Research On The Peer Effect Of Dividend Policy Of Chinese Listed Companies

Dividend policy is one of the important aspects of corporate governance.Its formulation involves the game of internal stakeholders and is also affected by external factors.It is indispensable for the development of listed companies.A good dividend policy not only ensures the company’s own business development,but also stabilizes investor sentiment,which is the core decision of the company in the process of production and operation.With the continuous development of information technology,the relationship between companies has become closer.Scholars’ research on corporate decision-making is no longer confined to the assumption that all actors are independent.Many phenomena in the economic field have proved the existence of interaction in decision-making,and the study on the group-effect of corporate dividend policy has become a hot topic.It also helps investors and corporate management make better decisions and realize mutual benefits.This paper selects the relevant financial data of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2001 to 2021 as samples to explore the existence of the in-group effect of listed companies’ dividend policies from the two aspects of dividend payment rate and payment intention.By combining theory and demonstration,This paper further studies the differences in the group-effect of dividend policies of listed companies with different property rights,different asset sizes and different regions.In addition,it examines the mechanism of the group-effect of dividends from the perspectives of information learning and managers’ reputation.The main research conclusions of this paper are as follows:(1)Companies in the same industry have an influence on the dividend payment rate and payment intention of Chinese listed companies,showing a group effect.(2)There are differences in the existence of homogeneity effect of dividend policies of listed companies in different property rights,different asset sizes and different regions.First,there is a difference between state-owned enterprises and non-state-owned enterprises in the existence of dividend policy homogeneity effect,which only exists significantly in the sample group of state-owned enterprises;Second,there is a difference in the existence of homogeneity effect of dividend policy between large and small companies,which only exists in the sample group of large companies.Companies in different regions have differences in the existence of dividend policy homogeneity effect,which only exists in the sample group of companies registered in the central and eastern regions.(3)Companies with low information transparency will imitate the dividend decisions of companies with high information transparency,that is,information learning is the reason for the existence of dividend policy homogeneity effect of listed companies;Young managers will imitate the dividend decisions of older managers,that is,the reputation of managers is another reason for the homogeneity effect of dividend policies in listed companies.Based on the analysis results,this paper puts forward four policy suggestions:(1)Listed companies should consider their own economic conditions,industry competition environment,investor demand and other factors,formulate appropriate dividend policies,avoid blindly following the decisions of companies in the same industry;(2)Strengthen investor education to improve their understanding and awareness of dividend policy;(3)Listed companies should enhance information disclosure and transparency to increase investors’ trust and satisfaction with the company;(4)Regulators should strengthen the supervision of cash dividend payment and information disclosure behavior of listed companies,so as to promote healthy market development.