Financial Theories in Practice: The Surprising Case of the Air Canada, Canadian Airlines, Onex Affair

73 Pages Posted: 6 Sep 2001

See all articles by Sean Hennessey

Sean Hennessey

University of Prince Edward Island - Business

Date Written: August 2001

Abstract

In 1999, an intriguing series of events occurred that dramatically reshaped the Canadian airline industry. This clinical study considers these events in relation to several theoretical issues in finance to explore whether these well-accepted financial theories apply in reality. Are companies run to benefit shareholders? Is the maximization of shareholder value a key construct for publicly-traded companies? Can the market discipline the management of poorly performing companies? Do institutional shareholders aid in corporate governance by instigating corporate changes? The results of this study suggest that agency costs are real and that the goals of management are in conflict with and will often supercede those of shareholders, that, in practice, corporate governance can be severely limited even when the vast majority of board members are unrelated to the company, and that institutional shareholders may not be the disciplining force that theory suggests. Overall, the results of the study imply that managerial entrenchment is a powerful motivating force that may be impossible to counter even for a large, poorly performing corporation that is subject to a very attractive takeover offer.

Keywords: Agency costs, corporate governance, institutional shareholders, managerial entrenchment, takeover

JEL Classification: G14, G18, G30, G32, G34, L93

Suggested Citation

Hennessey, Sean, Financial Theories in Practice: The Surprising Case of the Air Canada, Canadian Airlines, Onex Affair (August 2001). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=282129 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.282129

Sean Hennessey (Contact Author)

University of Prince Edward Island - Business ( email )

Canada
902-566-0523 (Phone)
902-628-4302 (Fax)

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