Aidong & Kumar, Praveen, 2004. "Managerial Entrenchment and Payout Policy," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 39(4), pages 759-790, December.
    25. Luciana Mancinelli & Aydin Ozkan, 2006. "Ownership structure and dividend policy: Evidence from Italian firms," The European Journal of Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(3), pages 265-282.
    26. Dittmar, Amy K, 2000. "Why Do Firms Repurchase Stock?," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 73(3), pages 331-355, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Duqi, Andi & Jaafar, Aziz & Warsame, Mohammed H., 2020. "Payout policy and ownership structure: The case of Islamic and conventional banks," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(1).
    2. Liu, Lihua & Shu, Haicheng, 2022. "Mandatory dividend policy and perk consumption: Evidence from state-owned business groups in China," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    3. Chao Kevin Li, 2021. "Wealth effects of dividend regulation: Evidence from China," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 46(2), pages 197-223, May.
    4. Alexandra Horobet & Lucian Belascu & Ștefania Cristina Curea & Alma Pentescu, 2019. "Ownership Concentration and Performance Recovery Patterns in the European Union," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-31, February.
    5. Bukalska Elżbieta & Zabediuk Myroslava & Mostovenko Nataliia, 2023. "Conflict of interests among shareholders – does it refer to dividend decisions?," Folia Oeconomica Stetinensia, Sciendo, vol. 23(1), pages 16-41, June.
    6. Grosman, Anna & Amore, Mario Daniele, 2021. "Share Repurchases and Board Independence," MPRA Paper 109811, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Alfredo Coelho & Victor Manuel Castillo-Girón, 2020. "The Medium of Exchange in Mergers and Acquisitions: The Cases of Travel Agencies and Tour Operators," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-13, November.
    8. Laetitia Lepetit & Céline Meslier-Crouzille & Leo Indra Wardhana, 2015. "Do Asymmetric Information and Ownership Structure Matter for Dividend Payout Decisions? Evidence from European Banks," Working Papers hal-01186722, HAL.
    9. Shouyu Yao & Yuying Pan & Lu Wang & Ahmet Sensoy & Feiyang Cheng, 2023. "Building Eco-friendly Corporations: The Role of Minority Shareholders," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 182(4), pages 933-966, February.
    10. Hamdi Ben-Nasr, 2015. "Government Ownership and Dividend Policy: Evidence from Newly Privatised Firms," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(5-6), pages 665-704, June.
    11. Veltri, Stefania & Ferraro, Olga, 2018. "Does other comprehensive income matter in credit-oriented systems? Analyzing the Italian context," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 18-31.
    12. Imran Yousaf & Shoaib Ali & Arshad Hassan, 2019. "Effect of family control on corporate dividend policy of firms in Pakistan," Financial Innovation, Springer;Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, vol. 5(1), pages 1-13, December.
    13. Enrico Onali, 2014. "Moral Hazard, Dividends, and Risk in Banks," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(1-2), pages 128-155, January.
    14. Yusuf, Fatima & Yousaf, Amna & Saeed, Abubakr, 2018. "Rethinking agency theory in developing countries: A case study of Pakistan," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 281-292.
    15. Onali, Enrico & Galiakhmetova, Ramilya & Molyneux, Philip & Torluccio, Giuseppe, 2016. "CEO power, government monitoring, and bank dividends," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 89-117.
    16. Ling Jong & Poh-Ling Ho, 2018. "Inside the family firms: The impact of family and institutional ownership on executive remuneration," Cogent Economics & Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 1432095-143, January.
    17. Michael J. Peel, 2014. "Addressing unobserved endogeneity bias in accounting studies: control and sensitivity methods by variable type," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(5), pages 545-571, October.
    18. Liew, Chee Yoong & Devi, S.Susela, 2020. "Family Firms, Banks and Firm Value: Evidence from Malaysia," MPRA Paper 99704, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hussein Abedi Shamsabadi & Byung-Seong Min & Richard Chung, 2016. "Corporate governance and dividend strategy: lessons from Australia," International Journal of Managerial Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(5), pages 583-610, October.
    2. Liu, Chunyan & Uchida, Konari & Yang, Yufeng, 2014. "Controlling shareholder, split-share structure reform and cash dividend payments in China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 339-357.
    3. López-Iturriaga, Félix J. & Santana Martín, Domingo Javier, 2019. "The payout policy of politically connected firms: Tunnelling or reputation?," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    4. Haw, In-Mu & Ho, Simon S.M. & Hu, Bingbing & Zhang, Xu, 2013. "Legal Institutions, Ownership Concentration, and Stock Repurchases Around the World: Signal Mimicking?," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 427-458.
    5. Wang, Jin-Ying, 2014. "Controlling shareholder entrenchment: Bonuses versus dividends," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 143-158.
    6. Hasan, Mostafa Monzur & Uddin, Mohammad Riaz, 2022. "Do intangibles matter for corporate policies? Evidence from organization capital and corporate payout choices," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    7. Paul Tanyi & David B. Smith & Xiaoyan Cheng, 2021. "Does firm payout policy affect shareholders’ dissatisfaction with directors?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 57(1), pages 279-320, July.
    8. Alzahrani, Mohammed & Lasfer, Meziane, 2012. "Investor protection, taxation, and dividends," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 745-762.
    9. Hasan, Mostafa Monzur & Habib, Ahsan, 2020. "Social capital and payout policies," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(1).
    10. Qurat Ul Ain & Xianghui Yuan & Hafiz Mustansar Javaid & Jinkai Zhao & Li Xiang, 2021. "Board Gender Diversity and Dividend Policy in Chinese Listed Firms," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440219, February.
    11. Matt Glendening & Inder K. Khurana & Wei Wang, 2016. "The market for corporate control and dividend policies: Cross-country evidence from M&A laws," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 47(9), pages 1106-1134, December.
    12. Yasuharu Aoki, 2014. "How Does the Largest Shareholder Affect Dividends?," International Review of Finance, International Review of Finance Ltd., vol. 14(4), pages 613-645, December.
    13. Isakov, Dusan & Weisskopf, Jean-Philippe, 2013. "Do not wake sleeping dogs: Pay-out policies in founding family firms," FSES Working Papers 443, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, University of Freiburg/Fribourg Switzerland.
    14. Edwards, Jeremy S.S. & Weichenrieder, Alfons J., 2009. "Control rights, pyramids, and the measurement of ownership concentration," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 72(1), pages 489-508, October.
    15. Haw, In-Mu & Ho, Simon S.M. & Hu, Bingbing & Zhang, Xu, 2011. "The contribution of stock repurchases to the value of the firm and cash holdings around the world," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 152-166, February.
    16. James, Hui & Benson, Bradley W. & Wu, Chen (Ken), 2017. "Does CEO ownership affect payout policy? Evidence from using CEO scaled wealth-performance sensitivity," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 328-345.
    17. Gyimah, Daniel & Gyapong, Ernest, 2021. "Managerial entrenchment and payout policy: A catering effect," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    18. Sun, Liang & Yu, Huaibing, 2022. "The effects of busy board on firm’s probability to pay dividends," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    19. Yuting Huang & Anlin Chen & Lanfeng Kao, 2012. "Corporate governance in Taiwan: The nonmonotonic relationship between family ownership and dividend policy," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 29(1), pages 39-58, March.
    20. Ye, Dezhu & Deng, Jie & Liu, Yi & Szewczyk, Samuel H. & Chen, Xiao, 2019. "Does board gender diversity increase dividend payouts? Analysis of global evidence," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 1-26.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Dividend; Repurchase; Controlling shareholder; Minority shareholder; Family firm;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G32 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Financing Policy; Financial Risk and Risk Management; Capital and Ownership Structure; Value of Firms; Goodwill
    • G35 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Payout Policy

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:bracre:v:44:y:2012:i:4:p:207-220. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/the-british-accounting-review .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.