Ownership Structure and Corporate Performance: Evidence from Qatar

Abstract

This study examines the effect of different dimensions of ownership structure in corporate performance. The data that is used in this study includes 29 non-financial firms listed on the Qatar Exchange during the period of 2006-2011. The different dimensions of ownership structures that are included in the study are: board ownership, concentrated ownership, foreign ownership, and institutional ownership. In addition, firm performance is estimated by three measures: Tobin’s Q, ROA, and ROE. The two regression models that are used to test the effects of ownership structure and firm performance are the panel data regression model and linear regression model. The empirical evidence in this study shows that concentrated ownership, board ownership and foreign ownership have a positive effect on firm performance. Furthermore, the board ownership has a positive and significant relationship with ROA and ROE, whereas concentrated ownership has a positive and significant effect on ROA, ROE and Tobin’s Q. On the other hand, institutional ownership has a negative significant effect on Tobin’s Q.

Keywords: Ownership Structure, Corporate Performance, Managerial Ownership, Board of Directors Ownership, Qatar

JEL Classification: G30, G31, G32, G34