Determinants of Capital Structure: Comparison of Empirical Evidence From the Use of Different Estimators

In this article we extend the comparative analysis between the results of a pooled OLS regression and the use of fixed effects panel models concerning the determinants of debt, comparing the results of using static panel models and dynamic panel estimators, including the dynamic estimator of correction of fixed effects. The results show that the differences between the results of static panel model evaluations and those of dynamic estimators are not significant, and so the results of this study are not dependent on the type of estimators used. The most profitable Portuguese companies resort less to debt, this result suggesting that Portuguese companies follow a hierarchical order concerning their sources of finance, preferring internal capital to external capital. Larger Portuguese companies resort more to debt.