Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Dividend Payout in Consumer Product Industry, Malaysia

Dividend Payout in Consumer Product Industry, Malaysia 2.0 PROBLEM STATEMENT There is a large volume of work in the area of dividend payout policy across many developed countries (Gugler, 2003; Kallapur, 2004; Ferris et al., 2006; Denis and Osobov, 2008; Eije and Megginson, 2008; Engsted and Pedersen, 2010). However, less work has been done in developing countries and researchers have started to study the dividend policy, as well as the behaviour of the company within the countries (Pandey, 2003). In addition, studies that examine the dividend payout policy focus more on the general category (Kallapur, 2004; Denis and Osobov, 2008; Eije and Megginson, 2008). Limited work has been done in category based on industrial grouping (Ferris et al., 2006). As such, my study seeks to address the gap in literature review and thereby stresses on the dividend payout, in term of ratio and pattern of companies within the consumer products industry in Malaysia. 2.1 RESEARCH QUESTION What is the trend of dividend payout in companies within consumer products industry in Malaysia? 2.2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES To identify the dividend payout ratio of the consumer products industry in Malaysia and its changes across years. To determine the percentage of companies paying dividend in the consumer products industry in Malaysia. To determine the dividend payout pattern of companies within the consumer products industry in Malaysia. To identify if there is a difference of dividend payout ratio within the consumer products industry in Malaysia. 3.0 LITERATURE REVIEW (GAPS FILLED) There is vast literature in the area of dividend payout policy across countries including US (Gugler, 2003; Denis and Osobov, 2008; Eije and Megginson, 2008) and non-US such as EU countries (Eije and Megginson, 2008; Denis and Osobov, 2008; Engsted and Pedersen, 2010), Japan (Ferris et al., 2006; Denis and Osobov, 2008) and Taiwan (Kallapur, 2004). The finding shows that payout policy undergoes changes and fluctuates across year, especially in the recent year of 1992 to 2004 (Renneboog and Trojanowski, 2010). According to Kallapur (2004), many studies agree that dividend payout ratio is a signal indicating the firms future growth. Firms pay attention to the consistency of dividend payout as studies show that investors put premium on the firms with stable payout policy and firms are reluctant to cut dividend (Gugler, 2003). Besides, a study by Ferris et al. (2006) shows that firm with negative earning (negative growth) in UK is less likely to pay dividend. This is consistent with the finding that dividend payout ratio is related to the firms growth. Study by Gugler (2003) reports that large firms with good investment opportunity in US are less likely to pay high dividend to the investors. However, their payout is relatively more stable and they are rarely cut down on the dividend (Allen and Michaely, 1995). Besides, study by Eije and Megginson (2008) shows that younger companies in EU are less likely to pay dividend and the payout is less than those older companies. According to Eije and Megginson (2008), dividend payout ratio has increased over years. They also report that the payout ratio in US has increased from year 1970 to year 2001, and the total dividend paid is increasing among firms in EU countries. From previous studies, Ferris et al. (2006) and Eije and Megginson (2008), find that the number of firms paying dividend in US is decreasing despite the increasing of dividend payout ratio across years. Eije and Megginson (2008) also report the same finding in EU firms and suggest that the dividend payout policies are quite similar between the two. According to Denis and Osobov (2008), the decreasing trend is driven by the failure of new listed firms to initiate payout when they are expected to do so. However, there is a contrast finding from the studies done in Taiwan and Japan. Study from Kallapur (2004) shows that dividend paying firms in Taiwan has actually increased since year 2000, while Ferris et al. (2006) reports that the percentage of firms paying dividend in Japan remains highly stable. Ferris et al. (2006) also suggests that the decreasing trend does not seem to affect Japanese firms. This is an interesting area that worth for study, especially in developing country such as Malaysia. Horngren et al. (2008) notes that dividend payout ratio different across industries and it is commonly used to compare companies in the same industry. However, there is limited work done specifically within an industry (Ferris et al., 2006). According to International Business Center (2010), consumer products industry plays a major role in the world economy as it acts as a driver for other industries. Besides, it reports that consumer products industry contributes to the two-thirds of the world trade volume and accounts for significant portion of the gross domestic product (GDP) in many countries. As such, my study would stress on the dividend payout, in term of the ratio and pattern, of consumer products industry in Malaysia. 4.0 METHODOLOGY The methodology that will be applied has been chosen in order to obtain data and compare the dividend payout, in terms of ratio and pattern, within consumer products industry in Malaysia. 4.1 DATA COLLECTION For the purpose of this study, data will be collected using the secondary source. Annual report of respective company will be obtained from the link given in the Bursa Malaysia website. 4.2 SAMPLING FRAME The sampling frame for this study would be the public listed companies in Malaysia. The list can be obtained from Bursa Malaysia or The Star website. 4.3 SAMPLING STRATEGY For the purpose of this study, non probability purposive sampling is selected. As the study only focus on one industry, and 5 years data is assumed to show a general trend of the dividend payout, thus the sample chosen need to meet the following criteria, Companies that fall under the consumer products industry. Companies with at least 5 years of annual report available on the company website. By searching through the companies website, only 89 out of 142 companies in consumer products industry fulfill the mentioned above criteria (as in Appendix 2). 4.4 DATA ANALYSIS In this study, hybrid method (both quantitative and qualitative) will be used to analyze the data. Generally, it can be divided into 3 parts as following, For dividend payout ratio, percentage of firms paying dividend and the percentage of company using certain payout pattern, SPSS (descriptive statistic) will be used. To determine if there is a difference of dividend payout ratio among companies within the industry, SPSS (One-Sample T-Test) can be carried out as the sample size is more than 30. Yearly dividend payout ratio obtained from a) will be used as the test value in SPSS. To determine the trend of dividend payout, in term of ratio and pattern across years, qualitative method will be used as it involves more on the interpretation of data. 4.5 ROLE OF THEORY In this study, the role of theory would be theory generation. It involves the new finding of dividend payout ratio, as well as the payout pattern among companies within the consumer products industry in Malaysia. 5.0 CONTRIBUTION EXPECTED It is intended that the finding of this study will give a clearer picture of the dividend payout in consumer products industry as it is the major contributor to the countrys economic. Besides, it can be used by potential investors that desire a certain cash flow (dividend) instead of incurring transaction cost from periodically selling shares of stock. Last but not least, it seeks to provide a better understanding for Chief Financial Officer (CFO) towards the dividend payout ratio and its pattern within the consumer products industry in Malaysia. 6.0 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE STUDIES Due to time constraint and limited information that is available on the website, only 5 years of annual report is obtained for this study. Thus, it is suggested that a longer time series of data, for example 10 years should be taken in future to provide a better understanding of the dividend payout in Malaysia. Besides, future researchers can study on other industries and ultimately compare the dividend payout ratio and its pattern across all industries in Malaysia.

Monday, January 20, 2020

Justice and Revenge in The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd Essay

Justice and Revenge in The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd Throughout 'The Spanish Tragedy', by Thomas Kyd, there is a constant theme of justice and revenge. Justice is the supreme law of the land; without justice, a country would fall into disrepute and those who are readily concerned with the status of society would have no grounds to stand upon. Therefore, those in power venerate justice. Revenge, however, upsets the delicate balance that holds Spanish society together. Hieronimo does his best to maintain a civil attitude towards incrimination and justice, but his plans for revenge lay waste to the very law he professes to adore. A series of carefully plotted steps, coupled with thoughts of revenge, reveals the descent of Hieronimo into madness and thereby fueling his rejection of justice. As Hieronimo contemplates his actions, he begins arguing with himself and the gods over the death of his son. He brings his case before the heavens questioning the effective nature of justice. This is the first instance where Hieronimo is doubtful of justice. Hieronimo states: If this inhuman and barbarous attempt, If this incomparable murder thus Of mine, but now no more my son, Shall unrevealed and unrevenged pass, How should we term your dealings to be just, If you unjustly deal with those that in your justice trust? (3.2.6-11) These lines provide the foundation for Hieronimo to seek out revenge instead of allowing the courts to decide the fates of the murderers of his son. Hieronimo is clearly angry and infuriated that the murderers have yet to be discovered. This is the moment ... ...l a facility of Hieronimo, he would have realized that killing others does not achieve a resolution, but propagates even further confusion and chaos. Revenge is a maliciously deviant instrument that seeks to redefine an imbalanced society, but ultimately fails due to its irrational nature. Hieronimo was unable to achieve justice for his son, Horatio, so he turned to the grim specter of revenge. Without justice, the Spanish society was unable to sustain itself and Hieronimo only further exacerbated this tension. In the end, Hieronimo was a victim of the very crime he pursued to bring to justice throughout the play: murder. By retracing the steps of Hieronimo, one can see that revenge eventually swallowed Hieronimo whole leaving him bereft of any moral fiber. Bibliography: Kyd, Thomas. The Spanish Tragedy. Ed. Philip Edwards. London: Methuen, 1959.

Sunday, January 12, 2020

Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Prevention Interventions: Haiti 2010

Primary prevention and nursing interventions include: the workers and volunteers receiving available, necessary and appropriate shots prior to entering Haiti. For the Haitians, immunization would also be given. This is very important against, Hepatitis, and other rare, yet deadly diseases, such as measles, mumps, rubella, and pertussis.Education regarding: safe and proper sanitation practices; hand washing and personal hygiene; maintaining trash in designated areas; staying active by volunteering/assisting and caring for other fellow Haitian children and neighbors; clearing and cleaning out clutter and using available resources to cook and keep foods in safe places that are clean; dry and free from infestations of bugs; clearing out puddles of water that attract mosquitoes; and assigning an adequate amount of people per shelter or tent in order to not overcrowd any particular living/sleeping quarters; and lastly educated patients on the first sign of diarrheal disease and to seek med ical attention in order to contain the disease.Secondary Prevention nursing Interventions: secondary prevention would occur during the acute stage of the disaster. These interventions of course would differ depending on the type and scope of the disaster. Generally, the goal of secondary prevention intervention is to decrease the deleterious effects of the disaster on individuals and the community. In the type of disaster where there's the possibility of many casualties, several types of activities will take place simultaneously.Police, fire, and other first responders will be conducting search-and-rescue operations as well as security operations. To provide help for as many people as possible, triage activities will be taking place in the field as well as in emergency departments. If proper planning occurred prior to the disaster, casualties would be transported to many different institutions in an effort to avoid any one institution being overwhelmed. Hospitals are often perceived as a safe haven. A sound hospital disaster plan will include plans for how to manage non injured survivors of disasters. Finding a place away from the chaos to provide supportive care is desirable.Aside from providing care to the physically injured, secondary prevention strategies would also address decreasing the long-term emotional affects of trauma. As stated previously, how individuals cope with trauma depends on a myriad of factors. Lastly, secondary prevention strategies would also address the immediate community education needs. People need to be educated about the signs and symptoms of stress reactions and the available community resources where they can receive help. It's important to teach people to develop healthy coping strategies, such as seeking support from family and friends, joining a support group, practicing relaxation techniques, and taking care of their physical health. (See â€Å"Available Web resources.)Tertiary prevention strategies are interventions that a re designed to meet the long-term needs of individuals and the community after the disaster has been resolved. The required types and scope of tertiary services will largely be determined by the type and scope of the disaster. There will be a certain amount of people who'll need long-term services. Experts suggest a need for long-term treatment strategies that include individual, group, and family therapy; effective pharmacotherapy; as well as short and long term hospitalization and rehabilitation. Implementing programs that foster healing is another important tertiary intervention. Providing places for people to speak with others about their feelings is beneficial to healing.It's important to provide programs that teach people about stress responses, normal and abnormal coping strategies, and when and how to seek help. Parenting programs can help mothers and fathers learn how to provide support to their children and also to recognize symptoms of stress response. There are four phas e, the Mitigation, Preparedness, Response and Recovery. These prevention interventions would be started as early as the 1st phase, and throughout 4th phase. I would enroll the collaboration of the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention), the Red Cross and FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). I would also call on charitable organizations such as the catholic charities, to come in and help.

Friday, January 3, 2020

The Fast Food Industry Has a Harmful Effect on Society

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