Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T00:36:07.875Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Equity Ownership and Firm Value in Emerging Markets

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

Karl V. Lins
Affiliation:
[email protected], David Eccles School of Business, University of Utah, 1645 E. Campus Center Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84112.

Abstract

This paper investigates whether management stock ownership and large non-management blockholder share ownership are related to firm value across a sample of 1433 firms from 18 emerging markets. When a management group's control rights exceed its cash flow rights, I find that firm values are lower. I also find that large non-management control rights blockholdings are positively related to firm value. Both of these effects are significantly more pronounced in countries with low shareholder protection. One interpretation of these results is that external shareholder protection mechanisms play a role in restraining managerial agency costs and that large non-management blockholders can act as a partial substitute for missing institutional governance mechanisms.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © School of Business Administration, University of Washington 2003

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Asian Company Handbook. Tokyo, Japan: Toyo Keizai Inc. (1997).Google Scholar
Backman, M.Asian Eclipse: Exposing the Dark Side of Business in Asia. Singapore: John Wiley and Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd. (1999).Google Scholar
Brazil Company Handbook. Austin, TX: Hoover’ s Inc. (1997)Google Scholar
Bebchuk, L.; Kraakman, R.; and Triantis, G.. “Stock Pyramids, Cross-ownership, and Dual Class Equity: The Creation and Agency Costs of Separating Control from Cash Flow Rights.” In Concentrated Corporate Ownership, Morck, R. K., ed. Chicago, IL: Univ. of Chicago Press (2000).Google Scholar
Berle, A., and Means, G.. The Modern Corporation and Private Property. New York, NY: MacMillan(1932).Google Scholar
Campbell, J. “Understanding Risk and Return.” Journal of Political Economy, 104 (1996), 298345.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cho, M. H.Ownership Structure, Investment, and the Corporate Value: An Empirical Analysis.” Journal of Financial Economics, 47 (1998), 103121.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chui, A. C. W.; Titman, S.; and Wei, K. C. J.. “Momentum, Legal Systems and Ownership Structure: An Analysis of Asian Stock Markets.” Working Paper, Hong Kong Polytechnic Univ. (12. 2000).Google Scholar
Claessens, S. “Corporate Governance and Equity Prices: Evidence from the Czech and Slovak Republics.” Journal of Finance, 52 (1997), 16411658.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Claessens, S., and Djankov, S., “Enterprise Performance and Management Turnover in the Czech Republic.” European Economic Review, 43 (1999), 11151124.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Claessens, S.; Djankov, S.; Fan, J. P. H.; and Lang, L. H. P.. “Disentangling the Incentive and Entrenchment Effects of Large Shareholdings.” Journal of Finance, 57 (2002), 27412771.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Claessens, S.; Djankov, S.; and Lang, L. H. P.. “The Separation of Ownership and Control in East Asian Corporations.” Journal of Financial Economics, 58 (2000), 81112.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Denis, D. J., and Denis, D. K.. “Majority Owner-Managers and Organizational Efficiency.” Journal of Corporate Finance, 1 (1994), 91118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Denis, D. K., and McConnell, J. J.. “International Corporate Governance.” Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 38 (2003), 136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Demirgüç-Kunt, A., and Maksimovic, V.. “Institutions, Financial Markets, and Firm Debt Maturity.” Journal of Financial Economics, 54 (1999), 295336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Demsetz, H., and Lehn, K.. “The Structure of Corporate Ownership: Causes and Consequences.” Journal of Political Economy, 93 (1985), 11551177.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Demsetz, H., and Villalonga, B.. “Ownership Structure and Corporate Performance.” Journal of Corporate Finance, 7 (2001), 209233.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
The Economist Intelligence Unit, London, England: Country Reports(19961998).Google Scholar
Faccio, M., and Lang, L. H. P.. “The Ultimate Ownership ofWestern European Corporations.” Journal of Financial Economics 65 (2002), 365395.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greene, W. H.Econometric Analysis. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.(1997).Google Scholar
Harvey, C. R.; Lins, K. V.; and Roper, A. H.. “The Effect of Capital Structure when Expected Agency Costs are Extreme.” Working Paper, Univ. of Utah (2002).Google Scholar
Hermalin, B., and Weisbach, M.. “The Effects of Board Compensation and Direct Incentives on Firm Performance.” Financial Management, 20 (1991), 101112.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Himmelberg, C. P.; Hubbard, R. G.; and Palia, D.. “Understanding the Determinants of Managerial Ownership and the Link between Ownership and Performance.” Journal of Financial Economics, 53 (1999), 353384.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holderness, C. G.; Kroszner, R. S.; and Sheehan, D. P.. “Were the Good Old Days That Good? Changes in Managerial Stock Ownership since the Great Depression.” Journal of Finance, 54 (1999), 435470.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holderness, C. G., and Sheehan, D. P.. “The Role of Majority Shareholders in Publicly Held Corporations: An Exploratory Analysis.” Journal of Financial Economics, 20 (1988), 317346.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jensen, M. C., and Meckling, W. H.. “Theory of the Firm: Managerial Behavior, Agency Costs and Ownership Structure.” Journal of Financial Economics, 3 (1976), 305360.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kole, S.Managerial Ownership and Firm Performance: Incentives or Rewards?Advances in Financial Economics, 2 (1996), 119149.Google Scholar
La Porta, R.; Lopez-de-Silanes, F.; and Shleifer, A.. “Corporate Ownership around the World.” Journal of Finance, 54 (1999), 471517.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
La Porta, R.; Lopez-de-Silanes, F.; Shleifer, A.; and Vishny, R. W.. “Legal Determinants of External Finance.” Journal of Finance, 52 (1997) 11311150.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
La Porta, R.; Lopez-de-Silanes, F.; Shleifer, A.; and Vishny, R. W.. “Law and Finance.” Journal of Political Economy, 106 (1998), 11131155.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
La Porta, R.; Lopez-de-Silanes, F.; Shleifer, A.; and Vishny, R. W..“ Investor Protection and Corporate Governance.” Journal of Financial Economics, 58 (2000), 328.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
La Porta, R.; Lopez-de-Silanes, F.; Shleifer, A.; and Vishny, R. W.. “ Investor Protection and Corporate Valuation.” Journal of Finance, 57 (2002), 11471170.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lemmon, M., and Lins, K.. “Ownership Structure, Corporate Governance, and Firm Value: Evidence from the East Asian Financial Crisis.” Journal of Finance (forthcoming 2003).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lins, K., and Servaes, H.. “International Evidence on the Value of Corporate Diversification.” Journal of Finance, 54 (1999), 22152239.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lins, K., and Servaes, H.. “Is Corporate Diversification Beneficial in Emerging Markets?.” Financial Management, 31(2002), 123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Loderer, C., and Martin, K.. “Executive Stock Ownership and Performance: Tracking Faint Traces.” Journal of Financial Economics, 45 (1997), 223255.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McConnell, J. J., and Servaes, H.. “Additional Evidence on Equity Ownership and Corporate Value.” Journal of Financial Economics, 27 (1990), 595612.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McConnell, J. J., and Servaes, H.. “Equity Ownership and the Two Faces of Debt.” Journal of Financial Economics, 39 (1995), 131157.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morck, R.; Shleifer, A.; and Vishny, R. W.. “Management Ownership and Market Valuation: An Empirical Analysis.” Journal of Financial Economics, 20 (1988), 293315.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morck, R.; Stangeland, D.; and Yeung, B.. “Inherited Wealth, Corporate Control and Economic Growth: The Canadian Disease?” In Concentrated Corporate Ownership, Morck, R. K., ed. Chicago, IL: Univ. of Chicago Press (2000).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nenova, T. “The Value of Corporate Votes and Control Benefits: Cross-country Analysis.” Journal of Financial Economics (forthcoming 2003).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rouwenhorst, K. G.Local Return Factors and Turnover in Emerging Stock Markets.” Journal of Finance, 55 (1999), 14391464.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shleifer, A., and Vishny, R. W.. “A Survey of Corporate Governance.” Journal of Finance, 52 (1997), 737783.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stulz, R. M.Managerial Control of Voting Rights.” Journal of Financial Economics, 20 (1988), 2559.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thornton Guide to Asian Companies. Hong Kong: Edinburgh Financial Publishing Asia (1996).Google Scholar
Tian, G. L. “Government Shareholding and the Value of China’ s Modern Firms.” Working Paper, William Davidson Institute at the Univ. of Michigan (03 2001).Google Scholar
Xu, X., and Wang, Y., “Ownership Structure, Corporate Governance, and Corporate Performance: The Case of Chinese Stock Companies.” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 1794, Washington, D.C. (1997).Google Scholar
Zenner, M. “Survey of Stock Exchange Characteristics and Requirements.” Unpubl. Paper, Univ. of North Carolina (1995).Google Scholar
Zingales, L.The Value of the Voting Right: A Study of the Milan Stock Exchange Experience.” Review of Financial Studies, 7 (1994), 125148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar