The Nordic media market has since the end of the 1990’s experienced a number of consolidations and the market has become increasingly integrated. Some companies within the market are diversified, meaning they are involved in many different kinds of businesses, while other are focused, which implies that they are focused on one business segment. Different research views explain different motives for diversification. The resource view explain diversification by claiming that a company having underused resources needs to profitably employ them elsewhere in order to expand. The agency view explains diversification with the agent’s different incentives compared to the principal. The market power view implies that by having more resources a company can strengthen its competitiveness. Furthermore, there may be financial and synergetic motives behind diversification. This thesis investigates the relation diversification has with size, sales growth, financial efficiency ratios, and stability. By doing this we can explain the motives behind diversification in the Nordic media market through using existing theories and hence applying a deductive research approach. The thirty largest media companies in the Nordic media market were analyzed. The degree of diversification had a positive relationship with the total revenue of the investigated firms. Furthermore, diversified firms on average had higher revenues than its focused counterparts. The more diversified the firms are the higher sales growth they have and diversified companies had a higher average sales growth than the focused firms. A higher degree of diversification did not increase the firms’ financial efficiency and diversified firms did not have a higher average efficiency. However, one of the measured ratios, ROA, was higher for focused firms. Based on knowledge gained from portfolio theory we believed, before conducting the statistical analyses, that a higher degree of diversification would stabilize the cash flows for the investigated companies. However, no statistical evidence was found supporting that a higher degree of diversification would improve cash flow stability.

<p>The Nordic media market has since the end of the 1990’s experienced a number of consolidations and the market has become increasingly integrated. Some companies within the market are diversified, meaning they are involved in many different kinds of businesses, while other are focused, which implies that they are focused on one business segment.</p><p>Different research views explain different motives for diversification. The resource view explain diversification by claiming that a company having underused resources needs to profitably employ them elsewhere in order to expand. The agency view explains diversification with the agent’s different incentives compared to the principal. The market power view implies that by having more resources a company can strengthen its competitiveness. Furthermore, there may be financial and synergetic motives behind diversification.</p><p>This thesis investigates the relation diversification has with size, sales growth, financial efficiency ratios, and stability. By doing this we can explain the motives behind diversification in the Nordic media market through using existing theories and hence applying a deductive research approach. The thirty largest media companies in the Nordic media market were analyzed.</p><p>The degree of diversification had a positive relationship with the total revenue of the investigated firms. Furthermore, diversified firms on average had higher revenues than its focused counterparts. The more diversified the firms are the higher sales growth they have and diversified companies had a higher average sales growth than the focused firms. A higher degree of diversification did not increase the firms’ financial efficiency and diversified firms did not have a higher average efficiency. However, one of the measured ratios, ROA, was higher for focused firms. Based on knowledge gained from portfolio theory we believed, before conducting the statistical analyses, that a higher degree of diversification would stabilize the cash flows for the investigated companies. However, no statistical evidence was found supporting that a higher degree of diversification would improve cash flow stability.</p>

In our master thesis “Fashionable strategies” we analyze the internationalization processof small and medium sized Nordic Fashion companies. In our study we conducted aquantitative survey and qualitative in-depths interviews to shed light on the topic. We usehereby an iterative research strategy through the triangulation analysis method as researchapproach. The combination of methodologies and perspectives allowed us to analyze ourtheoretical framework and the research questions in a favorable manner. The researchquestions we aim to investigate in our study were the following:· What are the reasons for the small and medium sized Nordic fashion companies wheninternationalizing, and what are the strategies the companies use hereby?· What influences the small and medium sized Nordic fashion companies in their choiceof strategy and market to enter?· Which barriers of entry and problems do the small and medium sized Nordic fashioncompanies see as critical in their internationalization process and how do theyovercome these issues?In the research we especially took a look at the following areas that we found mainlyimportant for fashion companies in their internationalization process: The reasons forexpanding, the choice of market, the entry modes that are used and barriers and problemsthat occur in the process. We take a view on the theoretical models of the Uppsala Model,Helsinki model, Revised Uppsala model and Born-Global Theory to explain the strategiesbehind the small and medium sized Nordic fashion companies.We see that the growth of the company and the profit increase are the main reasons for theNordic fashion companies when expanding their business. The entry modes used by thecompanies are agents and distributors, and when choosing the markets the fashioncompanies are contact-driven and focusing first on markets that have a rather smallerdistance to their own domestic market. The problems the companies have to overcome arecosts of entry, cash-flow and invoice payments which are all related to financial issues.We believe that our study has contributed with new information to the research field ofinternationalization concerning small medium fashion companies in the Nordic countries.

This research examines whether Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives impact fund financial performance of 46 Nordic mutual funds during the past five years (2016-2020). Previous studies have focused on which of the two alternatives generates a rewarding financial result. To complement previous research, this study focuses on the development of CSR - whether the gap formed between CSR initiatives and fund financial performance is moving closer towards each other based on the increased focus of ESG factors during the recent years. Two categories, strong and weak ESG performance, are juxtapositioned to find out at what stage the development is. Furthermore, analysis on which of the three categories: environmental, social or governance individually, is the driving factor of the development of CSR initiatives. Based on the matched pair methodology and hypothesis testing, funds with CSR initiatives have reached the point, in which they perform equally well to their peers without such motives. The underlying driver behind the development are examined.

A quantitative study investigating the effect Covid-19 had on the relationship between ESG and financial performance in the Nordic market. In order to achieve this objective, Tobin’s Q was used as a proxy of financial performance and tested against Refinitiv Eikon's ESG scores, which are made up of one ESG score and three separate pillars, Environmental (ENV), Social (SOC), and Governance (GOV). Based on 5 criteria 216 unique firms from the Nordic market were selected resulting in 862 observations over the years 2018-2021. The data was tested through four regression models, representing the different scores of ESG, ENV, SOC and GOV. To see the effect Covid-19 had on the relationship an interaction term was used. The results show that Covid-19 did not have a significant effect on the relationship for any of the scores of ESG and Tobin's Q. The results also showed a significant negative relationship between Tobin's Q and ESG, ENV and SOC. While Tobin's Q and GOV presented a non-significant negative relationship. In conclusion, a high ESG score did not result in a higher market value for organizations in the Nordic market and the Covid-19 pandemic did not have a significant effect on the relationship.

This research paper focuses on the implementation and evaluation of Minervini's momentum analysis techniques in an algorithmic approach. The study aimed to assess the limitations and challenges associated with executing Minervini's strategy in an algorithmic trading system. Several technical restrictions, practical application problems, and the exclusion of fundamental and catalyst aspects contribute to the implementation of a primitive variant of Minervini's strategy. The challenges included the subjective nature of base patterns making bases difficult to identify and limitations in risk and position sizing. However, despite the challenges, the algorithmic approach offers advantages such as the ability to analyze a large number of stocks rapidly. It is suggested to use the algorithm as a tool for stock exclusion rather than fully automating the buying and selling decisions. The research investigates the possibility of generating excess returns in Sweden, Denmark, and Finland using the implemented algorithm over different time periods from 2008 to 2023. Hundreds of stocks were divided up into 18 stock portfolios based on market capitalization size calculations for a given year. These portfolios were traded using both the momentum strategy and an index strategy. The empirical results indicate that small-cap portfolios exhibited consistent excess returns compared to mid-cap and large-cap portfolios, particularly during high volatility periods. However, the research did not account for transaction costs, which are essential to evaluate the strategy's net returns in real-world scenarios. Despite the exclusion of transaction costs in the study, the significant excess returns observed in small-cap portfolios indicate that the implemented momentum strategy performs notably better for small-cap stocks compared to mid-cap and large-cap stocks. This finding contradicts the efficient market hypothesis, assuming equal transaction costs across different market capitalizations. Further research should consider incorporating transaction costs to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the strategy's overall performance and its practical implications for various market segments. Future research should consider incorporating transaction costs and optimizing the stop-loss and profit-taking levels, and exploring a weekly-based approach instead of a daily-based approach. Additionally, volume analysis, data handling improvements, and a more detailed analysis of buy and sell decisions are recommended to optimize the algorithm's performance for future research. To summarize, while the implemented algorithm does not fully mimic Minervini's strategy, it offers valuable insights and potential value, especially in small-cap stocks. Further research and optimization are required to enhance its effectiveness and address the identified limitations.

I denna studie av nyintroduktioner på börsen (IPO:er), från 2006 till 2014, på börsen Nasdaq Nordic (som består av Nasdaqs börser i Finland, Sverige, Danmark och Island) undersöker vi om avkastningen för private equity-ägda företags IPO:er på lång sikt är högre än hos de icke private equity-ägda företagens IPO:er. Vi mäter den långsiktiga avkastningen genom att använda måttet BHAR och jämföra de två grupperna sinsemellan. Vi finner att private equity- ägda företags IPO:er har en högre avkastning än de icke private equity-ägda företagens IPO:er över de båda tidsperioderna 1 och 3 år. / In this study of IPOs, from 2006 until 2014, of the Nasdaq Nordic market (main markets of Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland) we are investigating whether the long-run return of private equity backed IPOs significantly differs from the return of non-private equity backed IPOs. We measure the long-run performance by using the simple BHAR and comparing the two samples. We find that private equity-backed IPOs significantly outperform non-private equity backed companies over the measured time periods, 1 and 3 years.

Examensarbete, Civilekonomprogrammet, Ekonomihögskolan vid Linnéuniversitetet Författare: Gustav Johannesson och Martin Westport Handledare: Andreas Stephan Medbedömare: Anna Stafsudd Titel: Sambandet mellan Corporate Social Performance och finansiell risk - En kvantitativ studie som undersöker nordiska företag Bakgrund: Företags sociala ansvar har ständigt funnits på företagsagendan under senaste åren efter ökade globala utmaningar och större påtryckningar från intressenter. Man kan se allt större risker som är kopplade till företags hållbarhetsarbete. Med bakgrund till detta finns det ett stort intresse och en uppåtgående trend kring hållbara investeringar där Norden är ledande inom området. Syfte: Studiens syfte är att förklara sambandet mellan Corporate Social Performance, både på en sammanslagen och individuell nivå, och finansiell risk. Metod: Genom den deduktiva forskningsansatsen och den kvantitativa forskningsstrategin som är baserad på paneldata testar författarna sina hypoteser. Författarna bygger sina hypoteser på intressentteorin och riskhanteringsteorin som testas med ett nordiskt urval på 144 företag under tidsperioden 2002-2016. Slutsats: Studiens resultat visar att det finns ett negativt samband mellan Corporate Social Performance och finansiell risk. Det finns även ett negativt samband mellan företags sociala prestationer och finansiell risk. Detta är i linje med författarnas förväntningar. Däremot visar resultatet inga samband mellan företags miljömässiga och styrningsmässiga prestationer och deras finansiella risk. / Degree Project, The Business Administration and Economics Programme, School of Business and Economics at Linnaeus University Authors: Gustav Johannesson and Martin Westport Supervisor: Andreas Stephan Co-assessor: Anna Stafsudd Title: The relationship between Corporate Social Performance and Financial Risk - A quantitative study that examines Nordic companies Background: Corporate Social Responsibility has been on the corporate agenda in recent years following increased global challenges and greater pressure from stakeholders. One can see more risks associated with corporate sustainability. This has led to a great interest globally and an upward trend in Socially Responsible Investing where the Nordic region is at the leading edge. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to explain the relationship between Corporate Social Performance, both at a combined and an individual level, and financial risk. Method: Through the deductive research approach and the quantitative research strategy that is based on panel data, the authors test their hypotheses. The authors base their hypotheses on stakeholder theory and risk management theory and test them with a Nordic sample of 144 companies over the period 2002-2016. Conclusion: The study results show that there is a negative relationship between Corporate Social Performance and financial risk. There is also a negative relationship between social performance and financial risk. This is in line with the authors’ expectations. However, the results show no relationship between companies’ environmental and governance performance and their financial risk.

More and more capital is being directed towards the private equity industry. As a result, private equity owned firms make up an increasingly large share of the economy. Therefore, it is becoming more important to understand the nature of how the operational performance of firms change under private equity ownership. This study looked at how the operational efficiency in terms of EBIT-margin changed over a three-year period after a private equity acquisition in the Nordic market. The study found that companies which had an initial positive EBIT margin behaved differently from companies with an initial negative EBIT margin and therefore two separate models where created. It was found that in the case where the company had a positive EBIT margin before being bought by a private equity firm saw an average decrease in EBIT margin of 1.14% units. In the case of a firm with initial negative EBIT-margin a private equity acquisition led to an average increase in EBIT margin by 1.99% units compared to the reference data. This study thus shows that private equity ownership affects the operational efficiency of companies. Moreover, it shows that one should make a distinction between PE ownership in profitable growth cases and turn-around cases of inefficient companies and that the impact of PE ownership in terms of effect on operational profitability can be vastly different depending on the nature of the acquisition in this regard. / Private Equity industrin ser ökande inströmning av investeringskapital, vilket resulterat i att en allt större del av ekonomin utgörs av private equity-ägda företag. Därmed ökar vikten av att förstå hur private equity firmor påverkar sina portföljbolag under ägandeperioden. Denna studie undersöker hur EBIT-marginalen i företag förändrats över en treårsperiod efter att företagen blivit förvärvade av ett nordiskt private equity-bolag. Studien hittade en signifikant skillnad mellan hur företag med initialt positiv, respektive negativ EBIT-marginal påverkades under treårsperioden och två separata modeller skapades för att utvärdera effekten. Resultaten påvisade med signifikans att företag med initial positiv EBIT-marginal minskade sin EBIT-marginal med 1.14% relativt jämförbara företag efter ett private equity förvärv. För företag med initialt negativ EBIT-marginal påvisades med signifikans en ökning av EBIT-marginalen med 1.99% relativt jämförbara företag efter ett private equity förvärv. Studien påvisar därmed att private equity ägande har en påverkan på operationell lönsamhet och att den skiljer sig markant beroende på ifall företaget initialt är operativt lönsamt eller ej.

The use of sustainability within the investment community is becoming increasingly common. More specifically, investors are now more than ever leaning towards ESG scores as a way of incorporating a more holistic approach when making investment decisions. However, the evidence for a relationship between financial performance and ESG scores is inconsistent. Besides, a recent study has also shown a large divergence between ESG scores. Together this urges a need for a more in-depth understanding of which, if any, non-financial metrics have an impact on financial performance. Therefore, this study investigated if there is any relationship between ESG metrics and financial performance for Nordic public companies by performing a multiple linear regression analysis. Our results concluded that such a relationship exists, both for accounting-based ROA and market-based Tobin’s Q between 2017-2018. This study also shows that there is an overall concentration towards social metrics for both models. Secondly, it shows that some metrics such as “Percentage of Female Employees” are positively significant for ROA but not valued by the market model. The opposite outcome also exists where “Code of Conduct/Ethics Policy” is positively significant for Tobin’s Q but not for ROA. Lastly, it is also shown that some important metrics are negative significant for ROA and therefore urging for inclusion of non-financial measurements when making strategic decisions. / Användandet av hållbarhet inom investeringssfären blir allt vanligare. Investerare förlitar sig allt mer på ESG-betyg som ett sätt att integrera en helhetssyn när de fattar investeringsbeslut. Bevisen för ett samband mellan finansiell prestation och ESG-betyg är dock inkonsekventa. Dessutom har en ny studie också påvisat stora skillnader mellan ESG-betyg. Tillsammans skapar detta ett behov av mer fördjupad förståelse för vilka, om ens några, icke finansiella mått som har en inverkan på den finansiella prestationen. Därför undersökte denna studie om det finns något samband mellan ESG-mått och finansiell prestation för nordiska börsnoterade företag genom att utföra en multipel linjär regressionsanalys. Resultaten konkluderade att en sådan relation existerar, både för det bokföringsbaserade måttet ROA och marknadsbaserade måttet Tobin’s Q mellan 2017-2018. Studien visar också att det finns en övergripande koncentration mot sociala mått för båda modellerna. Efter det visas det även att mått som exempelvis “Percentage of Female Employees” är positivt signifikanta för ROA men inte signifikanta alls för Tobin’s Q. Ett liknande men motsatt resultat finns också då måttet “Code of Conduct/Ethics Policy” är positivt signifikant för Tobin’s Q men inte för ROA. Slutligen visar också denna studie på att det finns viktiga mått som visar en negativ signifikans med ROA och att det därför är viktigt att även inkludera icke-finansiella mått när strategiska beslut ska fattas.