Credit ratings and firm value

Corporates express their intention to reward shareholders during repurchase announcements by maximizing their wealth. However, most empirical research finds that stocks’ performance is poor when repurchase announcements are made, and there are no significant abnormal returns. In the Indian context, the present study examines firms’ real intention behind repurchase decisions. The sample comprises 132 firms listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) from 2012 to 2018. A Tobit regression model has been used on different firm set-up. The empirical results reveal that low stock valuation is the prominent reason for buybacks among corporates. Firms prefer repurchases to provide abnormal returns to the investors; however, the Indian market does not react much positively to the repurchases, and this might be the reason for less encouraging buybacks in the Indian market. Further, the tender offer is the most preferred mode to open market repurchases. In the case of service firms, undervaluation, low earnings, and low debt ratios are the contributing factors impacting repurchases. Firms with low dividend intend to have more buybacks to reduce their tax burden.

Acknowledgment
The infrastructural support provided by FORE School of Management, New Delhi in completing this paper is gratefully acknowledged.

The topic of gender diversity in the workforce has received an increasing amount of attention and even resulted in developing a new term, sheconomy, which describes an economy in which women are the main economic players. This study examines the relationship between female workforce participation and corporate bond credit ratings. Using an ordered logit regression model and a sample of listed companies on the Korea Exchange, the results show that the higher the number and proportion of women in the workforce (based on female directors and female employees), the higher the credit rating. However, for chaebol companies, where female directors’ positive role is limited by chaebol owners, a negative (–) moderating effect is observed in the relationship between female workforce participation and credit ratings. Besides, female directors who are members of the owner’s family and were appointed as a means of succession negatively affect a company’s value. The findings contribute to accounting and finance research on the relationship between governance and credit ratings in terms of gender diversity. Policy implications regarding the recent system changes in Korea, including introducing a gender quota system, can be derived from the study.

This study investigated the effect of tax avoidance (TAV) on company value in Jordan, with a specific focus on the moderating role of leverage. The sample is 55 Jordanian industrial firms listed on the Amman Stock Exchange for the study period from 2005 to 2022. Given the evolving regulatory landscape and the importance of tax planning strategies for corporate performance, understanding these dynamics is critical. Employing panel data analysis spanning several years, the study examined the link between tax avoidance, leverage, and company value. The results indicated a significant negative association between TAV and firm value (the correlation between them is –29.3%), suggesting that firms engaging in higher levels of TAV experience lower market valuations. Additionally, the analysis reveals that leverage plays a crucial moderating role in this relationship, amplifying the negative impact of TAV on firm value. The study also found a strong correlation between firm value and size, and the relationship between firm value and ROA remains significant and positive. These findings provided valuable information for policymakers, corporate executives, and investors navigating the complexities of contemporary business environments in Jordan and beyond.