This study empirically investigates the effects of corporate governance and real estate holding strategies on firm performance and tax avoidance, as well as the interaction effects between these two factors, using listed firms in Korea. The sample inc...
This study empirically investigates the effects of corporate governance and real estate holding strategies on firm performance and tax avoidance, as well as the interaction effects between these two factors, using listed firms in Korea. The sample includes 439 firm-year observations (5,738 firm-year data) from 2011 to 2024, excluding financial and insurance firms, firms with negative pre-tax income, and firms with no real estate holdings.
The empirical results indicate that the largest shareholder ownership positively and significantly affects return on total assets (ROA) but not earnings per share (EPS), while foreign ownership significantly affects EPS but not ROA. This suggests that large shareholders focus on long-term asset utilization and monitoring, whereas foreign investors prioritize short-term shareholder value maximization. Regarding tax avoidance, largest shareholder ownership positively affects the effective corporate tax rate (ETR) but not the cash effective tax rate (CETR), whereas foreign ownership positively affects CETR but not ETR.
Regarding real estate holding strategies, total real estate holdings do not significantly affect firm performance, but firms with higher proportions of operating real estate exhibit significantly higher EPS, indicating that operating real estate functions as a strategic asset directly linked to production and sales activities. Real estate holdings, however, do not significantly influence tax avoidance.
The interaction analysis shows that the interaction between largest shareholder ownership and total real estate holdings negatively affects firm performance, while interactions between foreign ownership and any real estate measure are not significant. No interaction effects are observed for tax avoidance. This suggests that tax avoidance strategies are primarily determined by corporate governance type, investor characteristics, and compliance orientation, independently of real estate holdings.
The study provides several implications. First, the impact of corporate governance on firm performance varies by governance type and performance measure, highlighting the need to distinguish between short-term profitability and long-term asset efficiency. Second, real estate should be utilized as a strategic asset linked to operations rather than merely a financial investment to enhance performance. Third, considering corporate governance and real estate strategies jointly enables more precise strategic decision-making for improving performance. Finally, excessive real estate holdings in large shareholder-dominated firms may negatively impact performance, emphasizing the importance of efficient resource allocation and long-term value creation.