Corporate investment efficiency (CIE) is an imperative factor influencing the smooth functioning and financial sustainability of an enterprise. The role of a firm life cycle on risk and performance fundamentals has been extensively explored in the literature. However, it remains unclear as to whether the life cycle stages of a firm have any impact on corporate investment efficiency. This paper investigates the role of firm life cycle stages (FLCS) in determining the investment efficiency of 351 Pakistani non-financial listed firms over the course of 12 years (2005–2016). It used panel data fixed effects and ordinary least squares (OLS) techniques to empirically examine the proposed relationship. By employing Dickinson’s FLCS measure, we found that CIE was lower during the introduction and decline stages and higher at the growth and maturity stages of a firm’s life cycle. Moreover, the results of regression analysis revealed that mature firms enjoyed the highest level of investment efficiency followed by the growth firms. Overall, CIE exhibited an inverted U-shaped trend across FLCS. In addition, the findings corroborated the idea that the sample firms could not sustain their investment efficiency when they moved along different stages of the life cycle. Thus, policymakers are suggested to customize their investment policies for each stage of FLC to attain sustainable financial performance throughout the life of a firm.

Information availability, firm performance, idiosyncratic volatility and bankruptcy-risk vary across the Corporate Life Cycle (CLC) stages. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether CLC stages explain firm’s propensity to engage in both accrual base and real earning management practices in the context of China. Panel data of 3250 non-financial Chinese listed firms spanning from 2009 to 2018 is used to investigate the proposed relationship. CLC stages were captured through Dickinson’s model, while earnings management is measured by employing both techniques, i.e., accruals-base earnings management and real earnings management. The data were analyzed through Panel data fixed-effects and random-effects techniques. Results reveal that, when compared to shakeout phase, managers’ response to use both earnings management practices is significantly higher during introduction and decline phases, and lower during growth and mature stages of CLC. It suggests that introductory and later-staged firms distort their factual financial information from creditors to obtain loans without strict debt covenants. Our results are robust to alternate measures and specifications. The core contribution of this research is to add a fresh perspective to the CLC research by uncovering its imperative role in influencing the earning management behavior of corporate managers.

This study examines the influence of financial distress on corporate restructuring decisions and whether this restructuring varies across the Firm Life Cycle (FLC) stages of Pakistani non-financial listed firms for the 12 years from 2005 to 2016 inclusive. FLC stages and financial distress are measured using the Dickinson model and Altman Z-score, respectively. Corporate restructuring is segregated into equity and debt restructuring. The data are analyzed using a panel logistic regression model. The results reveal that financial distress is negatively associated with corporate debt restructuring decisions and positively associated with corporate equity restructuring decisions. Further analysis shows that new, growing and mature firms have positive associations with equity restructuring decisions and negative associations with debt restructuring decisions, while declining firms prefer debt restructuring. This study has important implications for corporate managers and policy makers.

Organizations are formed to gain long-term benefits. However, sometimes myopic management for feigned value enhancement led to the early demise of the firm. Further, to the best of our knowledge empirical role of financing constraints has not yet been explored between the relationship of leverage and earnings management practices. Therefore, the present study aims to empirically examine the impact of leverage on Real Earnings Management (REM) practices and how financing constraints influence this association. Employs a panel dataset of 3250 non-financial Chinese listed firms for a time period spanning from 2009 to 2018. Leverage is categorized into short-term, long-term, and total leverage to check the individual effects of each leverage category on REM practices. The data were analyzed through panel data fixed-effects and random-effects techniques as an econometric approach. First, consistent with positive accounting theory, the impact of total leverage on REM is positive. Second, compared to the long-term leverage, short-term leverage has more pronounced effects on managers’ opportunistic behavior towards using REM. Third, the influence of total leverage is higher (lower) on REM practices in financially unconstrained (constrained) firms. Fourth, the influence of short-term leverage on REM practices compared to long-term leverage is also weak in the financially constrained firms. These findings imply that, to avoid the consequences of managerial myopia, investors should abstain to invest in the firms that use higher amount of short-term debt and are financially unconstrained. This study is the first research to examine the impact of different leverage categories on REM practices in an emerging market, i.e., China, where the legal and financial structure is much poor.