1、 中文 3150 字， 2100 单词， 10800 英文字符 出处： Abor J. The effect of capital structure on profitability: an empirical analysis of listed firms in GhanaJ. Journal of Risk Finance, 2005, 6(November):438-445. 外文翻译 The effect of capital structure on profitability : an empirical analysis of listed firms in Ghana Au
2、thor:Joshua Abor Introduction The capital structure decision is crucial for any business organization. The decision is important because of the need to maximize returns to various organizational constituencies, and also because of the impact such a decision has on a firms ability to deal with its co
3、mpetitive environment. The capital structure of a firm is actually a mix of different securities. In general, a firm can choose among many alternative capital structures. It can issue a large amount of debt or very little debt. It can arrange lease financing, use warrants, issue convertible bonds, s
4、ign forward contracts or trade bond swaps. It can issue dozens of distinct securities in countless combinations； however, it attempts to find the particular combination that maximizes its overall market value. A number of theories have been advanced in explaining the capital structure of firms. Desp
5、ite the theoretical appeal of capital structure, researchers in financial management have not found the optimal capital structure. The best that academics and practitioners have been able to achieve are prescriptions that satisfy short-term goals. For example, the lack of a consensus about what woul
6、d qualify as optimal capital structure has necessitated the need for this research. A better understanding of the issues at hand requires a look at the concept of capital structure and its effect on firm profitability. This paper examines the relationship between capital structure and profitability
7、of companies listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange during the period 1998-2002. The effect of capital structure on the profitability of listed firms in Ghana is a scientific area that has not yet been explored in Ghanaian finance literature. The paper is organized as follows. The following section give
8、s a review of the extant literature on the subject. The next section describes the data and justifies the choice of the variables used in the analysis. The model used in the analysis is then estimated. The subsequent section presents and discusses the results of the empirical analysis. Finally, the
9、last section summarizes the findings of the research and also concludes the discussion. Literature on capital structure The relationship between capital structure and firm value has been the subject of considerable debate. Throughout the literature, debate has centered on whether there is an optimal
10、 capital structure for an individual firm or whether the proportion of debt usage is irrelevant to the individual firms value. The capital structure of a firm concerns the mix of debt and equity the firm uses in its operation. Brealey and Myers (2003) contend that the choice of capital structure is
11、fundamentally a marketing problem. They state that the firm can issue dozens of distinct securities in countless combinations, but it attempts to find the particular combination that maximizes market value. According to Weston and Brigham (1992), the optimal capital structure is the one that maximiz
12、es the market value of the firms outstanding shares. Fama and French (1998), analyzing the relationship among taxes, financing decisions, and the firms value, concluded that the debt does not concede tax benefits. Besides, the high leverage degree generates agency problems among shareholders and cre
13、ditors that predict negative relationships between leverage and profitability. Therefore, negative information relating debt and profitability obscures the tax benefit of the debt. Booth et al. (2001) developed a study attempting to relate the capital structure of several companies in countries with
14、 extremely different financial markets. They concluded that the variables that affect the choice of the capital structure of the companies are similar, in spite of the great differences presented by the financial markets. Besides, they concluded that profitability has an inverse relationship with de
15、bt level and size of the firm. Graham (2000) concluded in his work that big and profitable companies present a low debt rate. Mesquita and Lara (2003) found in their study that the relationship between rates of return and debt indicates a negative relationship for long-term financing. However, they
16、found a positive relationship for short-term financing and equity. Hadlock and James (2002) concluded that companies prefer loan (debt) financing because they anticipate a higher return. Taub (1975) also found significant positive coefficients for four measures of profitability in a regression of th
17、ese measures against debt ratio. Petersen and Rajan (1994) identified the same association, but for industries. Baker (1973), who worked with a simultaneous equations model, and Nerlove (1968) also found the same type of association for industries. Roden and Lewellen (1995) found a significant posit
18、ive association between profitability and total debt as a percentage of the total buyout-financing package in their study on leveraged buyouts. Champion (1999) suggested that the use of leverage was one way to improve the performance of an organization. In summary, there is no universal theory of th
19、e debt-equity choice. Different views have been put forward regarding the financing choice. The present study investigates the effect of capital structure on profitability of listed firms on the GSE. Methodology This study sampled all firms that have been listed on the GSE over a five-year period (1
20、998-2002). Twenty-two firms qualified to be included in the study sample. Variables used for the analysis include profitability and leverage ratios. Profitability is operationalized using a commonly used accounting-based measure: the ratio of earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) to equity. The
21、leverage ratios used include: . short-term debt to the total capital； . long-term debt to total capital； . total debt to total capital. Firm size and sales growth are also included as control variables. The panel character of the data allows for the use of panel data methodology. Panel data involves
22、 the pooling of observations on a cross-section of units over several time periods and provides results that are simply not detectable in pure cross-sections or pure time-series studies. A general model for panel data that allows the researcher to estimate panel data with great flexibility and formu
23、late the differences in the behavior of the cross-section elements is adopted. The relationship between debt and profitability is thus estimated in the following regression models: ROEi,t = 0 + 1SDAi,t + 2SIZEi,t + 3SGi,t + i,t (1) ROEi,t= 0 + 1LDAi,t + 2SIZEi,t + 3SGi,t + i,t (2) ROEi,t= 0 + 1DAi,t
24、 + 2SIZEi,t + 3SGi,t + i,t (3) where: . ROEi,t is EBIT divided by equity for firm i in time t； . SDAi,t is short-term debt divided by the total capital for firm i in time t； . LDAi,t is long-term debt divided by the total capital for firm i in time t； . DAi,t is total debt divided by the total capital for firm i in time t；
