دانلود رایگان مقاله انگلیسی مالیات بندی، حاکمیت شرکتی و سیاست تقسیم سود در برزیل - امرالد 2017

Abstract

Purpose – This study aims to analyze the influence of taxes and corporate governance on the dividend policy of Brazilian companies. Design/methodology/approach – The authors identify the changes of the tax legislation in Brazil in the period 1986-2011 and check their effect on corporate dividend policies for preferred and common shares. The authors use panel data Probit and Tobit estimation to verify the probability of companies to pay dividends under different tax regimes. The final sample comprises 672 companies, 1,159 traded stocks and 30,134 observations Findings – The authors’ results suggest that changes in the tax legislation have a significant influence on dividend payments. Also, firms do not follow target payout ratios, but dividends are moderately dependent on past payments. Dividend payouts are affected by stock voting rights, privatization and dividend deductibility. Changes in regulation that reduce the agency problems among shareholders affect positively payout ratios. Practical implications – For managers, maximizing shareholders’ value requires taking into account the consequences of the taxation when designing financial policies for the firm. For investors, stock portfolio selection should take into account payout behavior and how changes in dividend taxation affect stocks’ value. For policymakers, the effects of changes in the tax code on corporate behavior are of utmost importance to stimulate private investment and economic growth. Originality/value – There are several tax law changes in Brazil within the period analyzed, creating a good opportunity to study the effect of taxation on dividend policy and its dynamics over time.

6. Conclusions

This study aims to investigate the tax preference theory of dividends in a sample of 672 Brazilian public firms for the period 1986-2011. We documented several changes in the tax legislation of dividends over the sample period and tested their effect on dividend payments using probit and Tobit regression analysis. Our findings suggest that the Brazilian firms do not follow target payout ratios, but they do try to pay dividends that are moderately dependent on past payments. The level of dividend payment is affected by stock voting rights, privatization, dividend payments deductibility provisions and changes of corporate governance rules. Changes in the tax legislation have a significant influence on dividend payout ratios, corresponding to the theoretical prediction. Payout ratios are positively affected by changes in regulation that reduce the agency problems among shareholders of the firm.

We have documented that the tax preference theory found empirical support in the Brazilian environment, given the numerous changes in the tax regulations over the year. Our results highlight the influence of taxation in the payout policies pursued by publicly listed firms. These results have a range of implications for managers, investors and policymakers. For managers, it is clear that maximizing shareholders’ value requires taking the consequences of the taxation – at the corporate and personal levels – into account when designing financial policies for the firm. For investors, the choice of which stocks to include in their portfolios should take into account their payout behavior and how it is affected by changes in dividend taxation.