<p>This thesis investigates the theoretical and empirical relationships between a firm’s R&D investment intensity and the systematic risk of its common stock in Sweden. This is done by examining 38 Swedish firms between 1997 and 2005. An overlapping set of 5-year window is chosen to apply to calculate the variables of the samples.</p><p>In this thesis, three factors are introduced as a proxy of main constituents of systematic risk: intrinsic business risk, degree of financial leverage and degree of operating leverage. And we use these three constituents to analysis the relationship between R&D investment and systematic risk.</p><p>The results from Monte Carlos simulations and correlation analysis of our sample show that, in Sweden, firms with higher R&D intensity do face higher stock price volatility in the stock market. At the same time, we attempt to test the relationship among R&D and systematic risk’s three constituents, but find that R&D intensive firms have more financial leverage which is opposite to our expect, which might due to the shortage of data and limitation of our sample selection, and R&D intensive firms do not have obvious relations directly with intrinsic business risk, degree of financial leverage or degree of operating leverage.</p>

Much has been written during the past decade to explain the relationship between financial and operating leverage and stock-price volatility. However, the relationship between combined leverage and stock-price volatility has yet to be fully explored. Mandelker and Rhee's (MR) recent study uses both operating and financial leverage in a regression (equivalent to the traditional total leverage—DTL) and shows that both types of leverage are positively associated with common stock betas. Huffman recently demonstrated that there are interactions between operating leverage and financial leverage. Therefore, MR's model could be oversimplified. This study examines the relationship between firms' combined leverage and their stock-price volatility. The study also examines industry and industry growth to see if the relationship is influenced by these factors. The question is whether DOCL is a better risk measure than DTL and whether there is an interaction between operating and financial leverage. The inferences that can be drawn from the study's results are as follows: (a) Stock risk is a function of combined leverage; (b) Industry significantly influences the relationship between stock risk and DOCL; (c) High growth increases the relationship between stock risk and DOCL; (d) Combined leverage (DOCL) is a better risk measure than total leverage (DTL). Further, the problem with the traditional total leverage measure is the omission of the interaction between DOL and DFL. This is consistent with Huffman's theory and suggests Mandelker and Rhee's model is oversimplified.

Intangible assets have been the increasingly dominant primary source of market value creation. This paper investigates the relationship between leverage and various intangibles related ratios. An empirical analysis is conducted to quantitatively understand the impact that these ratios have on leverage. The results show that intangible assets have a clear significant positive relationship with leverage. Accounting based principles are used to provide reasoning behind the results, which include the difference in impact that internally generated intangible assets and acquired intangibles have on leverage.

This thesis analyses the impact of tax policy on firms' leverage ratios in a balanced panel of 129 medium-sized listed companies from II European countries from 1993 to 2005. A general model of company leverage is applied within which King's tax ratios are used to capture tax policy changes, controlling for non-tax influences suggested by the theory of corporate finance. Various leverage measures are studied to check for the robustness of the estimated model. Total debt is then decomposed into long-term and short-term debt to examine the determinants of different components of debt. The estimation is initially performed within a traditional static framework. The model is estimated using panel data techniques, including the Hausman-Taylor (1981) instrumental variable estimator and the Arellano-Bover (1995) GMM estimator to control for endogeneity. The results suggest that tax policy as measured has a significant but small impact on firms' leverage ratios and the impact is stronger on short-term borrowings than on long-term ones. Non-debt tax shields are a substitute for debt in company activities. With regard to control variables, the empirical findings suggest that non-tax factors affect financing decisions in a way somewhat consistent with the pecking-order theory. There is evidence to support the argument for the differences between the determinants of long-term and short-terin financing decisions. Further research is done by adopting a dynamic adjustment model which allows firms to deviate from their optimal leverage due to random shocks and takes account of adjustment costs incurred when they work back gradually to the optimal level. Arellano-Bond (1991) GMM estimator is applied to obtain consistent estimates. The results substantiate the existence of adjustment costs and corroborate the results from the static model that tax policy measured by King's tax ratios exerts a significant impact on firms' total debt and short-term debt. Finns under the 'Anglo-Saxon' corporate governance systems appear to bear lower adjustment costs and thus have a higher adjustment speed than those under more relation-based systems for all forms of debt. In addition, firms bear lower adjustment costs in adjusting their long-term debt than short-term debt regardless of their corporate governance systems.

This study investigates the impact macroeconomic factors have on corporate capital structure in Sweden. We use a panel data analysis of unbalanced data for the sample period, 2005-2014. While previous research has shown that key factors internal to the firm are highly correlated with leverage, such as profitability, asset tangibility and firm size, we add external factors and test for economic growth, inflation, interest rates, corporate tax rates, and exchange rates. Our models do not present any substantial explanatory power for the relationship between the macroeconomic environment and different leverage ratios. This study finds some support for certain indicators, although not consistent across ratios.

This paper examines the role of labor leverage in determining cash held by companies on their balance sheets. Labor leverage is defined as an off-balance sheet intangible liability that is created by the fixed obligation for firms to pay wages to their workers. In this study, I analyze both unconstrained and constrained firms and find that the risk associated with labor leverage plays an important part on how much cash companies can hold. I find that unconstrained firms have higher levels of cash holdings to cover the labor leverage liability, while constrained firms are not able to hold cash because of their constrained nature. These results are robust to alternative specifications including and excluding industry and year dummies, as well as the use of firm fixed effects, and are mostly consistent across industries and over time.

This paper examines the potential of Bitcoin, a decentralized digital currency, to pose competition to fiat currencies. To accomplish that, Bitcoin would have to become efficient as a store of value. Thus far, high volatility makes it inferior in that respect. We analyze the dynamics and drivers of Bitcoin volatility using GARCH and HAR models. Moreover, we test for presence of asymmetries displayed by stock, commodity and currency markets. That way we can conclude, whether volatility of Bitcoin behaves similarly to currencies, commodities or stocks. Lastly we reveal interconnections between these markets and market for Bitcoin. We find significant evidence for the leverage effect documented for stock market. Furthermore, the effect of trading volume, documented for currency markets, displays an opposite sign in our research. Results of spillover estimation suggest Bitcoin is the most interconnected with commodity market. Thus, we conclude Bitcoin does not behave similarly to currencies in terms of volatility; hence is not a good candidate to substitute them. JEL Classification E1, G1, G2, O3 Keywords Bitcoin, volatility, GARCH, leverage effect Author's e-mail 24805288@fsv.cuni.cz Supervisor's e-mail dedek@fsv.cuni.cz

Este trabalho é composto por dois artigos que visam abordar pontos pouco explorados na literatura da economia agrícola brasileira sobre a heterogeneidade produtiva das agroindústrias sucroenergéticas, em termos de desempenho (eficiência produtiva e produtividade total dos fatores - PTF), e a sua relação com a estrutura de capital destas empresas entre 2006 e 2015. Após uma breve introdução ao tema no primeiro capítulo, analisa-se no segundo capítulo, a evolução da eficiência produtiva entre as usinas de açúcar e etanol no Brasil, através da Análise Envoltória de Dados (DEA) e do índice de Malmquist e suas decomposições. Os resultados indicam que não há um padrão único e bem definido de eficiência e produtividade entre as empresas do setor ao longo do período avaliado, configurando-o como heterogêneo sob o ponto de vista de práticas de gestão e adoção tecnológica. Adicionalmente, observa-se que se intensificou a diferença entre as empresas, de forma que coexistem empresas tecnologicamente atrasadas e com baixos níveis de eficiência, em oposição a empresas eficientes e que empregam modernas práticas de gestão e tecnologias. Por fim, nota-se também uma redução dos níveis de produtividade e intensa variabilidade desta ao longo do período analisado. O segundo artigo, no terceiro capítulo, investiga a relação entre performance e estrutura de capital das empresas de açúcar e etanol no Brasil, através de duas hipóteses: i) uma maior alavancagem reduz os custos de agência, bem como a ineficiência e, assim, leva a uma melhoria no desempenho da empresa, como preconizado por Jensen e Meckling (1976) e ii) em sentido reverso, as empresas com melhor desempenho optam por menores níveis de alavancagem - hipótese eficiência-risco (efficiency-risk hypothesis), conforme proposição de Berger e Bonaccorsi di Patti (2006). Os resultados não descartam a hipótese do custo de agência dos acionistas externos junto ao setor sucroenergético brasileiro, de forma que uma maior alavancagem está associada a um melhor desempenho da empresa, especificamente, para empresas com níveis de dependência financeira superiores a 57,52%. Utilizando a análise de regressão quantílica, constata-se que há um efeito negativo entre o desempenho da empresa e a sua alavancagem para todos os valores de eficiência até cerca de 0,57, indicando que a hipótese eficiência-risco não é válida para todos os valores relevantes de eficiência. / This thesis is made up of two articles that aim to address little explored points in the literature of the Brazilian agricultural economy on the productive heterogeneity of sugarcane agroindustries in terms of performance (productive efficiency and total-factor productivity - TFP), and its relationship with the capital structure of these companies between 2006 and 2015. After a brief introduction of the theme in the first chapter, the second chapter analyzes the evolution of the productive efficiency between sugar and ethanol mills in Brazil through Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and the Malmquist index and its decompositions. The results indicate that there is not a single and well-defined pattern of efficiency and productivity among the companies in the sector during the period evaluated, configuring it as heterogeneous from the management practices and technological adoption point of view. In addition, it is observed that the difference between companies has intensified, so that technologically backward companies with low levels of efficiency coexist, as opposed to efficient companies that employ modern management practices and technologies. Finally, there is also a reduction in productivity levels and intense variability over the analyzed period. The second article, in the third chapter, investigates the relationship between performance and capital structure of sugar and ethanol companies in Brazil, through two hypotheses: i) higher leverage reduces agency costs as well as inefficiency, leading, thus, to an improvement in the performance of the company, as stated by Jensen and Meckling (1976) and ii) in reverse, the companies with better performances opt for lower levels of leverage - efficiency-risk hypothesis, according to proposition of Berger and Bonaccorsi di Patti (2006). The results do not rule out the hypothesis of the agency cost of external shareholders in the Brazilian sugar- energy industry, in such a way that greater leverage is associated with a better performance of the company, specifically for companies with financial dependency levels above 57.52%. Using quantile regression analysis, it is possible to see that there is a negative effect between the company\'s performance and its leverage for all efficiency values up to about 0.57, indicating that the efficiency-risk hypothesis is not valid for all relevant values of efficiency.

Um assunto recorrente na teoria de finanças tem sido a forma que uma empresa é financiada, ou seja, sua estrutura de capital e se essa afeta o valor da firma, sua rentabilidade e sua política de investimentos. A participação de capital de terceiros na estrutura de capital das empresas é pertinente em função do efeito da alavancagem financeira, que se refere à ação de captar recursos de terceiros a uma determinada taxa e aplicá-los em ativos que oferecem como retorno uma superior a esta. Assim, ao se utilizar de dívidas, uma empresa tem a possibilidade de aumentar a remuneração dos seus proprietários e, consequentemente, seu valor, por captar recursos a uma taxa e aplicá-los em outra possivelmente maior, embora com essa decisão passe a elevar seu risco, justamente pelo fato de assim passar a ter o compromisso com os credores que realizaram o empréstimo. Percebe-se, dessa forma, um potencial relacionamento entre as decisões de financiamento e investimento. Nesse sentido este trabalho teve como objetivo inicial examinar se a alavancagem financeira afeta as decisões de investimento das empresas brasileiras não financeiras de capital aberto. Para tanto, foram aplicados modelos de regressão linear múltipla com dados em painel no período de 2001 a 2011. Os resultados encontrados permitem dizer que existe uma forte correlação negativa entre a alavancagem financeira e o investimento nas empresas brasileiras não financeiras de capital aberto e que esse relacionamento é ainda mais intenso nas empresas com baixas oportunidades de crescimento. Constatando isso e considerando que diferentes elementos do endividamento podem exercer influências no investimento, um segundo objetivo foi propor um modelo que avalie como os aspectos de maturidade, fonte e custo do endividamento impactam o nível de investimento das empresas brasileiras não financeiras de capital aberto. Foi delineado um novo modelo de regressão linear múltipla que apurasse esses aspectos. Os resultados demonstram que o modelo proposto atende a finalidade desejada. Como conclusões destaca-se que o relacionamento negativo entre alavancagem financeira e investimento encontrado neste trabalho em um país emergente se assemelha ao observado em estudos anteriores em economias desenvolvidas. Além disso, conclui-se que os elementos de maturidade (curto e longo prazo), fonte e custo do capital de terceiros são relevantes para a determinação do investimento do conjunto de empresas estudadas. / A recurring theme in finance theory has been how a company is financed, ie, its capital structure and whether this affects the value of the firm, its profitability and its investment policy. The share of debt in the capital structure of companies is relevant duo to the effect of financial leverage, which refers to the action of raising funds from third parties at a certain rate and apply them in assets that offer returns as one exceeds this. Thus, when using debt, a company has the possibility to improve the incomes of their owners and therefore its value, by raising funds at a rate and apply them in another possibly larger, albeit with this decision elevates your risk, precisely because so going to have to compromise with creditors who took the loan. Thus, perceives a potential relationship between investment and financing decisions. In that sense this study initially aimed to examine whether the financial leverage affects investment decisions of non-financial Brazilian public companies. We applied multiple linear regression models with panel data from 2001 to 2011. Our results say that there is a strong negative relationship between leverage and investment in non-financial Brazilian public companies and this relationship is even stronger in firms with low growth opportunities. Noting this and considering different elements of debt can exert influences on investment, a second objective was to propose a model to evaluate how aspects of maturity, source and cost of debt impact the level of investment by non-financial Brazilian public companies. It was designed a new model of multiple linear regression that consider these aspects. The results demonstrate that the proposed model meets the desired purpose. As conclusions highlight that the negative relationship between leverage and investment found in this study in an emerging country resembles that observed in previous studies in developed economies. Furthermore, we conclude that the elements of maturity (short and long term), source and cost of debt are relevant for determining the investment of all firms studied.

"This paper describes our work in exploring trading strategies for the leveraged exchange-traded funds, Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X (FAS) and Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X (FAZ) over the first three quarters of 2009. Using minute-by-minute stock data we are able to verify the accuracy of these ETFs in regards to their target of the Russell 1000 Financial Index (RIFIN). We are then able to quantify the returns and risks involved with trading strategies that seek to exploit the ETFs objectives, specifically momentum trades, tracking-error discrepancy trades, and a combination of the two strategies we term “discount-and-up.” Bootstrap simulation techniques are employed to measure values at risk and conditional tail expectations over 30 day time horizons for each strategy. Lastly, we demonstrate the dangers of traditional buy-and-hold investing with regards to leveraged ETFs."