The authors document the determinants of the term to maturity of 7,369 bonds and notes issued between 1982 and 1993. Their main finding is that large firms with investment grade credit ratings typically borrow at the short end and at the long end of the maturity spectrum, while firms with...

This paper investigates the determinants of leveraged buyout activity by comparing firms that have implemented leveraged buyouts to those that have not. Consistent with the free cash flow theory, the authors find that firms that initiate leveraged buyouts can be characterized as having a...

We examine the determinants and implications of holdings of cash and marketable" securities by publicly traded U.S. firms in the 1971-1994 period. Firms with strong growth" opportunities and riskier cash flows hold relatively high ratios of cash to total assets. Firms" that have the greatest...