Equity Incentive Model, Source of Subject Matter and Enterprise Performance: Modification Effect Based on Equity Incentive Intensity

For modern enterprises, equity incentive is an important means to solve the principal-agent problem, the choice of incentive mode and the source of the incentive is an inevitable issue in the implementation of an equity incentive scheme. Based on the sample data of A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2020, this paper constructs a panel two-way fixed effect model, combining regression analysis and three interactions with differential equations (PDE), which empirically explores the relationship between two incentive models of stock option and restricted stock, the source of subject matter and enterprise performance. The study shows that the restricted stock incentive model significantly improved the performance of enterprises, and the intensity of incentives played a significant inverted U-shaped moderating role between the enterprise’s performance and the different incentive models. After adding the subject matter incentive source, it is further found that repurchase, as the source of subject matter, has a positive moderating effect on restricted stock and a negative moderating effect on stock option. The intensity of equity incentives moderates the relationship between stock option incentive models and enterprise performance when enterprises use repurchases as the source. The results of the above-given research provide some reference for enterprises to give appropriate incentive intensities, objective selection of the subject matter source under different equity incentive models based on their characteristics, and facilitation of more efficient use of equity incentive tools.