Using a database of more than 180,000 private companies from 2000 to 2009, we find that the benefits of holding more cash vary substantially with a firm’s size and the conditions it faces. Cash holdings matter most for small firms: when there are negative shocks to industry or macroeconomic...

This paper examines the financial policies and balance sheet adjustment of companies. Using a large panel of quoted UK firms, we estimate models for dividends, new equity issuance and investment, relating them to debt adjustment. The results suggest that while dividends are sticky in the short...

This paper examines the dividend policies of firms in Spain. Using firm-level panel data, models are estimated for dividend omissions as functions of financial characteristics, whilst also considering a role for persistence. The results are consistent with a tax discrimination model in which...