Ownership structure and performance in large spanish companies. Empirical evidence in the context of an endogenous relation

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to study the relationship between ownership structure and firm value. This relationship is analyzed taking into account not only the endogenous character of ownership but also the peculiarities of the Spanish corporate system. For this purpose, we select a balanced panel of 101 companies quoted in the Madrid exchange market from 1991 through 1997. We have applied econometric panel data techniques (generalized method of moments, gmm), which allows us to control the endogeneity problem through instruments. Our results confirm the positive effect of ownership concentration on firm market value. This relationship is robust to the inclusion of variables regarding the nature of the main shareholder, firm industry and time. Furthermore, we present some evidence about the relationship between the type of control (majority and minority) and a firm's market value.