Empirical Research In The Dividend Policy Of Listed Companies In China

Dividend policy is an important issue in the process of profitdistribution. It is a policy decision that is how to distribute profit afterdrawing surplus accumulation funds and public welfare funds. Dividendpolicy is one of the three key elements in modern financial management.Western scholars have conducted a lot of theoretical studies and empiricalanalyses and put forward various theories with different ideas. As yet,there is not a uniform theory. So dividend policy is considered a puzzlingriddle and has puzzled the economics domain for decades. As a vital branch of the dividend policy, the study on the affectingfactors of dividend policy benefits both the company's administrativestaff and its shareholders. On one hand dividend policy is the logiccontinuity of financing and investment activities and it is the inevitableoutcome of financing behavior;One the other hand, appropriate dividendpolicy can not only establish the good corporate image, but also excite theenthusiasm of investors. So the company can obtain long-term and steadydevelopment chance. How to make the rational dividend policy isadministrator's awkward problem. The study of dividend policy has just begun in China. Chineselisted companies are not pay attention to dividend policy. Not to mentionuse the principle and method of modern dividend distribution policy toguide and operate the practice of dividend distribution of the company.Mostly scholars research dividend policy from the viewpoint of financialtheory in China. This kind of research lacks systematic empiricalanalyses. By using Chinese and western countries' successful dividendtheories and empirical study methods, this thesis is an attempt to analyzeChinese listed companies' affecting factors of dividend policy from anempirical point of view. This thesis is divided into six chapters as follows: Chapter one is introduction. This chapter defines the importantconcepts such as dividend and dividend policy. It also tells the purpose ofresearching the affecting factors of dividend policy and the framework ofthe paper. In chapter two, several representative dividend policy theories andaffecting factors are comparatively analyzed and commented on at first. Itconcludes traditional theory and modern theory. Traditional theorydiscusses the relation between dividend policy and stork price such asbird-in-the hand theory. Modern theory is mainly to study why thedividend policy causes the change of the stock price including clienteleeffect theory, signaling theory and agency cost theory. Dividend policytheories and affecting factors are the theory based of empirical study inthe paper. Secondly, the paper reviews a great deal of relevant westernand Chinese literature, finds out space for study. In chapter three, the thesis puts forward research problem andresearch hypotheses. By using Chinese and western countries' successfulstudy, according to dividend policy theory and financial theory, the paperputs forwards fourteen research hypotheses. Chapter four is research design, which describes variables, researchmethods and so on. Chapter five is empirical study and result analysis. This is a key partof the paper. The chapter respectively obtains affecting factors ofdividend policy by using Logistic Regression, Linear Regression andCrosstabs and so on. The questions include the affecting factors aboutwhether distribution, dividend-payout ratio and methods of payment ofdividend in Chinese listed companies. These factors are that we should beconsidered especially in dividend distribution. In chapter six, the author puts forward some thoughts andsuggestions with a view to help Chinese listed companies in theirdecision on rational dividend policy and points out contributions andlimitations of this paper. Contrasting to the works that have been done, the major contributionof this thesis is: First, content innovating. The paper has an overallresearch to affecting factors of dividend policy;Secondly, it is methodinnovating. This thesis is an attempt to analyze Chinese listed companies'affecting...