Footnote:
Nach Informationen von SSRN wurde die ursprüngliche Fassung des Dokuments January 2022 erstellt
Description:
This paper examines the relation between firm social network and corporate payout policies. We find that while it does not significantly affect total payout, firm network centrality significantly impacts payout compositions. Firms with greater network centrality are less likely to pay dividends and pay lower dividends, are more likely to repurchase shares and repurchase more shares, have a lower dividend to total payout ratio, and tend to substitute share repurchase for dividends. The negative (positive) relation between network centrality and dividend payout (share repurchase) is stronger (weaker) for firms with greater growth opportunities. Moreover, better connected firms invest more in acquisitions and R&D and have higher stock return volatility, and firms with higher acquisition and R&D investment pay lower dividends and repurchase more shares. Overall results suggest that to accommodate more risky investments, better connected firms substitute share repurchase for dividend payment to remain financially flexible