Anders Isaksson

Empirical exploration of a cohort of new technology-based firms in Sweden: what happens to them during their early years?: Frontiers in European Entrepreneurship Research

This chapter contributes to the current understanding of new technologybased firm growth. We find a surprisingly high survival rate (70 per cent) for the 2006 cohort of NTBFs at the end of 2014 and this rate is much higher than those reported in previous studies. Additionally, we find that very few firms experience high-growth during their first seven years (0.6 to 3 per cent from the cohort) and that, among the high-growth firms, employment growth and sales growth are highly correlated. To address the challenges of measuring growth for new and small firms, we show the potential usefulness of the kink-point approach. Researchers can use this approach to capture much of the growth excluded in other measures, for example, the OECD measure.

Survival and Growth Patterns among New Technology-Based Firms: Empirical Study of Cohort 2006 in Sweden: JOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

This study investigates the survival and growth trends in a cohort of new technology‐based firms (NTBFs) established in Sweden in 2006. This cohort has faced both an economic upswing and a severe downturn, which started in 2008, and by 2014 provides 8 years of historical records. Our study makes several contributions to the current understanding of NTBF survival and growth. First, our empirical observations show that many NTBFs (72 percent) from the 2006 cohort were still operating at the end of 2014, indicating a much higher survival rate than those found in previous studies. Second, surviving firms from the 2006 cohort positively affected employment, as their annual job creation was higher than the reduction in employment caused by exiting firms. Third, very few companies experienced high‐growth during their first 7 years, and employment growth and sales growth were highly correlated among high‐growth firms.

Environmental considerations in the Swedish building and construction industry: the role of costs, institutional setting, and information

Despite increasing evidence that being an environment-friendly company not only benefits the environment but also makes long-term economic sense, the transition to a more sustainable society is extremely slow. This is true of the building and construction industry as well. At a strategic level, environmental issues have received more attention with the establishment of roles such as environmental managers and implementation of advanced environmental management systems. However, adoption has been slow in the absence of a holistic approach to environmental challenges, partly reinforced by a perception that giving more than the legally required level of environmental consideration will only add to costs without corresponding financial benefits. This raises the following question that the study aims to answer: What is the most important factor influencing decision makers’ in adopting environmental considerations? To this end, it analysed questionnaire data collected from decision makers in the Swedish construction industry along with an in-depth case study of a specific building and construction company. The results show that decision makers perceive informational and institutional constraints on the adoption of environmental considerations. Lack of information is perceived as the biggest obstacle to environmental considerations. If information and knowledge about clients’ and end users’ financial benefits from adopting environmental considerations need to be exploited, they have to be supported by contractual forms that discard a short-term focus on the investment costs of a building in favour of a focus on long-term operational and maintenance costs and benefits.

Effects of internal and external resource dimensions on the business performance of new technology-based firms

This study examines the effects of new technology-based firms (NTBFs) internal and external resources on their early business performance. Based on a large unique dataset of 401 newly started NTBFs, we find that founders’ business experience and their firms’ proximity to other firms positively affect early business performance. Growth orientation is found to be negatively related to business performance, which might suggest a certain level of over-optimism among entrepreneurs with aspiration to grow fast.

Ex-day Stock Price Behavior in an Emerging Market

This study investigates the ex-dividend day stock prices of the firms listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) where the tax rate is higher on dividends than on capital gains. The results help to explain what impact taxes have on the ex-day stock prices behavior in an emerging market. To examine the tax effect on the ex-day stock prices behavior, this study considers after-tax dividends and computes the raw price ratio, marketadjusted price ratio, raw price drop, market-adjusted price drop. The market-adjusted ex-dividend day abnormal returns and relative trading volume are also examined to determine the direction of investor trading around the ex-day. The main hypotheses examine whether the mean (median) differs from its theoretical value by using a t-test and nonparametric sign-rank test. The findings suggest that the drop of stock prices on the ex-day on the DSE is not due to taxes or transaction costs but to valuation assumptions made by investors in determining the equilibrium stock price. Findings of this study will be useful for investors and traders in their valuation assumption to trade around the ex-dividend day. Market participants preference of dividends, and exempted tax and its ultimate contribution to the equity value explain the ex-day stock prices behavior in the Dhaka Stock Exchange. Copyright

The Behavior of Stock Prices on the Ex-Day of an Emerging Market; Evidence from the Dhaka Stock Exchange

The empirical results on the tax clientele effect on the pricing of shares that pay dividend still remain inconclusive due to the variations in the tax system in different countries. We investigate the ex-dividend day stock prices of the firms listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) where there exists a higher tax rate on dividend than on capital gains. The results based on the announcement period from 2005 to 2011 allow us to explain to what extent tax has an impact on the ex-day stock prices behaviour in an emerging market. The findings suggest that the stock prices drop is significantly lower than the after tax dividend amount. Furthermore, our results indicate that dividend yield and taxes are not main determinants to trade around the ex-day. The test results suggest that the drop of stock prices on the ex-day on the Dhaka Stock Exchange is not due to the tax or the transaction costs but the investor’s valuation assumptions to determine the equilibrium stock prices.