Testing the pecking order theory of capital structure

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Frank, MZ; Goyal, VK
• 署名单位: University of British Columbia; Hong Kong University of Science & Technology
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF FINANCIAL ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0304-405X
• DOI: 10.1016/S0304-405X(02)00252-0
• 发表日期: 2003
• 页码: 217-248
• 关键词: pecking order theory; capital structure; financing deficit

摘要

We test the pecking order theory of corporate leverage on a broad cross-section of publicly traded American firms for 1971 to 1998. Contrary to the pecking order theory, net equity issues track the financing deficit more closely than do net debt issues. While large firms exhibit some aspects of pecking order behavior, the evidence is not robust to the inclusion of conventional leverage factors, nor to the analysis of evidence from the 1990s. Financing deficit is less important in explaining net debt issues over time for firms of all sizes. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.