DIVIDEND PAYOUT RATIO, DIVIDEND PER SHARE AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF LISTED MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN NIGERIA
Keywords:
Dividend Policy, Institutional Ownership, Firm PerformanceAbstract
This study investigates the effect of dividend policy on the financial performance of listed manufacturing firms in Nigeria and examines the moderating role of institutional ownership. Using an ex-post facto research design, panel data from twenty-five firms listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group for the period 2014–2023 were analyzed through panel regression and moderated regression models. Dividend policy was proxied by dividend payout ratio (DPR) and dividend per share (DPS), while return on assets (ROA) measured firm performance, with firm size, leverage, and firm age included as control variables. The results show that DPR has a positive but statistically insignificant effect on firm performance, whereas DPS has a positive and significant impact on ROA. Institutional ownership exhibits a positive but insignificant direct relationship with performance. Moderation analysis indicates that institutional ownership does not significantly moderate the DPR–ROA relationship but significantly and negatively moderates the DPS–ROA relationship. Additionally, firm size and firm age negatively affect ROA, while leverage has a positive and significant effect. The study concludes that dividend per share (DPS) is a more reliable determinant of firm performance than dividend payout ratio. and recommends maintaining stable DPS policies alongside stronger corporate governance mechanisms.
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