The aim of this paper is to evaluate the performance of climate-themed mutual funds, taking into consideration the structure of their asset allocation, especially their geographical focus of investment. Additionally, the influence of differences in the industry allocations on the funds’ investment results is evaluated. Our analyses are based on climate-friendly mutual funds registered in Scandinavian countries (i.e., Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) during 2010–2019. To classify the analyzed funds as climate-friendly, we use the relative carbon footprint measure, which is a novelty in studies on ESG funds (meeting the environmental, social, and corporate governance criteria). In our analyses, we use the absolute performance as well as the relative performance methods. The obtained results confirm that geographical and industrial asset allocations significantly affect the performance of Scandinavian climate-friendly funds. On the basis of our studies, we may state that analyzed mutual funds do not get abnormal returns, and their performance mostly depends on the market state. Additionally, the unconditional firm size factor did not influence the return of particular portfolios, while the conditional firm size factor was significant for European, global, and North American funds. Moreover, the firm value factor was significant. Finally, the momentum factor was only significant for the emerging markets portfolio when it reached positive values.

The aim of this paper is to assess the impact of reforms introduced in the operation of Polish open pension funds on management style, risk exposure and related investment performance. The article analyzes the impact of the reformed regulations on the herd behavior of fund managers. In particular, we examined whether the elimination of the internal benchmark for fund evaluation impacts the elimination or reduction of herd behavior. We proposed a multi-factor market model to evaluate the performance of funds investing in various types of instruments. Moreover, we used panel estimation to directly take into account the impact of the internal benchmark on herd behavior. Our results indicate that highly regulated funds may slightly outperform passive benchmarks and their unregulated competitors. In the case of Polish open pension funds, limiting investments in Treasury debt instruments clearly resulted in increased risk and volatility of returns. However, it also raised competition between funds and decreased the herd behavior. Additionally, the withdrawal of the mechanism evaluating funds based on the internal benchmark was also important in reducing herd behavior.

Research background: We examine the dividend payout policies across companies listed on the main stock exchanges in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS). Unlike the highly developed capital markets, the literature regarding dividend policy on BRICS? stock exchanges is scarce. Purpose of the article: The purpose of this paper is threefold: verification of the existence of dividend smoothing pattern; selection of the significant drivers that affect both dividend levels and dividend smoothing; examination of differences between dividend policy of cross- and single-listed companies. Methods: Based on a dataset of 564 companies that paid dividends for at least 11 consecutive years in the period of 1995?2015, we apply a GMM two-step estimator to assess the speed of dividend adjustment (SOA) coefficient. Further we employ the linear panel regression to indicate the individual and market determinants of the dividend levels and SOAs. In the latter case, we base on time series of the SOAs obtained from the rolling estimation technique. Finally, we conduct separate estimations for cross-listed companies. Findings & value added: We confirm a moderate level of dividend smoothing within BRICS countries. Among the firm-level characteristics affecting the SOA the most important are: ownership dispersion, age and size of a firm, retained earnings, leverage, long term debt, asset tangibility, liquidity risk ratio, and issuing the depositary receipts (DR). Two relevant market factors are found: market capitalisation and turnover in relation to GDP. Similar characteristics have a significant impact on dividends? levels in the entire sample, whereas in the subsample of cross-listed companies fewer variables are significant. Our paper is the first comprehensive attempt to investigate the dividend policy and determinants of dividend smoothing among BRICS countries.

We examined the smoothing pattern of dividends on publicly stock-listed companies in the so-called Asian Tigers – China, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. Based on a panel of data comprising 702 companies from 2000 to 2015, we estimated the speed of dividend adjustment (SOA) using a generalized method of moments two-step estimator. Having implemented an improved procedure using a rolling regression, we obtained the SOA coefficient equal to 0.447, which confirmed a moderate level of dividend smoothing among the selected countries. Moreover, we examined the SOA’s drivers by employing a range of variables reflecting the companies’ and the countries’ characteristics. The most influential firm-level determinants of dividend smoothing in emerging Asian markets were payout ratio, retained earnings and level of risk proxied by the return on asset standard deviation. Additionally, we identified the relevance of the financial market sophistication and board efficacy as potential drivers of dividend smoothing.

A modern enterprise can use changes in its environment as an opportunity to create new products and services, constituting a competitive advantage. This ability is in turn determined by its adopted business strategy. The aim of this study is an attempt to find the relationship between business strategies used in industrial enterprises and their effects in the form of various types of innovations. Our research covered innovative manufacturing companies from selected EU member states and Turkey. Two research hypotheses were formulated: H1: The importance of business strategies to innovative companies is different between countries. H2: The clusters identified are not homogeneous in terms of the innovation outputs achieved by the companies. Our analyses are based on data derived from the CIS 2018 for the period of 2016–2018. To verify these hypotheses, statistical methods were used, including a cluster analysis. The results of the analysis indicate that the manufacturing companies in the surveyed countries apply various combinations of business strategies, which may translate into results in terms of innovation. Business process innovations are dominated by new or improved methods for producing goods or providing services.