Corporate Diversification and Firm Value: A Survey of Recent Literature
Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, Vol. 27, No. 2, pp. 187-215, 2013
Posted: 12 Aug 2013
There are 2 versions of this paper
Corporate Diversification and Firm Value: A Survey of Recent Literature
Date Written: April 4, 2013
Abstract
We survey the recent literature on corporate diversification. How does corporate diversification influence firm value? Does it create or destroy value? Until the beginning of this century, the predominant thinking among researchers and practitioners was that corporate diversification leads to an average discount on firm value; however, several studies cast doubt on the diversification discount. In the last decade, there has been no clear consensus as to whether there is a discount or even a premium on firm value. Recent literature concludes that the effect on value differs from firm to firm and that corporate diversification alone does not drive the discount or premium; rather, the effect is heterogeneous across certain industry settings, economic conditions, and governance structures.
Keywords: Corporate diversification, Firm valuation, Internal capital markets, Discount, Premium
JEL Classification: G11, G34, L25
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation