IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eurman/v36y2018i3p408-420.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Living with zombie companies: Do we know where the threat lies?

Author

Listed:
  • Urionabarrenetxea, Sara
  • Garcia-Merino, Jose Domingo
  • San-Jose, Leire
  • Retolaza, Jose Luis

Abstract

This paper shows the existence of extreme types of zombie firm, i.e. companies with negative equity that continue to do business despite having lost their entire equity. We explain how these firms are measured and how the riskier ones are defined with different determinants. Using a Spanish sample from 2010 to 2014 an index called the EZIndex is developed that includes four dimensions of the extreme zombie problem: extension, contagion, recovery signs and immediacy. The paper contributes to zombie theory on the one hand by developing a method for ranking zombie firms based on risks and changes over time, and on the other hand by using a log-linear model to detect the riskiest corporate profiles out of all these risky firms. It demonstrates significant implications that need to be considered by the competent authorities not only in terms of their impact as a whole but also in regard to the particular profile of extreme zombie firms: they are less regulated, large and located in regions with large business fabrics.

Suggested Citation

  • Urionabarrenetxea, Sara & Garcia-Merino, Jose Domingo & San-Jose, Leire & Retolaza, Jose Luis, 2018. "Living with zombie companies: Do we know where the threat lies?," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 408-420.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eurman:v:36:y:2018:i:3:p:408-420
    DOI: 10.1016/j.emj.2017.05.005
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0263237317300774
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.emj.2017.05.005?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. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1992. "Liquidation Values and Debt Capacity: A Market Equilibrium Approach," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 47(4), pages 1343-1366, September.
    2. Kayo, Eduardo K. & Kimura, Herbert, 2011. "Hierarchical determinants of capital structure," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 358-371, February.
    3. Roy L. Simerly & Mingfang Li, 2000. "Environmental dynamism, capital structure and performance: a theoretical integration and an empirical test," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(1), pages 31-49, January.
    4. Michael Faulkender & Mitchell A. Petersen, 2006. "Does the Source of Capital Affect Capital Structure?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 19(1), pages 45-79.
    5. de Jong, Abe & Kabir, Rezaul & Nguyen, Thuy Thu, 2008. "Capital structure around the world: The roles of firm- and country-specific determinants," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(9), pages 1954-1969, September.
    6. María Palacín-Sánchez & Luis Ramírez-Herrera & Filippo di Pietro, 2013. "Capital structure of SMEs in Spanish regions," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 503-519, August.
    7. Alan Ahearne & Naoki Shinada, 2005. "Zombie firms and economic stagnation in Japan," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 2(4), pages 363-381, December.
    8. Mary Beth Mohrman & Pamela S. Stuerke, 2014. "Shareowners' Equity at Campbell Soup: How can Equity be Negative?," Accounting Education, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(4), pages 386-405, August.
    9. Imai, Kentaro, 2016. "A panel study of zombie SMEs in Japan: Identification, borrowing and investment behavior," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 91-107.
    10. Joaquim J.S. Ramalho & Jacinto Vidigal da Silva, 2009. "A two-part fractional regression model for the financial leverage decisions of micro, small, medium and large firms," Quantitative Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(5), pages 621-636.
    11. Ricardo J. Caballero & Mohamad L. Hammour, 2005. "The Cost of Recessions Revisited: A Reverse-Liquidationist View," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 72(2), pages 313-341.
    12. Laurence Booth & Varouj Aivazian & Asli Demirguc‐Kunt & Vojislav Maksimovic, 2001. "Capital Structures in Developing Countries," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 56(1), pages 87-130, February.
    13. Takeo Hoshi, 2006. "Economics Of The Living Dead," The Japanese Economic Review, Japanese Economic Association, vol. 57(1), pages 30-49, March.
    14. Santiago Carbo Valverdie & David Humphrey & Francisco Rodriguez Fernandez, 2003. "Deregulation, Bank Competition and Regional Growth," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(3), pages 227-237.
    15. Michael Freudenberg, 2003. "Composite Indicators of Country Performance: A Critical Assessment," OECD Science, Technology and Industry Working Papers 2003/16, OECD Publishing.
    16. Ricardo J. Caballero & Takeo Hoshi & Anil K. Kashyap, 2008. "Zombie Lending and Depressed Restructuring in Japan," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(5), pages 1943-1977, December.
    17. Peter MacKay & Gordon M. Phillips, 2005. "How Does Industry Affect Firm Financial Structure?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 18(4), pages 1433-1466.
    18. Yuyaun Tan & Yiping Huang & Wing Thye Woo, 2016. "Zombie Firms and the Crowding-Out of Private Investment in China," Asian Economic Papers, MIT Press, vol. 15(3), pages 32-55, Fall.
    19. Michela Nardo & Michaela Saisana & Andrea Saltelli & Stefano Tarantola & Anders Hoffman & Enrico Giovannini, 2005. "Handbook on Constructing Composite Indicators: Methodology and User Guide," OECD Statistics Working Papers 2005/3, OECD Publishing.
    20. Ferri, Michael G & Jones, Wesley H, 1979. "Determinants of Financial Structure: A New Methodological Approach," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 34(3), pages 631-644, June.
    21. Luo, Qi & Li, Hui & Zhang, Biao, 2015. "Financing constraints and the cost of equity: Evidence on the moral hazard of the controlling shareholder," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 99-106.
    22. Kaplan, Steven N., 1989. "Campeau's acquisition of federated : Value destroyed or value added," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 191-212, December.
    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. Shaozhen Han & Guoming Li & Michel Lubrano & Zhou Xun, 2020. "Lie of the Weak: Inconsistent Corporate Social Responsibility Activities of Chinese Zombie Firms," AMSE Working Papers 2001, Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France.
    2. Sadia Rashid & Kanwal Iqbal Khan & Adeel Nasir & Tayyiba Rashid, 2022. "Unveiling living dead: characteristics and consequences of zombie firms," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(1), pages 2121240-212, December.
    3. Stephen Anthony & Hamid Yahyaei, 2022. "Bringing Credibility Back to Macroeconomic Policy Frameworks," Economic Papers, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 41(3), pages 276-295, September.
    4. Mingarelli, Luca & Ravanetti, Beatrice & Shakir, Tamarah & Wendelborn, Jonas, 2022. "Dawn of the (half) dead: the twisted world of zombie identification," Working Paper Series 2743, European Central Bank.
    5. Santi Novita, 2018. "Industry and Financial Crises in Fragile and Zombie Firms: Does Leverage Matter?," GATR Journals jber157, Global Academy of Training and Research (GATR) Enterprise.
    6. Leire San-Jose & Sara Urionabarrenetxea & Jose-Domingo García-Merino, 2022. "Zombie firms and corporate governance: What room for maneuver do companies have to avoid becoming zombies?," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 16(3), pages 835-862, April.
    7. Wang, Changrong & Richardson, Grant & Cao, Yanming, 2024. "Long live the walking dead? Corporate tax avoidance and zombie firms in China," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(3).
    8. Felicia Anikpe NAIMO & Sunday Oseiweh OGBEIDE, 2022. "Evidences and Determinants of Zombie Firms: Implication on Economic Growth," Management and Economics Review, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 7(2), pages 141-158, June.

    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. Nicolas Griesshaber, 2017. "Towards a more comprehensive understanding of corporate leverage ratios," IFC Bulletins chapters, in: Bank for International Settlements (ed.), Uses of central balance sheet data offices' information, volume 45, Bank for International Settlements.
    2. Qiao, Lu & Fei, Junjun, 2022. "Government subsidies, enterprise operating efficiency, and “stiff but deathless” zombie firms," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    3. Goto, Yasuo & Wilbur, Scott, 2019. "Unfinished business: Zombie firms among SME in Japan’s lost decades," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 105-112.
    4. Tan, Ruipeng & Zhu, Wenjun & Pan, Lulu & Wu, Huaqing, 2024. "Short selling and de-zombification: Evidence from China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 93(PB), pages 86-102.
    5. Felicia Anikpe NAIMO & Sunday Oseiweh OGBEIDE, 2022. "Evidences and Determinants of Zombie Firms: Implication on Economic Growth," Management and Economics Review, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 7(2), pages 141-158, June.
    6. Dai, Xiaoyong & Qiao, Xiaole & Song, Lin, 2019. "Zombie firms in China's coal mining sector: Identification, transition determinants and policy implications," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 664-673.
    7. GOTO Yasuo & Scott WILBUR, 2017. "Efficiency among Japanese SMEs: In the context of the zombie firm hypothesis and firm size," Discussion papers 17123, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    8. Yarong Chen & Luca Sensini & Maria Vazquez, 2021. "Determinants of Leverage in Emerging Markets: Empirical Evidence," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 11(2), pages 40-46.
    9. Alessandra Amendola & Marinella Boccia & Gianluca Mele & Luca Sensini, 2020. "Tax Policy and Firms' Financial Choices: Empirical Evidence from the Dominican Republic," MIC 2020: The 20th Management International Conference,, University of Primorska Press.
    10. Kayo, Eduardo K. & Kimura, Herbert, 2011. "Hierarchical determinants of capital structure," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 358-371, February.
    11. Leire San-Jose & Sara Urionabarrenetxea & Jose-Domingo García-Merino, 2022. "Zombie firms and corporate governance: What room for maneuver do companies have to avoid becoming zombies?," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 16(3), pages 835-862, April.
    12. Lindner, Thomas & Muellner, Jakob & Puck, Jonas, 2016. "Cost of Capital in an International Context: Institutional Distance, Quality, and Dynamics," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 234-248.
    13. Shangming Yang & Yanjiang Zhang & Jinyuan Zhang & Bochao Zhang, 2024. "Technology accessibility and the local government's incentive to aid zombie firms in China," Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 32(2), pages 501-523, April.
    14. Ivana Blažková & Ondřej Dvouletý, 2022. "Zombies: Who are they and how do firms become zombies?," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 60(1), pages 119-145, January.
    15. Geng, Yong & Liu, Wei & Wu, Yuzhao, 2021. "How do zombie firms affect China’s industrial upgrading?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 79-94.
    16. Joel Bowman, 2022. "The Life‐cycle Dynamics of Zombie Companies amongst Listed Firms in China," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 30(5), pages 185-205, September.
    17. Ulrich Hege, 2010. "Acquisition Values and Optimal Financial (In)Flexibility," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(7), pages 2865-2899, July.
    18. MariaJosé Palacin-Sanchez & Filippo di Pietro, 2013. "Are Regional Institutional Factors Determinants Of The Capital Structure Of Smes?," ERSA conference papers ersa13p498, European Regional Science Association.
    19. Bilgin, Rumeysa, 2023. "The Selection Of Control Variables In Capital Structure Research With Machine Learning," SocArXiv e26qf, Center for Open Science.
    20. Anwar, Sajid & Sun, Sizhong, 2015. "Can the presence of foreign investment affect the capital structure of domestic firms?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 32-43.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Equity; Leverage; Risk; Corporate management; Responsibility; Decisions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • M10 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - General
    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
    • G31 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies

    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:eurman:v:36:y:2018:i:3:p:408-420. 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: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/115/description#description .

    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.