IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/bstrat/v29y2020i4p1785-1796.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Are loyalty shares an effective antidote against short‐termism? Empirical evidence from Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Chiara Mio
  • Elise Soerger Zaro
  • Marco Fasan

Abstract

Corporate short‐termism is arguably one of the main causes of economic, social, and environmental unsustainability. This paper studies the effectiveness of loyalty shares—shares granting extra dividends or voting rights to shareholders holding them for a specified period of time—in limiting short‐termism. Although there are arguments both supporting (antidote view) and opposing (poison view) loyalty shares' effectiveness, empirical evidence on the theme is scant. By employing earnings management as a proxy for corporate short‐termism and by relying on a hand‐collected database of Italian firms, we find that loyalty shares can serve as an effective antidote against short‐termism. This study contributes to academic literature on corporate governance and accounting and informs the debate among policymakers on loyalty shares' effectiveness.

Suggested Citation

  • Chiara Mio & Elise Soerger Zaro & Marco Fasan, 2020. "Are loyalty shares an effective antidote against short‐termism? Empirical evidence from Italy," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(4), pages 1785-1796, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:29:y:2020:i:4:p:1785-1796
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.2473
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2473
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/bse.2473?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Liang, H. & Marquis, C. & Renneboog, L.D.R. & Li Sun, Sunny, 2014. "Speaking of Corporate Social Responsibility," Discussion Paper 2014-018, Tilburg University, Tilburg Law and Economic Center.
    2. Leonardo Rinaldi & Jeffrey Unerman & Charl de Villiers, 2018. "Evaluating the integrated reporting journey: insights, gaps and agendas for future research," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 31(5), pages 1294-1318, June.
    3. Yakov Amihud & Baruch Lev, 1981. "Risk Reduction as a Managerial Motive for Conglomerate Mergers," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 12(2), pages 605-617, Autumn.
    4. Marco Becht & Yuliya Kamisarenka & Anete Pajuste, 2018. "Loyalty Shares with Tenure Voting - a Coasian bargain? Evidence from the Loi Florange Experiment," Working Papers ECARES 2018-10, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    5. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    6. Kim, Jaehyeon & Kim, Yongtae & Zhou, Jian, 2017. "Languages and earnings management," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(2), pages 288-306.
    7. Anup Agrawal & Charles R. Knoeber, "undated". "Firm Performance and Mechanisms to Control Agency Problems between Managers and Shareholders (Revision of 29-94)," Rodney L. White Center for Financial Research Working Papers 08-96, Wharton School Rodney L. White Center for Financial Research.
    8. Chao Chen & Haina Shi & Haoping Xu, 2013. "Underwriter Reputation, Issuer Ownership, and Pre-IPO Earnings Management: Evidence from China," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 42(3), pages 647-677, September.
    9. Cornett, Marcia Millon & Marcus, Alan J. & Saunders, Anthony & Tehranian, Hassan, 2007. "The impact of institutional ownership on corporate operating performance," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 31(6), pages 1771-1794, June.
    10. Hsiang-Lin Chih & Chung-Hua Shen & Feng-Ching Kang, 2008. "Corporate Social Responsibility, Investor Protection, and Earnings Management: Some International Evidence," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 79(1), pages 179-198, April.
    11. Kothari, S.P. & Leone, Andrew J. & Wasley, Charles E., 2005. "Performance matched discretionary accrual measures," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 163-197, February.
    12. Kartick Gupta, 2018. "Environmental Sustainability and Implied Cost of Equity: International Evidence," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 147(2), pages 343-365, January.
    13. Anup Agrawal & Charles R. Knoeber, "undated". "Firm Performance and Mechanisms to Control Agency Problems between Managers and Shareholders (Revision of 29-94)," Rodney L. White Center for Financial Research Working Papers 8-96, Wharton School Rodney L. White Center for Financial Research.
    14. Gul, Ferdinand A. & Fung, Simon Yu Kit & Jaggi, Bikki, 2009. "Earnings quality: Some evidence on the role of auditor tenure and auditors' industry expertise," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 265-287, June.
    15. Ray Ball & Xi Li & Lakshmanan Shivakumar, 2015. "Contractibility and Transparency of Financial Statement Information Prepared Under IFRS: Evidence from Debt Contracts Around IFRS Adoption," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(5), pages 915-963, December.
    16. Agrawal, Anup & Knoeber, Charles R., 1996. "Firm Performance and Mechanisms to Control Agency Problems between Managers and Shareholders," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 31(3), pages 377-397, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Benamraoui, Abdelhafid & Jory, Surendranath Rakesh & Mazouz, Khelifa & Shah, Neeta & Gough, Orla, 2019. "The effect of block ownership on future firm value and performance," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    2. Al-Najjar, Basil, 2015. "Does ownership matter in publicly listed tourism firms? Evidence from Jordan," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 87-96.
    3. Hazar Ben Barka & François Legendre, 2017. "Effect of the board of directors and the audit committee on firm performance: a panel data analysis," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 21(3), pages 737-755, September.
    4. Benson, Bradley W. & Chen, Yu & James, Hui L. & Park, Jung Chul, 2020. "So far away from me: Firm location and the managerial ownership effect on firm value," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    5. Huang, Haijie & Lee, Edward & Lyu, Changjiang & Zhu, Zhenmei, 2016. "The effect of accounting academics in the boardroom on the value relevance of financial reporting information," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 18-30.
    6. Showkat Ahmad Busru & G. Shanmugasundaram & Shariq Ahmad Bhat, 2020. "Corporate Governance an Imperative for Stakeholders Protection: Evidence from Risk Management of Indian Listed Firms," Business Perspectives and Research, , vol. 8(2), pages 89-116, July.
    7. Lin, Yongjia Rebecca & Fu, Xiaoqing Maggie, 2017. "Does institutional ownership influence firm performance? Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 17-57.
    8. Pornsit Jiraporn & Pandej Chintrakarn & Jang-Chul Kim & Yixin Liu, 2013. "Exploring the Agency Cost of Debt: Evidence from the ISS Governance Standards," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 44(2), pages 205-227, October.
    9. Brian L. Connelly & Robert E. Hoskisson & Laszlo Tihanyi & S. Trevis Certo, 2010. "Ownership as a Form of Corporate Governance," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(s2), pages 1561-1589, December.
    10. Hui-Wen Tang & Chong-Chuo Chang, 2015. "Does corporate governance affect the relationship between earnings management and firm performance? An endogenous switching regression model," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 45(1), pages 33-58, July.
    11. Ferris, Stephen P. & Sen, Nilanjan & Lim, Chee Yeow & Yeo, Gillian H. H., 2002. "Corporate focus versus diversification: the role of growth opportunities and cashflow," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 12(3), pages 231-252, July.
    12. 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.
    13. Georgeta Vintila & tefan Cristian Gherghina, 2015. "Does Ownership Structure Influence Firm Value? An Empirical Research towards the Bucharest Stock Exchange Listed Companies," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 5(2), pages 501-514.
    14. Hanh Thi My Le & Qian Long Kweh & Irene Wei Kiong Ting & Mohammad Nourani, 2022. "CEO power and earnings management: Dual roles of foreign shareholders in Vietnamese listed companies," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(1), pages 1240-1256, January.
    15. Yu‐Luen Ma & Yayuan Ren, 2021. "Insurer risk and performance before, during, and after the 2008 financial crisis: The role of monitoring institutional ownership," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 88(2), pages 351-380, June.
    16. Shu-Ling Lin & Lu Jun & Jing-Lun Yan, 2018. "Family Holding and Board Effectiveness on the Risk-taking of Financial Industry in China and Taiwan," Journal of Applied Finance & Banking, SCIENPRESS Ltd, vol. 8(2), pages 1-6.
    17. Sheikh, Shahbaz, 2018. "The impact of market competition on the relation between CEO power and firm innovation," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 36-50.
    18. Dendi Ramdani & Arjen Witteloostuijn, 2012. "The Shareholder–Manager Relationship and Its Impact on the Likelihood of Firm Bribery," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 108(4), pages 495-507, July.
    19. Chenini Hajer & Jarboui Anis, 2018. "Analysis of the Impact of Governance on Bank Performance: Case of Commercial Tunisian Banks," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 9(3), pages 871-895, September.
    20. Martin Kyere & Marcel Ausloos, 2021. "Corporate governance and firms financial performance in the United Kingdom," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(2), pages 1871-1885, April.

    More about this item

    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:bla:bstrat:v:29:y:2020:i:4:p:1785-1796. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-0836 .

    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.