On the maximization of shareholders' wealth: Evidence based on firm-specific financial characteristics

Abstract

This paper focuses on the long-term firm-specific determinants of stock returns. The main goal of the investigation is to show which of the financial characteristics of a firm its management should concentrate on, when maximizing the wealth of the common shareholders. It is found that profitability, financial leverage, operating leverage and growth are important long-term determinants of firm value in the Finnish stock market. However, significant differences are observed between the measures applied to the same presumptive characteristics of the firm.Maximization of shareholders' wealth stock returns firm-specific financial variables