Abstract

The study examines the interaction effects of large shareholders, capital structure and diversification on a firm’s value. The findings show that diversification is non-linearly related to a firm’s value. At the lower levels of diversifications, increased diversification is found to improve firm value. However, as the number of diversifications increased, it induces a negative impact on the differences in Tobin’s Q value. The evidence shows that the interaction terms for diversification and excessive leverage enhance firms’ performance suggesting the benefits of diversification in this economy. Further analysis reveals that regardless of the large shareholder-controlling stake, the presence of large shareholders appears to reduce the positive effects of diversification and leverage.

Key words: Large shareholders, capital structure, ownership structure, diversification, Malaysia.