Determinants of the capital structure of Polish industrial enterprises

Abstract

The subject of the article covers the determinants of the capital structure. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between the capital structure and the liquidity, profitability, age and size of Polish industrial companies. The literature review allowed for the formulation of hypotheses that Polish enterprises shape the capital structure in accordance with the theory of the hierarchy of financing sources. According to this hypothesis, five detailed hypotheses were selected. In order to verify the hypotheses, statistical methods such as basic descriptive statistics and the Pearson correlation coefficient were used. The sample consists of 100 companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The study covers the years 2010–2019. The research results confirm the negative relationship between liquidity and debt. Companies that have difficulties with meeting their current liabilities to a greater extent use borrowed capital financing. There is also a negative correlation between profitability and debt. This means that enterprises that use foreign capital to a greater extent are less profitable. The hypothesis that larger companies have higher levels of debt is also confirmed. In addition, it has been noted that older companies are more likely to use long-term debt. On the basis of the obtained results, it can be concluded that the capital structure of Polish industrial enterprises is consistent with the theory of the hierarchy of financing sources. The research complements the existing research on the issues of shaping the capital structure. It provides results based on current data, which makes it possible to use them in practice. The obtained results may facilitate the decision-making process in the scope of capital structure for enterprises.