Ownership Structure and R&D: An Empirical Analysis of Italian listed companies

Fabrizio Rossi () and Richard Cebula ()
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Fabrizio Rossi: University of Cassino and Southern Lazio

PSL Quarterly Review, 2015, vol. 68, issue 275, 297-326

Abstract: The objective of this study is to explore the relationship between firm ownership structure and Research and Development (R&D). Using a sample of 369 firm-year observations over the period 2005-2013, through a pooled Ordinary Least Square (OLS) robust standard error and a dynamic panel data system-GMM estimator, we investigate the relationship between ownership structure and R&D, considering various indicators, such as ownership concentration, board ownership, and institutional investors. Our findings appear of interest since a negative relationship has emerged between ownership concentration and R&D. Moreover, we find a positive relationship between R&D investments and institutional investors and a positive relationship between R&D outlays on the one hand and firm size and firm age on the other hand. Furthermore, we find a negative relationship between R&D outlays and the debt-to-capital ratio.

Keywords: Ownership structure; corporate governance; R&D; agency theory (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G32 G34 O32 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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