• Proceedings of the Korean Institute Of Construction Engineering and Management
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• autumn
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• pp.88-95
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• 2003

A firm's business composition and the sales volume of each business segment are subject to change depending, to a considerable extent, on the firm's business strategy. These changes were weighted and represented as a single index, referred to by scholars in strategic management and industrial organization research fields as 'firm entropy' then its impact on firms' profitability was assessed over twelve years. The performance differences between contractor and non-contractor firms, as well as focused and diversified firms, were compared through a Longitudinal Data Analysis Technique within a Hierarchical Linear Modeling framework. Hypothesis was formulated based on firm diversification theories and previous research findings. The hypothesis was tested according to the modeling outcomes, and implications are presented. The research findings indicate that the level of firms' long-term profitability supports the argument that the construction industry is highly competitive and mature.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.7 no.11
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• pp.801-808
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• 2020

The purpose of the study is to find the factors that influence the financial leverage of Vietnam firms. The dependent variable is the financial leverage and the independent variables are firm size, asset structure, liquidity, growth opportunities, profitability, and firm age. The data are collected from Vietnam firms' annual financial reports in the period from 2010 to 2019. The study uses a sample of 448 Vietnam listed firms in the period. We also employ a panel regression model with pooled OLS and fixed effect to analyze the firms' financial data. The results of the model showed that financial leverage (FL) has a negative relationship with some factors such as asset structure (AS), liquidity (LQ), growth opportunities (GRW), profitability (ROA), and firm age (AGE) in the fixed effect regression. It means that when liquidity, profitability, and firm age increase, firms' financial leverage will decrease. While firms' financial leverage has still a positive relationship with the firm size (SIZE) in the model. As a result, when firm size increases, financial leverage will increase, too. The results showed that models are fit for the research and can be used to predict future findings. It is also useful for enterprises, financial advisors, investors, as well as the financial managers.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.23 no.2 s.98
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• pp.270-279
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• 2007

The purposes of this study were to analyze the profitability of audited restaurant franchise firms and to investigate the financial variables affecting profitability. This study decomposed profit variation into the three main factors comprising the Du Pont Identity (operating efficiency, asset use efficiency and financial leverage). The operating efficiency of restaurant franchise firms was on the rise until 2004, but dropped dramatically in 2005. Especially, the profit margin dropped from 13.46% in 2004 to 6.54% in 2005. The asset use efficiency has been decreasing since 2003. The total asset turnover ratio, which can be indicative of over-investment, dropped from 1.55 in 2003 to 1.50 in 2005. The financial leverage remained stable after 2002. There were major differences in debt accumulation among the firms, and the current level of debt was thought to be higher in the restaurant industry than in other industries. Based on the results of a multiple regression analysis, we concluded that the factors affecting ROE were the debt-equity ratio, total asset turnover and the size of the firm. The debt-equity ratio and total asset turnover had a significantly positive effect on ROE, while the firm size had a significantly negative effect on ROE. However, the current ratio and sales growth rate were not significant. The finding that firm size and profitability were negatively related implied that restaurant franchise firms should pursue qualitative growth rather than quantitative growth. There was no major difference in profitability between domestic brands and foreign brands. However, the domestic brand was more efficient in terms of asset usage than the foreign brand.

• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-26
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• 2020

Firms employing hierarchical loyalty programs (HLPs) periodically demote customers from higher to lower status level to divest from unprofitable customers and boost profitability. However, existing literature lacks objective evidence on how customer demotion affects demoted customers' future purchase behaviors and ultimately profitability for the firm. Moreover, customers in the HLP's higher position may respond to customer demotion differently from those in the HLP's lower position. Drawing upon emotions and equity theories, this study quantifies how the profits that customers contribute to the firm change after customer demotion, and compares demoted customers' behavioral reactions from top-tier with those from bottom-tier based on customers' actual behavior data from a major retail bank in South Korea. The findings show that withdrawing customer status actually deteriorates customer profitability, and customers with top-tier status decrease their profitability more dramatically than those with bottom-tier status after demotion. The results contribute to previous literature on customer demotion and relationship marketing, and provide specific guidelines into how firms should design and implement customer demotion in HLPs.

• Korean Management Science Review
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.113-131
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• 2015

We examine the relationship between firms' environmental (E), social (S), and governance (G) factors, with their financial performance in order to provide an empirical rationale for CSV (creating shared value) pursuing both of firms' profitability and CSR (corporate social responsibility). The financial performance is classified into four aspects such as profitability, stability, efficiency, and cash-flow, and each of these aspects is measured by two financial ratios respectively. To measure the firms' ESG performance, we employ the published performance grades by the Korea Corporate Governance Service for a three year span, from 2011 to 2013. Total of eight regression analyses are performed. The results show that firms' non-financial performance in general has statistically significant positive relationships with return on assets, return on net sales, and cash-flow from operating activities ratio, while it has negative relationships with net working capital ratio, asset turnover ratio, and cash-flow from investing activities ratio. It has no significant relationships with debt ratio and equity turnover ratio. The results imply that firms' non-financial performance may have a negative impact on some financial performance such as liquidity and efficiency in a short term, but it would eventually improve the firms' profitability and cash-generating ability, which provides an empirical evidence for the concept of CSV, and motivates the firms to participate in social contribution activities without sacrificing their profitability for their respective sustainablity management.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.13 no.9
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• pp.37-45
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• 2015

Purpose - This paper's aim is to investigate whether or not gross profitability explains the cross-sectional variation of the stock returns in the Korean stock market. Gross profitability is an alternative profitability measure proposed by Novy-Marx in 2013 to predict cross-sectional variation of stock returns in the US. He shows that the gross profitability adds explanatory power to the Fama-French 3 factor model. Interestingly, gross profitability is negatively correlated with the book-to-market ratio. By confirming the gross profitability premium in the Korean stock market, we may provide some implications regarding the well-known value premium. In addition, our empirical results may provide opportunities for the fund distribution industry to promote brand new styles of funds. Research design, data, and methodology - For our empirical analysis, we collect monthly market prices of all the companies listed on the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) of the Korea Exchanges (KRX). Our sample period covers July1994 to December2014. The data from the company financial statementsare provided by the financial information company WISEfn. First, using Fama-Macbeth cross-sectional regression, we investigate the relation between gross profitability and stock return performance. For robustness in analyzing the performance of the gross profitability strategy, we consider value weighted portfolio returns as well as equally weighted portfolio returns. Next, using Fama-French 3 factor models, we examine whether or not the gross profitability strategy generates excess returns when firmsize and the book-to-market ratio are controlled. Finally, we analyze the effect of firm size and the book-to-market ratio on the gross profitability strategy. Results - First, through the Fama-MacBeth cross-sectional regression, we show that gross profitability has almost the same explanatory power as the book-to-market ratio in explaining the cross-sectional variation of the Korean stock market. Second, we find evidence that gross profitability is a statistically significant variable for explaining cross-sectional stock returns when the size and the value effect are controlled. Third, we show that gross profitability, which is positively correlated with stock returns and firm size, is negatively correlated with the book-to-market ratio. From the perspective of portfolio management, our results imply that since the gross profitability strategy is a distinctive growth strategy, value strategies can be improved by hedging with the gross profitability strategy. Conclusions - Our empirical results confirm the existence of a gross profitability premium in the Korean stock market. From the perspective of the fund distribution industry, the gross profitability portfolio is worthy of attention. Since the value strategy portfolio returns are negatively correlated with the gross profitability strategy portfolio returns, by mixing both portfolios, investors could be better off without additional risk. However, the profitable firms are dissimilar from the value firms (high book-to-market ratio firms); therefore, an alternative factor model including gross profitability may help us understand the economic implications of the well-known anomalies such as value premium, momentum, and low volatility. We reserve these topics for future research.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.61-69
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• 2021

The aim of this paper is to empirically investigate whether and how domestic currency valuation is related to firm-level export competitiveness and profitability by using the unique firm-specific dataset on Bangladeshi nonfinancial firms which have been listed continuously from 2010 to 2018. To achieve the aim of this paper, 63 exporting firms are extracted from a total of 125 firms which have been continuously listed during 2010-2018 and used as the final sample firms. The Pedroni cointegration test reveals that export and import prices of the exporting firms are cointegrated in the short-run as well as long-run. The panel dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) analysis finds that a firm's export competitiveness is maintained by high import inputs even in the presence of depreciation of Bangladeshi currency against the US dollar. Finally, the DuPont analysis finds that the depreciated Bangladeshi currency enhances an exporter's profitability. Conclusions based on the findings are consistent regardless of exchange rate types, such as, real bilateral exchange rate and nominal or real effective exchange rate indexes. Consequently, the firm-level findings of this investigation suggest that undervalution of home currency is essential for Bangaldesh which is one of the frontier markets in South Asia whose exporting firms are mostly price followers in global markets.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.715-739
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• 2009

Technology innovation activity plays an important role in increasing a sales by bringing on the improvement of product's performance and a profitability by reducing the cost of production. Thus, technology innovation activity can reduce the default risk of firms. However, in spite of these effects of technology innovation activity, this activity can make the default risk of firm because it induce a firm to much investment of resources. This study examines the effect of technology innovation activity on the sales, profitability, and default risk of firms. This study's sample consists of manufacturing firms listed on the Korea Stock Exchange from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2008. The results show that technology innovation activity has a positive effect on the sales (profitability) but a negative effect on the default risk of firms. Also there is the significant mediation effect of sales and profitability.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.67-99
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• 2006

Utilizing the patent application data between 1997 and 2002, this study focuses on analysing the impact of patents on firm value. Especially we attempt to examine the difference of patents between venture firms and general firms. This paper first shows that the number of the patent applications of general firms listed on the securities market is more than that of venture firms listed on KOSDAQ. It is thought that this result is originated from the facts that the size of firms of the securities market is usually bigger than that of the firms of KOSDAQ and that these large firms could manage R&D more efficiently. Second, this paper reports that there is no difference in the ratio of patent maintenance between venture firms and general firms. Both venture firms and non-venture firms would do their best to keep their patents after patent regisration. Third, in the regression of patent index and firm growth, we find that the excellence of patent and the number of patents per employee would have an impact on the growth of firms. Fourth, the regression of patent index and profitability shows that the excellence and the number of patents per employee might have an effect on the profitability of firms.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.352-362
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• 2019

The study investigates one of the long-standing, but still controversial issues in modern finance from the international and domestic perspectives. That is, financial components and differences on corporate profitability are identified and compared under the primary hypotheses. Empirical research settings include the sample data as KOSPI-listed chaebol firms, time reference covering the post-era of the global financial turmoil and two differently defined profitability indices measured by the market- and the book-value bases. A majority of total 7 explanatory variables except firm size and leverage ratio reveal their statistically significant power to explain profitability indices for the chaebol firms in the first hypothesis. The results are generally compatible with those obtained from their counterparts of non-chaebol firms. In the second hypothesis applying multinomial logistic model, the chaebol firms are classified into three groups according to the level of profitability. It is then confirmed that variables to represent the market-valued debt ratio, business risk and growth potential are financially discriminating factors among the three groups. The study may provide a new vision to identify financial factors of corporate profitability for Korean chaebol firms after the global financial crisis, which can enhance the benefits of interested parties at the government or corporate level in a virtuous cycle.