Analysis of the effects of firm size and financial ratios on stock returns: Evidence from the Philippine stock exchange for the period 2011 to 2015

• Main Authors: Cuntapay, Manuel Luis, Gabriel, Anna Ysabel, Lao, Ernest Christopher, Paguio, Douglas Eric
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2016
• Subjects: Price-earnings ratio > Philippines
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/9732
• Institution: De La Salle University

Stock returns have been of great interest in literature. Studies have been attempting to explain variations in stock returns through different factors such as firm-specific factors. A significant number of researchers studied this matter in developed markets while only a handful in emerging markets, specifically in the Philippines. In view of this, the study focused on identifying if financial ratios, specifically dividend yield, earnings yield and book-to-market ratio, and firm size have an effect on the stock returns of publicly listed companies in the Philippine Stock Exchange for the period 2011 to 2015. Single and multiple regression analyses were conducted using data from 34 companies. The results shows that only dividend yield has an effect on stock returns and it also has the strongest explanatory power. The relationship between dividend yield and stock return is negative which contradicts majority of studies that propose a positive relationship between dividend yield and stock return. In addition, when all the variables were combined, it has a significant effect on stock return and it would increase the explanatory power in predicting stock returns.