Dividend payouts, cash‐flow uncertainty and the role of institutions
研究了现金流不确定性对企业股利支付的负面影响，并发现更强的制度环境会加剧这种负面关系，因为强制度能减少代理成本、降低企业隐藏现金流风险的动机。
Abstract This study examines the impact of cash‐flow uncertainty on corporate dividend payouts and how this impact is shaped by country‐level institutional environments. Employing a large sample of 41,157 firms in 49 economies from 1996 to 2018, we document that cash‐flow uncertainty has a negative impact on dividend payouts and that this negative relation is more pronounced in economies with stronger institutions. Our results indicate that strong institutions could facilitate information disclosure, reduce government interventions and promote corporate financing opportunities, thus making firms less subject to agency costs and less motivated to disguise their cash‐flow risk.