Working Capital Management and Firm Listing Status

41 Pages Posted: 19 Jun 2015

See all articles by Seraina C. Anagnostopoulou

Seraina C. Anagnostopoulou

University of Piraeus, Department of Banking and Financial Management

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: June 17, 2015

Abstract

This study comparatively examines the determinants of working capital management for listed vs. unlisted firms, and assesses the impact of this policy on profitability by focusing on the cash conversion cycle, a commonly used measure of working capital management. By using a large UK public and private firm sample, it is found that private firms have significantly lower cash conversion cycles than their public counterparts, and that traditional determinants of the cycle significantly differ between the two groups. The findings are robust to matching public and private firms according to a number of fundamental characteristics, allowing only for their listing status to differ. Results further indicate that the cash conversion cycle has a relatively stronger (negative) impact on operating profitability for private, compared to public firms. This is consistent with greater importance of efficient working capital management for firms with more restricted access to external financing.

Keywords: working capital; cash conversion cycle; private firms; listing status

JEL Classification: G30, G31, G32, M40

Suggested Citation

Anagnostopoulou, Seraina C., Working Capital Management and Firm Listing Status (June 17, 2015). Multinational Finance Journal, Vol. 16, No. 3/4, p. 261-301, 2012, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2619781

Seraina C. Anagnostopoulou (Contact Author)

University of Piraeus, Department of Banking and Financial Management ( email )

80 Karaoli & Dimitriou Str.
Piraeus, 18534
Greece

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