Preview

Finance: Theory and Practice

Advanced search

The Roles of Market Concentration and Diversity in Exploring the Nexus between Financial leverage and Firm Performance

https://doi.org/10.26794/2587-5671-2025-29-1-204-215

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to determine the relationship between financial leverage and the financial performance of companies in the insurance industry in Jordan, taking into account the influence of market concentration and product diversity. It analyzes data from 20 Jordanian insurance companies over 15 years (2005-2019). The study reveals a positive connection between financial leverage and insurance company profitability, with product diversification enhancing this relationship. Initially, market concentration had a negative impact on return on equity, but product diversification turned it into a positive influence. Additionally, the study highlights the positive mediating role of market concentration in the financial leverage-financial performance relationship. These findings have practical implications for insurers, emphasizing the need for diversified product portfolios and effective financial leverage strategies in a competitive market. This research contributes to understanding capital structure dynamics in emerging markets, specifically in the Jordanian insurance sector, by providing empirical evidence of the mediating and moderating effects of market concentration and product diversity. 

About the Authors

M. Almajali
Amman Arab University
Jordan

Mohannad Almajali — PhD

Amman 



W. M.Z. Wan Abdullah
Universiti Malaysia
Malaysia

W. Muhammad Zainuddin Wan Abdullah — PhD

Terengganu



H. M. Zia-Ul-Haqc
Universiti Malaysia
Malaysia

Hafiz Muhammad Zia-Ul-Haq — PhD

Terengganu



References

1. Suherman M., Firmansya, I., Almunawwaro, M. Determinants of sharia insurance company profitability. Afebi Accounting Review. 2019;4(1):41-49. DOI: 10.47312/aar.v4i01.222

2. Jaloudi M., Bakir A. Market structure, efficiency, and performance of Jordan insurance market. International Journal of Business and Economic Research. 2019;8(1):6-13. DOI: 10.11648/j.ijber.20190801.12

3. Vojinović Ž., Milutinović S., Sertić D., Leković B. Determinants of sustainable profitability of the Serbian insurance industry: Panel data investigation. Sustainability. 2022;14(9):5190. DOI: 10.3390/su14095190

4. Kraus A., Litzenberger R. H. A state-preference model of optimal financial leverage. The Journal of Finance. 1973;28(4):911-922.DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6261.1973.tb01415.x

5. Jensen M.C., Meckling W.H. Theory of the firm: Managerial behaviour, agency costs and ownership structure. Journal of Financial Economics. 1976;3(4):305-360. DOI: 10.1016/0304-405X(76)90026-X

6. Myers S.C., Majluf N.S. .Corporate financing and investment decisions when firms have information that investors do not have. Journal of Financial Economics. 1984;13(2):187-221. DOI: 10.1016/0304-405X(84)90023-0

7. Agusalim M., Tasrim T., Wahda W. Intellectual capital and capital structure: Does it shape the value of the insurance firms? Asian Journal of Management, Entrepreneurship and Social Science. 2023;3(1):304-324. DOI: 10.98765/ajmesc.v3i01.257

8. Bala S.A., Abatcha B.M. Determinants of capital structure in listed insurance companies in Nigeria. International Business and Accounting Research Journal. 2020;4(1):1-10. DOI: 10.15294/ibarj.v4i1.80

9. Kerim A., Alaji J., Innocent I.O. Effect of capital structure on the profitability of listed insurance firms in Nigeria. American International Journal of Economics and Finance Research. 2019;1(2):36-45. DOI: 10.46545/aijefr.v1i2.69

10. Suhartono S. The causality relationship between capital structure and profitability in general insurance industry in Indonesia. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Studies. 2022;4(3). DOI: 10.29103/ijevs.v4i3.7101

11. Olaleye J.O., Adeagbo G.A. Capital structure and financial performance of quoted insurance companies in Nigeria. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science. 2023;7(1):939-949. DOI: 10.47772/IJRISS

12. Kindie E. Determinate of capital structure on insurance companies in Ethiopia. Doctoral dissertation. Bahir-Dar: Bahir-Dar University; 2021. 86 p. URL: http://ir.bdu.edu.et/bitstream/handle/123456789/12515/enkuhone%20kindie%20wosen.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

13. Ayuba H., Bambale A.J., Ibrahim M.A., Sulaiman S.A. Effects of financial performance, capital structure and firm size on firms’ value of insurance companies in Nigeria. Journal of Finance, Accounting & Management. 2019;10(1):57-74. URL: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339130941_Effects_of_Financial_Performance_Capital_Structure_and_Firm_Size_on_Firms›_Value_of_Insurance_Companies_in_Nigeria

14. Abdeljawad I., Dwaikat L. Capital structure, performance, and the moderating role of diversity of products and claims of insurance companies in Palestine. In: Musleh Al-Sartawi A.M.A., Razzaque A., Kamal M. M., eds. From the Internet of things to the Internet of ideas: The role of artificial intelligence (EAMMIS 2022). Cham: Springer-Verlag; 2023:185-195. (Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems. Vol. 557). DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031- 17746-0_16

15. Nahda K., Rahmadana A.L. Diversification strategy and good governance: Does it affect firm’s leverage? Jurnal Keuangan Dan Perbankan. 2021;25(3):599-616. DOI: 10.26905/jkdp.v25i3.5758

16. Septina F. Leverage, product diversification, and performance of life insurance companies in Indonesia. Jurnal Keuangan Dan Perbankan. 2022;26(2):301-316. DOI: 10.26905/jkdp.v26i2.7527

17. Kanini S., Patrick K., Muhanji S. Product diversification and the financial performance of manufacturing companies in Kenya. IOSR Journal of Economics and Finance (IOSR-JEF). 2019;10(6):43-50.

18. Ben Lahouel B., Taleb L., Ben Zaied Y., Managi S. Financial stability, liquidity risk and income diversification: Evidence from European banks using the CAMELS-DEA approach. Annals of Operations Research. 2024;334(1):391- 422. DOI: 10.1007/s10479-022-04805-1

19. Aivazian V.A., Rahaman M. M., Zhou S. Does corporate diversification provide insurance against economic disruptions? Journal of Business Research. 2019;100:218-233. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.03.044

20. Altuntas M., Berry-Stölzle T.R., Cummins J.D. Enterprise risk management and economies of scale and scope: Evidence from the German insurance industry. Annals of Operations Research. 2021;299(1):811-845. DOI: 10.1007/ s10479-019-03393-x

21. Cheng J.L.C., Kesner I.F. Organizational slack and response to environmental shifts: The impact of resource allocation patterns. Journal of Management. 1997;23(1):1-18. DOI: 10.1016/S 0149-2063(97)90003-9

22. Cappiello A. The digital (r)evolution of insurance business models. American Journal of Economics and Business Administration. 2020;12(1):1-13. DOI: 10.3844/ajebasp.2020.1.13

23. Harris M., Raviv A. The theory of capital structure. The Journal of Finance. 1991;46(1):297-355. DOI: 10.1111/j.15406261.1991.tb03753.x

24. Benoit J.-P. Financially constrained entry in a game with incomplete information. The RAND Journal of Economics. 1984;15(4):490-499. DOI: 10.2307/2555520

25. Mason E.S. Price and production policies of large-scale enterprise. The American Economic Review. 1939;29(1):61-74.

26. Bain J.S. Relation of the profit rate to industry concentration: American manufacturing, 1936-1940. The Quarterly Journal of Economics. 1951;65(3):293-324. DOI: 10.2307/1882217

27. Hachicha F. The impact of market maker competition on price efficiency features in the Tunisian stock market. Finance: Theory and Practice. 2023;27(5):104-114. DOI: 10.26794/2587-5671-2023-27-5-104-114

28. Kartinah D., Jhoansyah D., Mulia F. Analyze return on equity and weighted average cost of capital linkages to firm value. Almana: Jurnal Manajemen dan Bisnis. 2021;5(1):1-6. DOI: 10.36555/almana.v5i1.1411

29. Fenyves V., Pető K., Szenderák J., Harangi-Rákos M. The capital structure of agricultural enterprises in the Visegrad countries. Agricultural Economics. 2020;66(4):160-167. DOI: 10.17221/285/2019-AGRICECON

30. Margana M.Y.R., Wiagustini N.L.P. The effect of institutional ownership, managerial ownership, and firm age on the capital structure of consumer goods companies listed on the Indonesia stock exchange. American Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Research. 2019;3(11):167-175. URL: https://www.ajhssr.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/X19311167175.pdf

31. Abadie A., Athey S., Imbens G.W., Wooldridge J.M. Sampling‐based versus design‐based uncertainty in regression analysis. Econometrica. 2020;88(1):265-296. DOI: 10.3982/ECTA12675

32. Hair J.F., Hult G.T.M., Ringle C.M., Sarstedt M., Richter N.F., Hauff S. Partial Least Squares Strukturgleichungsmodellierung (PLS-SEM): Eine anwendungsorientierte Einführung. München: Vahlen; 2017. 326 p. DOI: 10.15358/9783800653614

33. Mendoza J.A.M., Yelpo S.M.S., Ramos C.L.V., Fuentealba C.L.D. Examining the effect of corporate and capital structure on operational efficiency in Chilean firms. Revista Academia & Negocios. 2019;5(1):109-122. URL: https://www.redalyc.org/journal/5608/560860148006/html/

34. Tegegn M., Sera L., Merra T. M. Factors affecting profitability in insurance companies in Ethiopia: Panel evidence. International Journal of Commerce and Finance. 2020;6(1):1-14. URL: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/361306936_Factors_affecting_profitability_of_insurance_companies_in_Ethiopia_panel_evidence

35. Lim H., Rokhim R. Factors affecting profitability of pharmaceutical company: An Indonesian evidence. Journal of Economic Studies. 2021;48(5):981-995. DOI: 10.1108/JES-01-2020-0021

36. Mathur N., Tiwari S.C., Sita Ramaiah T., Mathur H. Capital structure, competitive intensity and firm performance: An analysis of Indian pharmaceutical companies. Managerial Finance. 2021;47(9):1357-1382. DOI: 10.1108/MF-01-2020-0009

37. Yuanita N. Competition and bank profitability. Journal of Economic Structures. 2019;8(1):31. DOI: 10.1186/s40008-019-0164-0

38. Ofori-Boateng K., Ohemeng W., Ahawaadong Boro E., Kwame Agyapong E. Efficiency, market structure and performance of the insurance industry in an emerging economy. Cogent Economics & Finance. 2022;10(1):2068784. DOI: 10.1080/23322039.2022.2068784

39. Blois K.J. A note on X-efficiency and profit maximization. The Quarterly Journal of Economics. 1972;86(2):310-312. DOI: 10.2307/1880566


Review

For citations:


Almajali M., Wan Abdullah W.M., Zia-Ul-Haqc H.M. The Roles of Market Concentration and Diversity in Exploring the Nexus between Financial leverage and Firm Performance. Finance: Theory and Practice. 2025;29(1):204-215. https://doi.org/10.26794/2587-5671-2025-29-1-204-215

Views: 191


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.


ISSN 2587-5671 (Print)
ISSN 2587-7089 (Online)