Corporate governance and dividend pay-out policy in UK listed SMEs: The effects of corporate board characteristics

Article


Elmagrhi, M., Ntim, Collins G., Crossley, Richard M., Malagila, John, Fosu, Samuel and Vu, Tien V. 2017. Corporate governance and dividend pay-out policy in UK listed SMEs: The effects of corporate board characteristics. International Journal of Accounting and Information Management. 25 (4), pp. 459-483. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJAIM-02-2017-0020
AuthorsElmagrhi, M., Ntim, Collins G., Crossley, Richard M., Malagila, John, Fosu, Samuel and Vu, Tien V.
Abstract

Purpose: This paper examines the extent to which corporate board characteristics influence
the level of dividend pay-out ratio using a sample of UK small and medium-sized enterprises
(SMEs) from 2010 to 2013 listed on the Alternative Investment Market.
Design/methodology/approach: The data is analysed by employing multivariate regression
techniques, including estimating fixed effects, lagged effects and two-stage least squares
regressions.
Findings: The results show that board size, the frequency of board meetings, board gender
diversity and audit committee size have a significant relationship with the level of dividend
pay-out. Audit committee size and board size have a positive association with the level of
dividend pay-out, whilst the frequency of board meetings and board gender diversity has a
significant negative relationship with the level of dividend pay-out. By contrast, the findings
suggest that board independence and CEO role duality do not have any significant effect on
the level of dividend pay-out.
Originality/value: This is one of the first attempts at examining the relationship between
corporate governance and dividend policy in the UK’s Alternative Investment Market, with
the analysis distinctively informed by agency theoretical insights drawn from the outcome
and substitution hypotheses.

Keywordscorporate governance; corporate board characteristics; dividend pay-out policy; UK listed SMEs; outcome versus substitution hypothesis
JournalInternational Journal of Accounting and Information Management
Journal citation25 (4), pp. 459-483
ISSN1834-7649
Year2017
PublisherEmerald
Accepted author manuscript
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1108/IJAIM-02-2017-0020
Web address (URL)https://doi.org/10.1108/IJAIM-02-2017-0020
Publication dates
Print02 Oct 2017
Publication process dates
Deposited11 Apr 2017
Accepted21 Mar 2017
Accepted21 Mar 2017
Copyright information© 2017 Emerald
LicenseAll rights reserved
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