IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/fambus/v3y2012i2p79-96.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The dynamics of voting ownership in lone-founder, family-founder, and heir firms

Author

Listed:
  • Achleitner, Ann-Kristin
  • Kaserer, Christoph
  • Kauf, Tobias

Abstract

We examine ownership dynamics in listed founding-family firms over the period 1996–2008. In order to enlarge the understanding of persistence of ownership influence, we analyze determinants of change in the light of family-firm heterogeneity. We detect ownership decreases and increases, alike. A Large Drop of ownership (at least −2.5%) occurs 4 times as often as a Large Increase. The mean negative change is −3.1% (median 0.0%), positive changes average 0.6% (median 0.0%). Foremost, owner identity characteristics and management board participation of individual blockholders explain the likelihood of ownership dynamics. Specifically, Lone Founder Firms show the most dynamical ownership structures in all regression scenarios. Heir Firms have the most robust ownership structure and are – on average – majority controlled by a family. They are less likely to reduce their ownership influence. Family Founder Firms are only changing ownership when the family forgoes to comply with the blocking minority of 25% plus one share further. We interpret all results in the light of identity, agency, stewardship, and financial theory. Thereby, an unbalanced panel (2529 firm years) of founding-family firms listed in the German CDAX market index at Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE) represents the empirical foundation.

Suggested Citation

  • Achleitner, Ann-Kristin & Kaserer, Christoph & Kauf, Tobias, 2012. "The dynamics of voting ownership in lone-founder, family-founder, and heir firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 3(2), pages 79-96.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:fambus:v:3:y:2012:i:2:p:79-96
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jfbs.2012.02.003
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877858512000204
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jfbs.2012.02.003?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. Goergen, Marc & Manjon, Miguel C. & Renneboog, Luc, 2008. "Recent developments in German corporate governance," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 175-193, September.
    2. Villalonga, Belen & Amit, Raphael, 2006. "How do family ownership, control and management affect firm value?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(2), pages 385-417, May.
    3. Anderson, Ronald C. & Duru, Augustine & Reeb, David M., 2009. "Founders, heirs, and corporate opacity in the United States," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(2), pages 205-222, May.
    4. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    5. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1986. "Large Shareholders and Corporate Control," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 94(3), pages 461-488, June.
    6. Fahlenbrach, Rüdiger & Stulz, René M., 2009. "Managerial ownership dynamics and firm value," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(3), pages 342-361, June.
    7. 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.
    8. Morck, Randall & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W., 1988. "Management ownership and market valuation," Scholarly Articles 29407535, Harvard University Department of Economics.
    9. Zhou, Xianming, 2001. "Understanding the determinants of managerial ownership and the link between ownership and performance: comment," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(3), pages 559-571, December.
    10. Florian Heiss & Jens Köke, 2004. "Dynamics in Ownership and Firm Survival: Evidence from Corporate Germany," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 10(1), pages 167-195, March.
    11. Jean Helwege & Christo Pirinsky & René M. Stulz, 2007. "Why Do Firms Become Widely Held? An Analysis of the Dynamics of Corporate Ownership," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(3), pages 995-1028, June.
    12. Adams, Renée & Almeida, Heitor & Ferreira, Daniel, 2009. "Understanding the relationship between founder-CEOs and firm performance," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 136-150, January.
    13. Ross, Stephen A, 1973. "The Economic Theory of Agency: The Principal's Problem," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 63(2), pages 134-139, May.
    14. Benson, Bradley W. & Davidson III, Wallace N., 2009. "Reexamining the managerial ownership effect on firm value," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 15(5), pages 573-586, December.
    15. Melinda Muth & Lex Donaldson, 1998. "Stewardship Theory and Board Structure: a contingency approach," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(1), pages 5-28, January.
    16. Eddleston, Kimberly A. & Kellermanns, Franz W., 2007. "Destructive and productive family relationships: A stewardship theory perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 545-565, July.
    17. Henrik Cronqvist & Rüdiger Fahlenbrach, 2009. "Large Shareholders and Corporate Policies," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(10), pages 3941-3976, October.
    18. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐De‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer, 1999. "Corporate Ownership Around the World," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(2), pages 471-517, April.
    19. Wright, Mike & Kellermanns, Franz W., 2011. "Family firms: A research agenda and publication guide," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 2(4), pages 187-198.
    20. Roberto Barontini & Lorenzo Caprio, 2006. "The Effect of Family Control on Firm Value and Performance: Evidence from Continental Europe," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 12(5), pages 689-723, November.
    21. Morten Bennedsen & Kasper Meisner Nielsen & Francisco Perez-Gonzalez & Daniel Wolfenzon, 2007. "Inside the Family Firm: The Role of Families in Succession Decisions and Performance," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 122(2), pages 647-691.
    22. Habbershon, Timothy G. & Williams, Mary & MacMillan, Ian C., 2003. "A unified systems perspective of family firm performance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 451-465, July.
    23. Stijn Claessens & Simeon Djankov & Joseph P. H. Fan & Larry H. P. Lang, 2002. "Disentangling the Incentive and Entrenchment Effects of Large Shareholdings," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(6), pages 2741-2771, December.
    24. Andres, Christian, 2008. "Large shareholders and firm performance--An empirical examination of founding-family ownership," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 14(4), pages 431-445, September.
    25. Fama, Eugene F & Jensen, Michael C, 1983. "Separation of Ownership and Control," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 26(2), pages 301-325, June.
    26. Francisco Pérez-González, 2006. "Inherited Control and Firm Performance," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1559-1588, December.
    27. Danny Miller & Isabelle Le Breton‐Miller & Richard H. Lester, 2011. "Family and Lone Founder Ownership and Strategic Behaviour: Social Context, Identity, and Institutional Logics," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(1), pages 1-25, January.
    28. Irava, Wayne J. & Moores, Ken, 2010. "Clarifying the strategic advantage of familiness: Unbundling its dimensions and highlighting its paradoxes," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 1(3), pages 131-144, September.
    29. Morck, Randall & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W., 1988. "Management ownership and market valuation : An empirical analysis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1-2), pages 293-315, January.
    30. Block, Joern H. & Jaskiewicz, Peter & Miller, Danny, 2011. "Ownership versus management effects on performance in family and founder companies: A Bayesian reconciliation," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 2(4), pages 232-245.
    31. Faccio, Mara & Lang, Larry H. P., 2002. "The ultimate ownership of Western European corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(3), pages 365-395, September.
    32. Clifford G. Holderness, 2009. "The Myth of Diffuse Ownership in the United States," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(4), pages 1377-1408, April.
    33. repec:bla:jfinan:v:58:y:2003:i:3:p:1301-1327 is not listed on IDEAS
    34. Klasa, Sandy, 2007. "Why Do Controlling Families of Public Firms Sell Their Remaining Ownership Stake?," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 42(2), pages 339-367, June.
    35. Belén Villalonga & Raphael Amit, 2009. "How Are U.S. Family Firms Controlled?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(8), pages 3047-3091, August.
    36. Miller, Danny & Le Breton-Miller, Isabelle & Lester, Richard H. & Cannella Jr., Albert A., 2007. "Are family firms really superior performers?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 13(5), pages 829-858, December.
    37. Ronald C. Anderson & David M. Reeb, 2003. "Founding‐Family Ownership and Firm Performance: Evidence from the S&P 500," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(3), pages 1301-1328, June.
    38. Mazzi, Chiara, 2011. "Family business and financial performance: Current state of knowledge and future research challenges," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 2(3), pages 166-181.
    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. De Massis, Alfredo & Kotlar, Josip & Campopiano, Giovanna & Cassia, Lucio, 2013. "Dispersion of family ownership and the performance of small-to-medium size private family firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 4(3), pages 166-175.
    2. Jin-hui Luo & Xue Li & Linda C. Wang & Yue Liu, 2021. "Owner type, pyramidal structure and R&D Investment in China’s family firms," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 38(3), pages 1085-1111, September.
    3. Goel, Sanjay & Mazzola, Pietro & Phan, Phillip H. & Pieper, Torsten M. & Zachary, Ramona K., 2012. "Strategy, ownership, governance, and socio-psychological perspectives on family businesses from around the world," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 3(2), pages 54-65.
    4. Markin, Erik T. & Skorodziyevskiy, Vitaliy & Zhu, Lina & Chrisman, James J. & Fang, Hanqing “Chevy”, 2022. "Lone-founder firms in China: Replicating Miller et al. (2007) in a different context," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 13(4).
    5. Lozano-Reina, Gabriel & Sánchez-Marín, Gregorio & Baixauli-Soler, J. Samuel, 2022. "Say-on-Pay voting dispersion in listed family and non-family firms: A panel data analysis," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 13(1).
    6. Lozano, M. Belén & Martínez, Beatriz & Pindado, Julio, 2016. "Corporate governance, ownership and firm value: Drivers of ownership as a good corporate governance mechanism," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 1333-1343.
    7. Karlsson, Johan, 2018. "Does regional context matter for family firm employment growth?," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 9(4), pages 293-310.

    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. Suveera Gill & Parmjit Kaur, 2015. "Family Involvement in Business and Financial Performance: A Panel Data Analysis," Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers, , vol. 40(4), pages 395-420, December.
    2. Schmid, Thomas & Ampenberger, Markus & Kaserer, Christoph & Achleitner, Ann-Kristin, 2010. "Controlling shareholders and payout policy: do founding families have a special 'taste for dividends'?," CEFS Working Paper Series 2010-01, Technische Universität München (TUM), Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies (CEFS).
    3. Mazzi, Chiara, 2011. "Family business and financial performance: Current state of knowledge and future research challenges," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 2(3), pages 166-181.
    4. Bowo Setiyono & Amine Tarazi, 2014. "Does the presence of institutional investors in family banks affect profitability and risk? Evidence from an emerging market," Working Papers hal-01077118, HAL.
    5. Wenig, Thilo, 2021. "Performance of German Family Firms During the Global Financial Crisis," Junior Management Science (JUMS), Junior Management Science e. V., vol. 6(2), pages 237-278.
    6. González, Maximiliano & Guzmán, Alexander & Pombo, Carlos & Trujillo, María-Andrea, 2012. "Family firms and financial performance: The cost of growing," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 626-649.
    7. Breuer, Wolfgang & Knetsch, Andreas, 2022. "Informal authority and economic outcomes of family firms: An issue of national power distance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    8. Pindado, Julio & Requejo, Ignacio & de la Torre, Chabela, 2014. "Family control, expropriation, and investor protection: A panel data analysis of Western European corporations," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 58-74.
    9. Lozano, M. Belén & Martínez, Beatriz & Pindado, Julio, 2016. "Corporate governance, ownership and firm value: Drivers of ownership as a good corporate governance mechanism," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 1333-1343.
    10. Isakov, Dušan & Weisskopf, Jean-Philippe, 2014. "Are founding families special blockholders? An investigation of controlling shareholder influence on firm performance," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 1-16.
    11. Johan Eklund & Johanna Palmberg & Daniel Wiberg, 2013. "Inherited corporate control and returns on investment," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 419-431, August.
    12. Bouzgarrou, Houssam & Navatte, Patrick, 2013. "Ownership structure and acquirers performance: Family vs. non-family firms," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 123-134.
    13. Hamadi, Malika & Heinen, Andréas, 2015. "Firm performance when ownership is very concentrated: Evidence from a semiparametric panel," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 172-194.
    14. Barontini, Roberto & Bozzi, Stefano, 2018. "Family firm heterogeneity and CEO compensation in Continental Europe," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 1-18.
    15. Ettore Crocia & John A. Doukas & Halit Gonenc, 2010. "Family Control and Financing Decisions," Koç University-TUSIAD Economic Research Forum Working Papers 1004, Koc University-TUSIAD Economic Research Forum.
    16. Arosa, Blanca & Iturralde, Txomin & Maseda, Amaia, 2010. "Ownership structure and firm performance in non-listed firms: Evidence from Spain," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 1(2), pages 88-96, June.
    17. repec:dau:papers:123456789/5922 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. San Martin-Reyna, J.M. & Duran-Encalada, Jorge A., 2012. "The relationship among family business, corporate governance and firm performance: Evidence from the Mexican stock exchange," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 3(2), pages 106-117.
    19. Poutziouris, Panikkos & Savva, Christos S. & Hadjielias, Elias, 2015. "Family involvement and firm performance: Evidence from UK listed firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 6(1), pages 14-32.
    20. Christian Engelen, 2015. "The effects of managerial discretion on moral hazard related behaviour: German evidence on agency costs," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 19(4), pages 927-960, November.
    21. Engel, Pascal J. & Hack, Andreas & Kellermanns, Franz W., 2015. "Setting the right mix—Analyzing outside directors’ pay mix in public family firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 6(2), pages 130-140.

    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:fambus:v:3:y:2012:i:2:p:79-96. 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/719791/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.