Ce travail de recherche est dédié à l’analyse des décisions de financement des Très Petites Entreprises (TPE)françaises. Le premier chapitre de cette thèse décrit le cadre de l’étude, à savoir les TPE. Le second chapitre revisite les principales théories de la structure financière à la lumière des spécificités des TPE, et motive l’utilisation du cadre théorique du financement hiérarchique. Le troisième chapitre propose un test de la théorie du financement hiérarchique sur un large échantillon de TPE françaises. Le quatrième chapitre propose d’adapter ce modèle aux choix et aux contraintes de financement de la TPE, notamment en y intégrant une hiérarchie infra dettes.Ce chapitre propose également un test empirique portant sur l’arbitrage entre dettes financières et comptes courants d’associés. La principale contribution de cette thèse est certainement la généralisation de la théorie du financement hiérarchique aux TPE françaises. Ces firmes préfèrent le financement interne au financement externe, et la dette à l’émission d’actions. Néanmoins, les firmes en excédent de financement ne cherchent pas à se désendetter rapidement, ce qui peut se traduire par l’anticipation de déficits de financement futurs, d’autant plus difficiles à combler que ces entreprises sont soumises au rationnement de crédit. La théorie du financement hiérarchique ne permet cependant pas d’expliquer la préférence des dirigeants de TPE pour les dettes financières, par rapport aux comptes courants d’associés. Les TPE étant généralement détenues et dirigées par la même personne, il est possible d’analyser ce comportement sous l’angle de la théorie de la diversification.Les actionnaires-dirigeants privilégient la diversification de leur patrimoine personnel à la minimisation des coûts d’asymétrie d’information / This research work is devoted to the analysis of financing decisions of French Very Small Businesses (VSB).The first chapter of this thesis describes the object of the study, namely the VSB. The second chapter revisits the main theories of capital structure in the light of the specificities of VSBs, and motivates the use of the theoretical framework proposed by the Pecking Order Theory. The third chapter tests the Pecking Order Theory on a large sample of French VSBs. The fourth chapter suggests adapting this theory to the evidence of financing choicesand financial constraints of VSBs, particularly by incorporating an infra-debt hierarchy. This chapter also provides an empirical test of the trade off between financial debts and partners' current accounts. The main contribution of this work is certainly the generalization of the Pecking Order Theory to the French VSB universe. These firms prefer internal financing to external financing, and debt to issuing shares. However, firms with excess of financing do not try to reduce debt quickly, which can be translated by the anticipation of future financing deficits, which become even more severe as these businesses are subject to credit rationing.Nevertheless, the Pecking Order Theory still does not provide any explanation for the preference of the VSBs’ managers for financial debt, compared to partners' current accounts. The fact that VSBs are generally owned and managed by the same person makes it possible to analyze their financial behavior under the diversification theory. Share holder-managers prefer diversifying their personal wealth rather than minimizing costs of information asymmetry

Mikroföretagens roll är av stor betydelse för den svenska ekonomin. Dock visar statistik att var tredje mikroföretag går i konkurs kort efter uppstarten. Detaljhandelsbranschen visar sig vara den näst mest konkurrensutsatta branschen i Sverige samt att mikroföretag upplever finansieringsproblematik. En orsak till detta kan bero på företagares bristande kunskap om vilka finansieringalternativ som finns. Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilka val av finansieringsmetoder mikroföretag inom detaljhandeln väljer, samt hur andra finansieringsmetoder kan användas för att öka ett företags kapitalbehov. Studien har genomförts med en kvalitativ forskningsmetod och semistrukturerade intervjuer som insamlingsmetod. Studien har utgått från teorierna pecking order-teorin, trade-off teorin, det finansiella gapet samt olika finansieringsmetoder. Det insamlade materialet består av tre stycken semistrukturerade intervjuer med respondenter från tre mikroföretag inom detaljhandelsbranschen. Studiens slutsatser visar på att mikroföretag inom detaljhandelsbranschen väljer att finansiera sin verksamhet främst genom eget kapital. De undersökta mikroföretagen uppfattar svårigheter med banklån som finansieringsmetod på grund av informationsasymmetrin som råder mellan företagare och finansiärer. Samtliga mikroföretag upplever att det råder hög konkurrens inom detaljhandelsbranschen. / The role of microenterprises is of significance for the Swedish economy, however statistics show that every third microenterprise goes bankrupt shortly after the startup. The retail sector is proving to be the second most exposed sector for competition in Sweden. One of the reasons for this may be because of the entrepreneur’s lack of knowledge about existing financial options. The purpose of this study is to investigate the choice of financing methods for microenterprises within the retail sector and how other financing methods can be used to increase a company’s capital. The study was conducted through a qualitative research method with semistructured interviews as a collection method. The study has been based on theories such as pecking order-theory, trade-off theory, financial gap and various financing methods. The empiricism in the study consists of three semistructured interviews with respondents from three microenterprises within the retail sector. The study’s conclusion shows that microenterprises within the retail sector choose to finance their operations mainly with equity. The study’s investigated microenterprises perceive difficulties with bankloans as a financing method due to information asymmetry between entrepreneurs and financiers. All investigated microenterprises experience high competition in the retail sector.

Diversas teorias ao longo do tempo apresentam explicações sobre as estruturas de capital das organizações. As principais são a teoria Pecking Order, Teoria Trade Off e Teoria Free Cash-Flow, com base na teoria de Agência. Todas essas teorias apresentam relações teóricas entre alguns determinantes de estruturas de capital vinculadas a firma que poderiam interferir na decisão de financiamento. Uma segunda linha de estudos, vinculada a esta, apresenta que determinantes externas a firma também interferem nesta estrutura de capital, porém as variáveis de firma comportam-se de forma semelhante em diferentes cenários econômicos. (RAJAN e ZINGALES, 1995; BOOTH et. al., 2001; de JONG et. al., 2008; GURCHARAN, 2010; KAYO e KIMURA, 2011). Considerando as pesquisas anteriores, desenvolveu-se uma investigação para a confirmação desta hipótese, com o objetivo de identificar quais variáveis são mais importantes na tomada de decisão financeira e se há variabilidade em cenários temporais e ambientes econômicos distintos. Para tal foram analisadas 10.243 empresas sediadas em 61 países distintos no período de 2002-2011, totalizando o número de 58.423 observações firma ano, por meio de um modelo de regressão linear hierárquica de três níveis com medidas repetidas, verificando qual a importância das variáveis de firma e país no endividamento, se há variação das mesmas em países com diferentes contextos econômicos e em períodos de crescimento e retração econômica. Foram analisadas cinco determinantes clássicas de firma (lucratividade, tangibilidade, proteção fiscal não advinda da dívida, tamanho e oportunidades de crescimento), e onze variáveis de país que possuem relação com o endividamento (PIB, inflação, taxa de impostos, volume negociado em ações, liquidez de bolsa, capitalização das empresas listadas, índice risco país, taxa de juros, enforcement jurídico, nível de proteção ao investidor e nível de disclosure de negócios). A partir das análises realizadas, foi identificado que o endividamento está ligado em maior grau a características das firmas e ao tempo, e em menor grau, porém significante, às características do ambiente. Foi identificado que não há mudanças extremamente significativas no comportamento das variáveis de firma entre economias desenvolvidas e em desenvolvimento, assim como entre períodos pré e pós-crise financeira de 2008. Em relação as determinantes de país analisadas, observa-se que as mesmas apresentam comportamento adverso em função da crise de 2008, perdendo capacidade explicativa, e não apresentam comportamento de mudança de sinal dos coeficientes quando comparados países com desenvolvimento econômico distinto. Identifica-se que características do desenvolvimento econômico ficam mais evidentes no processo de financiamento, como acesso a recursos em economias com menor desenvolvimento. Os resultados apresentam convergência com os estudos anteriores como os de Moore (1986), Rajan e Zingales (1995), Booth et. al. (2001), Kayo e Kimura (2011), Bebzcuk e Galindo (2011), Akbar et. al (2012), entre outros. / Several theories over time present explanations of the capital structures of organizations. The main theories are the Pecking Order Theory, Trade Off and Free Cash-Flow Theory, based on the Agency Theory. All these theories have some theoretical relationships between determinants of capital structures linked to firm that could interfere in the financing decision. A second line of studies, linked to this, shows that determinants outside the firm also interfere in capital structure, but the firm variables behave similarly in different economic scenarios (RAJAN and ZINGALES, 1995; BOOTH et. al., 2001; de JONG et. al., 2008; GURCHARAN, 2010; KAYO and KIMURA, 2011). Considering previous researches, we developed an investigation to confirm this hypothesis, identifying which variables are the most important in financial decision-making and there is variability in temporal scenarios and different economic environments. To this end, we analyzed 10,243 companies based in 61 different countries in the period 2002-2011, a total number of 58,423 firm year observations, through a hierarchical linear regression model of three levels with repeated measures, checking the importance of the variables firm and country in debt, if there is variation in the same countries with different economic contexts and periods of growth and downturn. We analyzed five firm classical determinants ( profitability , tangibility, non-debt tax shield , size and growth opportunities) , and eleven variables that are related to country debt ( GDP , inflation, taxes , trading volume in shares , stock liquidity , capitalization of listed companies, country risk index , interest rate , law enforcement , level of investor protection and disclosure level) . From the analysis, it was identified the debt is linked to a greater degree the characteristics of firms and time, and on a lesser degree, but significant, with characteristics of the environment. It wasn\'t identified very significant changes in the behavior of firm variables between developed and developing countries, as well as between pre-and post- 2008 financial crisis. Regarding the determinants of country analyzed, it is observed that they present adverse behavior due to the 2008 crisis, losing explanatory power, and have no behavior change in sign of the coefficients when comparing countries with different economic development. Characteristics of economic development become more evident in the funding process, such as access to resources in less developed economies. The results show convergence with previous studies such as Moore (1986) , Rajan and Zingales (1995) Booth et al. al. (2001) Kayo and Kimura (2011) , Bebzcuk and Galindo (2011) , Akbar et al. al (2012 ), among others

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T16:45:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Carlos Adriano Rocha.pdf: 1409553 bytes, checksum: 8e3ee9e874be7d196f3160b5f85b3c20 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-09-02 / This study examines the capital structure of small and medium-sized enterprises in Brazil, specifically the determinants of total, short and long term debt ratios as well as determinants of onerous debt ratios. It used a database composed of 22,000 small businesses and 19,000 medium-sized enterprises, evaluated in a time frame of eight years (2000 to 2007) and compared the macroeconomic variable of the evolution of real GDP with the variable of time measured in years. Moreover, several factors were validated in the specialized literature as determinants of capital structure of companies. The technique used was econometrics models for panel data. The determinants of debt found in common was the profitability, the growth rate of assets, non-debt tax shields, age of firms and the risk of liquidity. On the other hand, vertical integration, capital source and partner risk did not seem to have an effect on the level of debt in small and medium firms. The rating variation and internationalization activity factors were introduced as capital structure determinants of these firms. In general terms, the results suggested that the Pecking Order Theory is more consistent to explain the capital structure of the Brazilian small and medium enterprises / O presente trabalho analisa a estrutura de capital das pequenas e médias empresas brasileiras, mais especificamente os determinantes do endividamento de curto e longo prazo, total e oneroso. Utilizou-se de uma base de dados composta por 22.000 pequenas empresas e 19.000 médias empresas, avaliadas em um horizonte de tempo de oito anos (2000 a 2007) e comparou a variável macroeconômica da evolução do PIB real verificada em função da variável de tempo. Além disso, foram validados vários fatores considerados na bibliografia especializada como determinantes da estrutura de capitais das empresas. A técnica utilizada foi a de modelos econométricos para dados em painel. As determinantes de endividamento encontradas em comum foram a rentabilidade, a taxa de crescimento do ativo, os outros benefícios fiscais (nondebt tax shields), a idade da empresa e índice de liquidez. Enquanto que a integração vertical, origem de capital e risco societário não apresentaram como determinante da estrutura de capital dessas empresas. Introduziu o fator variação do rating de crédito e atividade de internacionalização como determinantes da estrutura de capital. De um modo geral, os resultados sugeriram que a teoria de Pecking Order é mais consistente para explicar a estrutura de capital de pequenas e médias empresas brasileiras

Diversas teorias ao longo do tempo apresentam explicações sobre as estruturas de capital das organizações. As principais são a teoria Pecking Order, Teoria Trade Off e Teoria Free Cash-Flow, com base na teoria de Agência. Todas essas teorias apresentam relações teóricas entre alguns determinantes de estruturas de capital vinculadas a firma que poderiam interferir na decisão de financiamento. Uma segunda linha de estudos, vinculada a esta, apresenta que determinantes externas a firma também interferem nesta estrutura de capital, porém as variáveis de firma comportam-se de forma semelhante em diferentes cenários econômicos. (RAJAN e ZINGALES, 1995; BOOTH et. al., 2001; de JONG et. al., 2008; GURCHARAN, 2010; KAYO e KIMURA, 2011). Considerando as pesquisas anteriores, desenvolveu-se uma investigação para a confirmação desta hipótese, com o objetivo de identificar quais variáveis são mais importantes na tomada de decisão financeira e se há variabilidade em cenários temporais e ambientes econômicos distintos. Para tal foram analisadas 10.243 empresas sediadas em 61 países distintos no período de 2002-2011, totalizando o número de 58.423 observações firma ano, por meio de um modelo de regressão linear hierárquica de três níveis com medidas repetidas, verificando qual a importância das variáveis de firma e país no endividamento, se há variação das mesmas em países com diferentes contextos econômicos e em períodos de crescimento e retração econômica. Foram analisadas cinco determinantes clássicas de firma (lucratividade, tangibilidade, proteção fiscal não advinda da dívida, tamanho e oportunidades de crescimento), e onze variáveis de país que possuem relação com o endividamento (PIB, inflação, taxa de impostos, volume negociado em ações, liquidez de bolsa, capitalização das empresas listadas, índice risco país, taxa de juros, enforcement jurídico, nível de proteção ao investidor e nível de disclosure de negócios). A partir das análises realizadas, foi identificado que o endividamento está ligado em maior grau a características das firmas e ao tempo, e em menor grau, porém significante, às características do ambiente. Foi identificado que não há mudanças extremamente significativas no comportamento das variáveis de firma entre economias desenvolvidas e em desenvolvimento, assim como entre períodos pré e pós-crise financeira de 2008. Em relação as determinantes de país analisadas, observa-se que as mesmas apresentam comportamento adverso em função da crise de 2008, perdendo capacidade explicativa, e não apresentam comportamento de mudança de sinal dos coeficientes quando comparados países com desenvolvimento econômico distinto. Identifica-se que características do desenvolvimento econômico ficam mais evidentes no processo de financiamento, como acesso a recursos em economias com menor desenvolvimento. Os resultados apresentam convergência com os estudos anteriores como os de Moore (1986), Rajan e Zingales (1995), Booth et. al. (2001), Kayo e Kimura (2011), Bebzcuk e Galindo (2011), Akbar et. al (2012), entre outros. / Several theories over time present explanations of the capital structures of organizations. The main theories are the Pecking Order Theory, Trade Off and Free Cash-Flow Theory, based on the Agency Theory. All these theories have some theoretical relationships between determinants of capital structures linked to firm that could interfere in the financing decision. A second line of studies, linked to this, shows that determinants outside the firm also interfere in capital structure, but the firm variables behave similarly in different economic scenarios (RAJAN and ZINGALES, 1995; BOOTH et. al., 2001; de JONG et. al., 2008; GURCHARAN, 2010; KAYO and KIMURA, 2011). Considering previous researches, we developed an investigation to confirm this hypothesis, identifying which variables are the most important in financial decision-making and there is variability in temporal scenarios and different economic environments. To this end, we analyzed 10,243 companies based in 61 different countries in the period 2002-2011, a total number of 58,423 firm year observations, through a hierarchical linear regression model of three levels with repeated measures, checking the importance of the variables firm and country in debt, if there is variation in the same countries with different economic contexts and periods of growth and downturn. We analyzed five firm classical determinants ( profitability , tangibility, non-debt tax shield , size and growth opportunities) , and eleven variables that are related to country debt ( GDP , inflation, taxes , trading volume in shares , stock liquidity , capitalization of listed companies, country risk index , interest rate , law enforcement , level of investor protection and disclosure level) . From the analysis, it was identified the debt is linked to a greater degree the characteristics of firms and time, and on a lesser degree, but significant, with characteristics of the environment. It wasn\'t identified very significant changes in the behavior of firm variables between developed and developing countries, as well as between pre-and post- 2008 financial crisis. Regarding the determinants of country analyzed, it is observed that they present adverse behavior due to the 2008 crisis, losing explanatory power, and have no behavior change in sign of the coefficients when comparing countries with different economic development. Characteristics of economic development become more evident in the funding process, such as access to resources in less developed economies. The results show convergence with previous studies such as Moore (1986) , Rajan and Zingales (1995) Booth et al. al. (2001) Kayo and Kimura (2011) , Bebzcuk and Galindo (2011) , Akbar et al. al (2012 ), among others

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:25:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Carlos Alberto Correa.pdf: 691557 bytes, checksum: 7aab270e1cd39cc1f5decdd3b66d2541 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-10-16 / Theories about capital structure suggest several variables that might determinate financing decisions. In general, the studies use cross-section or time series analysis to test these determinants. This study aimed to analyze some of the supposed determinants of capital structure of the larger Brazilian firms, under the lights of the two main theories, the Trade-Off Theory and the Pecking Order Theory, testing the validity of their assumption in the local market. This is an adaptation of the paper of Gaud et al., (2005) developed with Swiss firms, which was used to choose some variables and the Panel Data methodology. Dynamic tests were performed in order to analyze the adjustment process toward a supposed optimal target debit-to-equity ratio, as suggested by other studies that focused on the dynamics of the capital structure decisions. The results show that leverage is negatively associated with the level of tangible assets and profitability, while risk is positively associated with leverage. It was found also that foreign companies present higher debit level than Brazilian owned companies. In general, results suggest that the Pecking Order Theory is more consistent than the Trade-Off Theory to explain the capital structure of the larger Brazilian firms. The dynamic analysis showed a slow adjustment process toward the supposed target debit ratio, suggesting the existence of high transactional costs and giving more evidences to a Pecking Order behavior of managers. / As teorias que versam sobre a estrutura de capital das empresas, sugerem diversas variáveis que poderiam determinar as decisões de financiamento. Em geral, os principais estudos utilizam testes em cross-section ou em séries temporais como metodologia de análise. Este estudo buscou analisar alguns fatores que supostamente determinariam o nível de endividamento das maiores empresas brasileiras, à luz das duas principais teorias que versam sobre o assunto, a teoria de Pecking Order e a teoria de Trade-Off, testando a validade empírica dessas teorias na realidade nacional. O estudo é uma adaptação do artigo desenvolvido por Gaud et al., (2005) na Suíça, cujo trabalho serviu como base para escolha de algumas variáveis e dos testes econométricos realizados, e utiliza a metodologia de Panel Data. Além de testes estáticos, foram feitos testes dinâmicos, com o objetivo de analisar o processo de ajuste da estrutura de capital ao longo do tempo, em direção a um suposto nível-alvo ótimo, como sugerido em outros estudos que abordaram a natureza dinâmica das decisões sobre estrutura de capital. Os resultados demonstraram relação negativa entre o nível de endividamento das empresas, o grau de tangibilidade dos ativos e a rentabilidade, bem como relação positiva do endividamento com o risco. Demonstraram ainda que empresas de capital estrangeiro são mais endividadas que empresas nacionais. De um modo geral, os resultados sugerem que a teoria de Pecking Order é mais consistente do que a teoria de Trade-Off para explicar a estrutura de capital das maiores empresas brasileiras. A análise dinâmica demonstrou baixa velocidade do processo de ajuste da estrutura de capital em direção ao nívelalvo, sugerindo a existência de elevados custos de transação e confirmando o comportamento de Pecking Order dos administradores.

This thesis investigates the determinants of UK corporate cash holdings between 1980 and 2012. The global and long term phenomenon of corporate cash pilling has drawn significant attention from researchers. Similarly, this study aims at shedding light on the empirical relationship between cash holding and specific firm characteristics. Our preliminary research incorporates a comprehensive literature review. Towards this end, the relevant financial theory is presented and the previous empirical studies are highlighted. Afterwards, the expected results of our research are synthesized into a set of distinct hypotheses and tested with regression analysis. The empirical findings suggest that cash holdings are positively related to investment opportunity, as R&D and market to book ratio. Cash ratio is also positively related to industry cash flow volatility and negatively affected by cash flow, net working capital, capital expenditures, leverage, tax expenses, age and size. Regarding the development of the determinants of cash holdings, the study indicates that three major variables influenced cash holdings over the years of analysis. In particular, leverage, tax regime and capital expenditures significantly affect the corporate liquidity in UK market. Furthermore, the results suggest that cash holdings are mostly defined by trade off theory. Indeed, our findings offer stimulating insights on the factors that determine the firms’ cash holdings during the past three decades. These findings may be beneficial for financial managers, investors and consultants. / Στην παρούσα διατριβή εξετάζονται οι προσδιοριστικοί παράγοντες του δείκτη μετρητών σε επιχειρήσεις του Ηνωμένου Βασιλείου μεταξύ των ετών 1980 και 2012. Η διακράτηση μετρητών αποτελεί παγκόσμιο φαινόμενο και λαμβάνει της ανάλογης προσοχής από πληθώρα ερευνητών. Σε αυτή τη βάση, η μελέτη αυτή έχει ως στόχο να ρίξει φως σχετικά με την εμπειρική σχέση μεταξύ του δείκτη μετρητών και τα συγκεκριμένα χαρακτηριστικά που επηρεάζουν την ρευστότητα στις επιχειρήσεις διαχρονικά. Αρχικά η έρευνα ενσωματώνει μια βιβλιογραφική ανασκόπηση. Προς το σκοπό αυτό, οι σχετικές οικονομικές θεωρίες και οι προηγούμενες εμπειρικές μελέτες παρουσιάζονται. Στη συνέχεια, τα αναμενόμενα αποτελέσματα της έρευνας συντίθενται σε ένα σύνολο διακριτών υποθέσεων και δοκιμάζονται με ανάλυση παλινδρόμησης. Τα εμπειρικά ευρήματα υποδηλώνουν ότι ο δείκτης μετρητών σχετίζεται θετικά με τις επενδυτικές ευκαιρίες, τις δαπάνες Ε&Α και τον λόγο της αγοραίας προς τη λογιστική αξία των βιβλίων της επιχείρησης. Ο δείκτης μετρητών επίσης, σχετίζεται θετικά με την μεταβλητότητα των ταμειακών ροών του κλάδου και επηρεάζεται αρνητικά από τις ταμειακές ροές, το καθαρό κεφάλαιο κίνησης, τις κεφαλαιακές δαπάνες, την μόχλευση, τα φορολογικά έξοδα, την ηλικία και το μέγεθος των επιχειρήσεων. Όσον αφορά την εξέλιξη των προσδιοριστικών παραγόντων των ταμειακών ρευστών διαθεσίμων, η μελέτη δείχνει ότι τρεις είναι οι κύριες μεταβλητές που επηρεάζουν τη διακράτηση μετρητών κατά τη διάρκεια των χρόνων της ανάλυσης. Ειδικότερα, η μόχλευση, το φορολογικό καθεστώς και τις κεφαλαιακές δαπάνες επηρεάΖουν σημαντικά την απόφαση για εταιρική ρευστότητα στην αγορά του Ηνωμένου Βασιλείου. Επιπλέον, τα αποτελέσματα δείχνουν ότι η διακράτηση μετρητών ακολουθεί κυρίως την trade off θεωρία. Πράγματι, τα ευρήματά προσφέρουν χρήσιμες γνώσεις σχετικά με τους παράγοντες που καθορίζουν τη διακράτηση μετρητών των επιχειρήσεων κατά τη διάρκεια των τριών τελευταίων δεκαετιών. Τα ευρήματα αυτά μπορεί να είναι επωφελή για οικονομολόγους, επενδυτές και συμβούλους.

公司籌措資金時會選擇發行股票或是發行債劵來籌資，本文去比較發行股票與發行債劵來籌資的公司在發行後的長期營運表現會有何異同。此外去探討因子如何影響發行後營運表現，也建立邏輯斯迴歸去探討因子如何影響公司發行決策。關於資本結構有兩個理論，一為融資序位理論，另一為代理成本理論，本文透過上述結果去驗證此兩理論。 / Industrial corporations typically raise external capital by selling common stock or issuing bonds. In this paper, we investigate the long run operating performance of issuers of straight debt and issuers of seasoned equity. Besides, we measure the effects of some factors that have been shown to be associated with changes in performance following the issues. We also examine why firms issue securities even though managers know that stock prices will react negatively to the issue announcement. We construct a logistic model for firms issuing equity and debt to investigate the determinants of firms’ issuing decisions. In existing literature, two eminent theories of capital structure are the pecking order theory and agency cost theory. We try to find evidence to these two theories from the above results.

It has long been known that companies can finance themselves with the help of equity or debt. Since Modigliani and Miller’s theories of capital structure and its impact on performance, several studies have continued to investigate the phenomenon of capital structure. Using previous research on capital structure as well as the irrelevance theory, trade-off theory and pecking order theory, researchers are constantly examining how capital structure affects companies, what affects the capital structure, and which financing is best suited for their specific company.This study intends to investigate how the capital structure is affected by companies’ profitability, growth, and economical cycle fluctuations in Sweden. The study examines Swedish companies listed on the Nasdaq Main Market Stockholm in the branch of industry, raw materials and real estate. The study sample consists of 109 companies that are examined over a ten-year period between 2010-2019. The study conducts regression analyzes of key ratios’ debt / equity ratios as a dependent variable, as well as ROE, ROA, profit margin, turnover growth, employment growth and GDP gaps as independent variables.The study concludes that cyclical fluctuations affect companies’ capital structure in the branch of industry. However, it could not be ensured that cyclical fluctuations affect companies in the raw materials industry or the real estate industry. The study measured that ROA correlates negatively with the capital structure of the branch of industry, as well as the real estate industry. Significance for the variable profitability measured with ROA could not be demonstrated. The variable ROE was only significant for the real estate, industry and positively correlated with the debt-equity ratio. Profit margin was significant and positively correlated for the branch of industry, and it was also identified that the profit margin was significant for the real estate industry, but the results were negligible. The same negligence was discovered for the significant variable for sales growth for the raw materials industry, while no significance was achieved for the branch of industry and the real estate industry. Finally, the variable employment growth was only significant for the real estate industry, where a positive correlation was shown with the debt-equity ratio. / Det är länge känt att företag kan finansiera sig med hjälp av eget kapital eller belåning.  Sedan Modigliani och Miller teorier om kapitalstruktur och dess påverkan på resultatet har flertal studier fortsatt undersökt fenomenet kapitalstruktur. Med hjälp av tidigare forskning om irrelevansteorin, trade-off teorin och pecking order teorin undersöker forskarna ständigt om hur kapitalstruktur påverkar företagen, vad som påverkar kapitalstrukturen, samt vilken finansieringsmetod som är bäst lämpad för sitt specifika företag.Denna studie avser att undersöka hur kapitalstrukturen påverkas av företagens lönsamhet, tillväxt, samt konjunktursvängningarna i Sverige. Studien undersöker svenska företag noterade på Nasdaq Main Market Stockholm i branscherna industri, råvaror och fastighet. Studiens urval består av 109 företag som undersöks under en tioårsperiod mellan 2010-2019. Studien genomför regressionsanalyser på nyckeltalen skuldsättningsgrad som beroende variabel, samt ROE, ROA, vinstmarginal, omsättningstillväxt, anställningstillväxt och BNP-gap som oberoende variabler.Studien kommer fram till att konjunktursvängningar påverkar företagens kapitalstruktur i industribranschen. Det kunde inte säkerställas att konjunktursvängningar påverkar företag i råvarubranschen eller fastighetsbranschen. Studien uppmätte att ROA korrelerar negativt med industri- och fastighetsbranschens kapitalstruktur. Det kunde inte uppvisas signifikans för lönsamhetsvariablerna för ROA. ROE var enbart signifikant för fastighetsbranschen och korrelerade positivt med skuldsättningsgraden. Vinstmarginal var signifikant och positiv korrelerade för industribranschen, det identifierades även att vinstmarginalen var signifikant för fastighetsbranschen, men resultat var försumbart. Samma försumbarhet upptäcktes för den signifikanta tillväxtvariabeln för omsättningstillväxt för råvarubranschen, medan det inte uppnåddes signifikans för industribranschen och fastighetsbranschen. Slutligen var tillväxtvariabeln för anställningstillväxt enbart signifikant för fastighetsbranschen där det uppvisades en positiv korrelation med skuldsättningsgraden.

The corona pandemic has had a major impact on the whole world to different degrees. The Swedish companies have been affected and forced to review their capital structure. A good result for the companies is essential to be able to compete in a vulnerable market. During a crisis, companies need to be active in their financing decisions and how they choose to finance themselves. Macroeconomic factors have a significant impact on the capital structure, as crises can make firms more constrained. The impact of the crisis on society and specifically on companies is therefore interesting to study. With this as a starting point, the main purpose of the study is to investigate how the capital structure has changed during the transition to covid-19, 2019 and 2021. To be able to analyze the purpose, the study explores what has an impact on the company's liabilities in relation to assets. The study has a quantitative research method with a deductive approach. The sample consists of 150 Swedish listed companies where the data set is made up of the companies annual reports. Six hypotheses have been developed to be tested through regression analyses. The dependent variables tested are total liabilities, current liabilities and long-term liabilities relative to total assets. The independent variables consist of age, size, profitability and growth. The result shows that marginal differences exist for the debt ratios between the period before and during the pandemic. Some of the independent factors have had a greater impact than others on the company's debt ratio, including size. Age is the factor that has no influence on the companies' leverage ratio. The study’s findings contribute to better understanding of how the corona pandemic affects the capital structure of Swedish companies. / Coronapandemin har påverkat hela världen i olika grad. De svenska företagen har blivit drabbade och behovet av att se över kapitalstrukturen har varit ett faktum. Ett gott resultat för företagen är väsentligt för att kunna konkurrera på en utsatt marknad. Företagen behöver under en kris vara aktiva i sina finansieringsbeslut och hur de väljer att finansiera sig. De makroekonomiska faktorerna har stor betydelse på kapitalstrukturen, eftersom kriser kan ledatill att företagen blir mer begränsade. Krisens påverkan på samhället och specifikt på företagen blir därav intressant att studera. Med detta som utgångspunkt är studiens huvudsyfte att undersöka hur kapitalstrukturen har förändrats vid övergång till covid-19, år 2019 och 2021.För att kunna analysera syftet utforskas vad som har en påverkan på företagets skulder i förhållande till tillgångar. Studien har en kvantitativ forskningsmetod med en deduktiv ansats. Urvalet består av 150 svenska börsnoterade företag där datamaterialet utgörs av företagensårsredovisningar. Sex hypoteser har framställts för att testas genom regressionsanalyser. De beroende variablerna som testas är totala skulder, kortfristiga skulder och långfristiga skulder i förhållande till totala tillgångar. De oberoende variablerna består av ålder, storlek, lönsamhet och tillväxt. Resultatet visar att marginella skillnader finns för skuldkvoterna mellan perioden före och under pandemin. Några av de oberoende faktorerna har haft större påverkan än andra på företagens skuldkvot, bland annat storlek. Ålder är den faktorn som inte har någon påverkan på företagens skuldsättningsgrad. Studiens resultat bidrar till ökad förståelse kring hur coronapandemin påverkar svenska företags kapitalstruktur.