A Value-Based Test of Profitability and Market Structure
A Value-Based Test of Profitability and Market Structure
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基于价值的盈利能力和市场结构测试
DOI：
10.2307/1928814
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发表时间：
1977
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
Stavros B. Thomadakis
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Stavros B. Thomadakis
传统的产业组织假说将市场结构的各个方面与产业或企业间盈利能力的横截面变化联系起来。据推测，盈利能力和结构之间的关联表明存在超额利润，这在完全竞争下是不存在的。整个产业获得超额利润的根本原因是进入壁垒的存在，以及产业内企业协调其产出价格决策的能力。另一方面，即使在一个行业内，各公司之间的利润率也各不相同，这可能是由于该公司在寡头垄断协调制度中的上级“讨价还价”地位，也可能是由于生产和分配的上级效率。结构和盈利能力的关系，以及随之而来的解释，已经在事后资本回报率的层面上反复进行了研究。这种比率本质上是向后看的，因为它们记录了过去投资的平均成功率。因此，它们并不能揭示一家公司在未来保持和扩大其超额收益的能力。与传统的研究不同，本文试图研究市场结构的未来导向意义。盈利能力的前瞻性指标是公司的市场价值。根据以价值为基础的盈利能力和市场结构测试，可以检验的基本问题是：当前的结构地位是否意味着企业有能力在未来保持超额利润？必须指出的是，即使当前的结构地位意味着（或被暗示为）上级效率，企业在未来保持这种优势的能力也相应地意味着长期竞争过程中的缺陷，因为进入市场可能会消除这种效率差异。还应该清楚的是，即使对所提出的基本问题的回答是否定的，这也并不意味着结构性地位与事后利润无关。因此，目前的工作范围是对传统研究的补充。这些假设的理论前提在B节中阐述。C节包含统计检验质量标准的描述。D节介绍实证结果，E节概述主要结论。
T HE traditional hypotheses of industry organization relate various aspects of market structure to cross-sectional variation in profitability among industries or firms. It is presumed that association between profitability and structure indicates the existence of excess profits that would be absent under perfect competition. The fundamental causes of excess profits reaped by a whole industry are the existence of entry barriers, and the ability of firms within the industry to coordinate their output-price decisions. On the other hand, varying profitability among firms even within an industry may be due either to the superior "bargaining" position of the firm within a system of oligopolistic coordination or to superior efficiency in production and distribution. The relationship of structure and profitability, and the attendant interpretations, have been repeatedly examined at the level of ex post rates of return on capital. Such rates are by nature backward-looking since they register the average success of past investments. They do not, therefore, reveal the ability of a firm to retain and extend its excess returns into the future. In contrast to traditional studies this paper seeks to examine the future-oriented implications of market structure. A forward-looking index of profitability is a firm's market value. The basic issue which can be examined in the light of a value-based test of profitability and market structure is this: Does current structural position imply an ability on the part of the firm to maintain excess profits in the future? It must be noted that even if current structural position implies (or is implied by) superior efficiency, the ability of the firm to maintain such advantages into the future implies correspondingly a deficiency in the long-run competitive process since entry would presumably be expected to wipe out such efficiency differentials. It should also be clear that even if the basic question posed were answered in the negative, this would not imply that structural position is unrelated to ex post profits. Thus, the scope of the current work is complementary to traditional studies. The theoretical premises of the hypotheses are laid out in section B. Section C contains a description of specification for statistical tests. Section D presents empirical results and section E summarizes major conclusions.