Saturday, August 31, 2019

Bossini Research

Company background Bossini International Holdings Limited is an investment holding company which engages in retail, distribution, and wholesale of garments. The investment holding company together with its subsidiaries (â€Å"Bossini†) group carries casual wear products for a wide spread age range from ladies', men’s, teenagers’, kids’ and babies' wear products. Bossini was listed in Stock Exchange of Hong Kong in 1993 with a stock code of 592. It was found in 1987 and launched its first retail outlet in 1987 and it expands its distribution network both locally and internationally in the past two decades. Currently, its distribution network contains more than 1,470 stores, approximate 65% of them are self managed stores and 35% of them are franchised stores, covering 36 countries and regions worldwide. With headquarter in Hong Kong, its market covers all over the world. Nevertheless, its core market is the Asia pacific region including Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia. Its largest flagship store is situated in Mong kok, Hong Kong. Milestone 1987:1st retail outlet opened in Hong Kong 1998:Launched franchising operation 1993:Listed in Hong Kong Stock Exchange 1st retail outlet opened in Mainland China 004:Launched a new product line, â€Å"Bossinistyle†, in Mainland China Present:Over 1470 stores around the world Branding Bossini’s brand value is â€Å"be happy† and it helps promote a positive and optimistic life attitude. The brand color is green and it represents a spirit of growth. Through the colorful products and outstanding customer se rvices, Bossini successfully cultivate a comfortable and feel like home shopping environment. There are mainly five product lines, â€Å"Bossini†, â€Å"Bossinistyle†, â€Å"Bossini ladies†, â€Å"Bossini kids† and â€Å"Yb† and the major ones are â€Å"Bossini† and â€Å"Bossinistyle†. Business Overview Major markets: The major markets for Bossini are Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan and Singapore and they are in an order from the highest revenue contribution that covers over 98% of total revenue. The Hong Kong and Singapore markets contribute approximate 55% and 9% of the group’s total revenue respectively and they are quite stable. On the other hand, the Mainland China market keeps contributing more from 2008 to 2011 and it is increased from 19% (2008) to 25% (2011) that represents a 10% average yearly growth. For Taiwan market, the contribution decreases gradually from 14% (2008) to 11% (2011). The revenue contribution can be determined by various factors such as geographic economic performance diversity, geographic brand popularity, and resource allocation, opening more stores can bring in more sales. Therefore, we need to have other analysis to help investigate the cause the revenue contribution up and down. Presently, Hong Kong is still Bossini’s primary market and the major revenue contributor; however, the Mainland China market will be the key growth driver in the long run. Number of shops: The speed of opening new stores in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore is stable except the Mainland China. From 2008 to 2011, the direct managed stores has been jumped from 304 (2008) to 456 (2011). This represents a 14. 5% average yearly growth. It is one of the reasons to explain why the revenue contribution from the Mainland China keeps increasing. On the other, although the number of franchised stores also has a significant increase, from 391 (2008) to 521 (2011), the revenue from these stores is trivial comparing to the total revenue. Net sales per square feet: Even though Bossini has opened lots of stores in the Mainland China, the net sales per square feet in 2011 (HK$1,340/sq feet) is still lower than HK$1,500/sq feet in 2008. It implies that even more stores can bring in more sales to the group, but the marginal benefit is diminishing. The sales growth in the Mainland China cannot catch up the speed of opening new stores. There are many reasons to cause this happen and one of the reasons is some stores are competing each others. That means that geographic area might have too many Bossini stores. However, the management still needs to open more stores due to fierce competition by other brands. If Bossini slows its pace to expand, it might lose its business and the net sales per square feet is even worse. Nevertheless, the net sales per square feet in the Hong Kong market performed extraordinary well and it rises from HK$5,700 per square feet (2008) to HK$11,000 (2011). It is very important since Hong Kong is the one the cities with highest rental cost in the world and a strong sales per square feet can help reduce the pressure of high rental cost. Retail businesses are strongly affected by rental cost. Besides experiencing an upturn from the economic recovery, Bossini has adopted different business strategies focusing on branding and marketing initiatives. One of the best strategies is adopted is the co-branded licensing program. For example, Bossini teamed up with M&M’s, classic cartoon figure and TV show character to launch limited edition items and which can add value to Bossini’s products and boost up both its revenue and profit margin tremendously. These campaigns can also strengthen Bossini’s â€Å"be happy† brand value and enhance overall brand awareness. Financial summary Income statement: The Bossini’s gross profit increased 14% from HK$1,190 million in 2010 to HK$1,354 million in 2011 but the gross margin dropped a little from 52% in 2010 to 51% in 2011. It is slightly lower than the last year owing to the expansion for franchise businesses since the profit margin of them are usually low. From 2008 to 2010, the revenue is quite stable, approximate HK$2,290 million per year on average, and it boosts up in 2011 to HK$2,640 million. Due to global recession starting in late 2008, Bossini was doing quite well to maintain its revenue at HK$2. 3 billion and the honor is given to the right move to develop the Mainland China Market. China is one of the few countries that were being hit by the financial crisis the least and thus Bossini experienced a stable growth and strong domestic consumption in the Mainland China. When we take a look of the gross profit, its trend looks similar to the revenue. Nevertheless, when we take a look of the operating profit, it fluctuates more volatile during 2008 to 2011 comparing to revenue and gross profit because the selling & distribution cost and administrative expense are relatively fixed and usually it is hard to be cut even the revenue and gross profit drop. Overall, the revenue, gross profit and operating profit are extraordinary improved in 2011 due to the economy recovery in Asia pacific region. Balance sheet: Bossini’s current asset weights heavily on the total assets. Cash and cash equivalents, inventory and debtors and bill receivable all together represent 90% of the current assets. The level of cash and cash equivalents represents over 80% of the net current assets (i. e. current asset – current liability) which reflects that Bossini has a strong cash position and it does not has any short term liquidity issue. In general, Bossini is a financially healthy company. However, the high level of stock level makes me concern. The average yearly growth from 2008 to 2011 is 21. 5%. As we have discussed before, the revenue is quite stable from 2008 to 2010 and it is not a very good signal that the inventory level is kept rising. The inventory turnover day is 36 days in 2008 and is 57 days in 2011. In another word, it needs almost two months to clear all its stock on hand. Usually, apparel and fashion industry faced with short product life cycles and cannot afford such a long inventory turnover day. Such a high level of inventory might be caused by enormous product variety to meet different geographic preference. SWOT Strengths Overall business – Bossini is innovative and keen to adopt different business strategies on brand building and marketing initiatives such as adopting the co-branded licensing program. Financial – Bossini has a solid liquidity background that reserves enough resource for it to keep expanding the potential market in the Mainland China. Also, the robust improvement of sales per square feet in Hong Kong market helps reduce the pressure of expensive rental cost. Weakness Overall business – Not every product line is successful under Bossini. It has been expanding pragmatically its â€Å"Bossini† stores while consolidating its â€Å"Bossinistyle† stores as a revamp in the Mainland China market. It opened 72 more â€Å"Bossini† stores but 34 closed â€Å"Bossinistyle† stores in 2011. The operating loss in the Mainland China market was attributable to the â€Å"Bossinistyle† stores consolidation. Financial – an increasing inventory turnover day signals that Bossini is producing more than they can be sold. The product life cycle for apparel is usually short and such a long turnover day will bring it to be an expense finally. Also, a lower operating margin, i. e. 4 to 5%, gives no buffer to the company during economic downturn. Opportunities The co-brand licensing program in Hong Kong market is successful. As the Mainland China market is going to be more and more important to Bossini, the management can adopt something similar as well. Together with the government policies to stimulate domestic consumption in the Mainland China, a successful business strategy can improve sales per square feet. Bossini can enjoy the result of revenue and profit growth even though with slower pace of opening new stores which help restrain operating expense. In the long run, as income in the Mainland China is expected to rise further, the average spending by consumers on retail products is also expected to continue the upward trend. Threats External – The global economy is facing uncertainties by the new European debt crisis and our major markets are expected to experience a slowdown. Internal – Bossini needs to launch a fashionable touch in style that fit different geographic preference. The failure of â€Å"Bossinistyle† in the Mainland Market reveals that Bossini did not target at the Chinese customers well. Financial performance Liquidity Ratio Liquidity ratio reveals a company’s short-term solvency. Current ratio and Acid-Test ratio are commonly used. Current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Its main purpose to measure whether a company has enough resources to pay its debts over the next 12 months. Even though Bossini’s current ratios is kept decreasing year to year, but it is still higher than 2. It means every dollar the company owes in the short term has two dollars worth short term assets that is available to convert into cash to meet creditor's demands. Acid-Test ratio is to measure whether a company can pay all its current liabilities if they are due immediately. The formula is similar to current ratio except it only considers those current assets that can be quickly converted to cash (i. e. exclude inventory and prepaid expense). Bossini’s acid test ratio is always higher than 1 means it is able to meet current obligations only using liquid assets). Acid test ratio is lower than current ratio since inventory and prepaid expense are excluded. But still, Bossini is considered to have a good financial strength in short term because both these ratios are higher than one. Activity Ratio Activity ratio measures a company’s asset management efficiency. Inventory turnover and Accounts Receivable turnover are commonly used. Inventory turnover measures the number of times inventory is sold during a year. The inventory turnover is kept decreasing year to year reflects that inventory is more and more difficult to be sold. In 2011, 6. 4 means that Bossini sold its inventory approximate 6 times during the year or it needed approximate 2 months to sell its inventory. Accounts Receivable turnover measures the ability to collect cash from credit customers. In this case, the account receivable turnover is not an important indicator since the average accounts receivable contributes less than 10% of total current asset and only a very small amount of credit sales will be involved. It is common for retail business. Solvency Ratio Solvency ratio measures a company’s ability to pay long term liabilities. The most common solvency ratio is Debt ratio. Debt ratio is calculated by dividing total liabilities by total assets. Its main purpose to show the proportion of a company’s assets which are financed through debt. In general, Bossini’s debt ratio is less than 0. which means most of its assets are financed through equity. It is a highly liquid company and it is financially healthy even creditors demand repayment of debt. However, this advantage is diminishing from 2008 to 2011. It is mainly due to Bossini has a short term borrowing of HKD78M starting in 2009 and gradually raised to HKD128M in 2011. Profitability Ratio Prof itability ratio measures a company’s overall efficiency and performance. Return on Sales, Return on Assets and Return on Equity are the popular profitability ratio. Return on Sales shows the percentage of each dollar of sales that a company can turn into income. It is calculated by dividing net income by net sales. Bossini only enjoys a low return sales which is common for low end products retail business; however, it has been increased from 2. 7% in 2008 to 4. 9% in 2011 reflects it has strived to improve its profitability strength over 80% during these years. Return on Assets shows how profitable a company's assets are in generating revenue. It is calculated by dividing net income plus interest expense by average total assets. An uptrend of Return on Assets reveals that it requires less and less investments to generate the same revenue which is good for Bossini. Lastly, Return on Common Equity shows how well a company uses investment funds to generate revenue. It is calculated by dividing net income net off with preferred dividends by average common equity. Bossini’s sustainable growth, in Return on Common Equity (except in 2009 due to worldwide financial crisis) indicates the management maintains Bossini as a high growth company. Market Analysis ratios Market Analysis ratio is a good indicator for stock valuation. Price/Earning ratio and Dividend yield are widely used. Price/Earning ratio (â€Å"P/E ratio†) reflects a price the market is willing to pay for a share relative to its annual earning. P/E is calculated by dividing market price per share by earnings per share. A high P/E ratio does not mean it is more expensive, it just means that investors are willing to pay more for each dollar of earning compared to one with a lower P/E ratio. There are many factors that investors are willing to pay this premium such as fast growing, unique business model, market sentiment, and many others. For Bossini, the market price per share is pretty stable throughout these years and the high P/E ratio in 2009 is due to the extraordinary low earnings per share caused by worldwide financial crisis. Dividend yield measures the percentage of annual dividend return comparing to a stock’s market value. It is calculated by dividing dividend per share by market price per share. Bossini’s investors can expect to receive more cash dividends in the future from the increasing dividend yield pattern. However, investors have to beware that the dividend yield might be dropped even they receive the same amount of cash dividend because of the market price per share increase. Either way, investors will be appreciated.

Shadow Kiss Chapter 14

Fourteen ABOUT A HALF HOUR before my alarm was scheduled to go off the next morning, I heard a knock at my door. I expected it to be Lissa, but a sleepy check of our bond showed that she was still fast asleep. Puzzled, I staggered out of the bed and opened the door. A Moroi girl I didn't recognize handed me some folded clothes with a note attached. I wondered if I should tip her or something, but she left too quickly for me to react. I sat back on my bed and unfolded the clothing. Black slacks, white blouse, and a black jacket. It was the same ensemble that the other guardians wore around here, and it was in my size. Wow. I was about to become part of the team. A slow grin spread over my face, and I opened the note. It was in Dimitri's writing: Wear your hair up. The grin stayed on my face. A lot of female guardians cut their hair to show off their molnija marks. I'd reluctantly considered it once, and Dimitri had told me not to. He loved my hair and had told me to wear it up. The way he'd said it back then had given me chills, just like now. An hour later, I was on my way to the trial with Lissa, Christian, and Eddie. Someone had rustled up a black-and-white outfit for Eddie too, and I think we both kind of felt like kids playing dress-up with their parents' clothing. My cropped jacket and stretchy blouse were actually pretty cute, and I wondered if I'd be able to bring these back with me. The courtroom was over in the large, ornate building we'd passed upon arrival. Walking through its halls, I saw a mix of the old and the new. Outside, it was all arched windows and stone spires. Inside, it was a hub of modern activity. People worked in offices with flat-screen monitors. Elevators led to upper floors. Yet, despite that, a few antique touches could still be found. Sculptures on pedestals. Chandeliers in the halls. The courtroom itself had beautiful murals that stretched from floor to ceiling, and in the front of the room, seals from all the royal families hung on the walls. Lissa stopped as we walked in, her eyes falling on the Dragomir dragon. King of the beasts. A sea of conflicting emotions swirled within her as she stared at the seal and felt the full weight of being the only one left to carry on her name. Pride to be part of that family. Fear that she wouldn't be good enough to live up to the name. Giving her a gentle nudge, I urged her on toward our seats. The seating was split by an aisle down the middle of the room. We sat at the front of the right-hand section. There were still several minutes to go before proceedings began, but the room wasn't very full yet. I suspected that wouldn't change, due to the secrecy surrounding what had happened with Victor. A judge sat at the front, but there was no jury. An elevated seat on one side of the room marked where the queen would sit when she arrived. She would be the one who made the ultimate decision. That was how it worked with royal criminal cases. I pointed it out to Lissa. â€Å"Let's hope that she's against him. Looks like she'll be the only one making the decision.† Lissa frowned. â€Å"Not having a jury feels kind of weird.† â€Å"That's because we spent so much time around humans.† She smiled. â€Å"Maybe. I don't know. Just seems like there's a lot of room for corruption.† â€Å"Well, yeah. But this is Victor we're talking about.† Moments later, Prince Victor Dashkov himself entered the courtroom. Or, rather, just Victor Dashkov did. He'd been stripped of his title when he'd been imprisoned. It had gone to the next oldest person in the Dashkov family. Fear shot through Lissa, and the little color that was in her cheeks completely disappeared. Mingled with that fear was an emotion I hadn't expected: regret. Before he'd kidnapped her, Victor had been like an uncle to her – that was even how she'd referred to him. She'd loved him, and he'd betrayed her. I put my hand over hers. â€Å"Easy,† I murmured. â€Å"It's going to be okay.† His eyes, narrowed and cunning, looked around the courtroom as though it were a party. He had that same unconcerned look he'd had while talking to Dimitri and me. I felt my lips curl into a sneer. A red haze tinged my vision, and I worked hard to be as serene as the other guardians in the room. He finally focused on Lissa, and she flinched at seeing the same eye color she and others of her family had. When he nodded a sort of greeting to her, I felt my control snap. Before I could actually do anything, I felt new words in my mind – Lissa's. Breathe, Rose. Just breathe. It looked like we were going to have to rely on each other to get through this. A heartbeat later, Victor was walking again, off to take his seat on the left side of the room. â€Å"Thanks,† I said to her, once he was gone. â€Å"It's like you can read my mind.† â€Å"No,† she said gently. â€Å"I could just feel your hand.† I looked down at where I'd put my hand over hers. I'd done it to comfort her and had ended up clenching her fingers in my own agitation. â€Å"Yikes,† I said, jerking away and hoping I hadn't broken her bones. â€Å"Sorry.† Queen Tatiana's entrance followed his, which distracted me and helped calm my dark feelings. We all stood when she appeared and then knelt. It was all kind of archaic, but it was a custom the Moroi had held onto over the years. We didn't rise until she took her seat, and then the rest of us were able to sit too. The trial started. One by one, those who had witnessed the events with Victor gave their account of what they'd seen. Largely, this involved the guardians who had pursued Lissa when Victor had taken her away and who had subsequently been part of the raid on Victor's hideout. Dimitri was the last of the guardians to go. On the surface, his testimony wasn't much different than theirs. They'd all been part of the rescue squad, but his part in the story had begun a little earlier. â€Å"I was with my student, Rose Hathaway,† he said. â€Å"She shares a bond with the princess and was the first to sense what had happened.† Victor's lawyer – I couldn't even imagine how they'd gotten anyone to represent him – glanced at some papers and then looked back up at Dimitri. â€Å"Based on the events, it sounds like there was a delay between when she discovered that and when you alerted the others.† Dimitri nodded, his mask of composure never slipping. â€Å"She couldn't act on it because Mr. Dashkov had inflicted a charm on her, one that caused her to attack me.† He spoke the words so levelly, it amazed me. Not even the lawyer seemed to notice anything. Only I could see – or maybe it was just because I knew him – how much it hurt for Dimitri to lie. Oh, he wanted to protect us – wanted to protect me in particular – which was why he was doing this. But it killed a piece of him to stand up there, under oath, and lie. Dimitri was not perfect, no matter how much I thought he was some days, but he always tried to be truthful. Today he couldn't be. â€Å"Mr. Dashkov works with earth magic, and some who use that power and are strong in compulsion can influence our base instincts,† continued Dimitri. â€Å"In this case, he affected her anger and violence through an object.† Off to my left, I heard a sound – like someone choking on their own laughter. The judge, an elderly but fierce Moroi woman, glared. â€Å"Mr. Dashkov, please respect the decorum of this courtroom.† Victor, still smiling, waved his hands in apology. â€Å"I'm terribly sorry, Your Honor and Your Majesty. Something in Guardian Belikov's testimony just tickled my fancy, that's all. It won't happen again.† I held my breath, waiting for the blow to fall. It didn't. Dimitri finished his statement, and then Christian was called up. His part was short. He'd been with Lissa when she'd been taken and had been knocked out. His contribution was being able to ID some of Victor's guardians as the kidnappers. Once Christian sat down, it was my turn. I walked up, hoping I looked calm in front of all those eyes – and in front of Victor. In fact, I went out of my way to not look at him at all. As I said my name and gave my oath to tell the truth, I suddenly felt the full force of what Dimitri must have experienced. I was standing before all these people, swearing I'd be honest, but I would lie in an instant if the lust charm came up. My version was pretty straightforward. I had details to offer from before the night of the kidnapping, like about when Victor had laid his sick traps to test Lissa's power. Otherwise, my story lined up with Dimitri's and the other guardians'. I'd said before that I could lie well, and I brushed over the â€Å"attack† charm part with such ease that no one paid any attention. Except Victor. Despite my refusal to look at him, I inadvertently glanced in his direction when I mentioned the charm. His eyes bored into me, and a small smirk sat on his lips. His smugness, I realized, was more than just because he knew I was lying. It was also because he actually knew the precise truth – and the look he gave me told me that he had that power over me and Dimitri, the power to ruin everything for us in front of all these people – no matter what Dimitri had threatened. All the while, I kept my face calm enough to make Dimitri proud, but inside my chest, my heart thudded loudly. It seemed to last forever, but I knew I was only on the stand for a few minutes. I finished, sagging with relief that Victor hadn't called me out, and then it was Lissa's turn. As the victim, she offered the first new perspective thus far, and everyone there grew caught up in her story. It was compelling; no one had ever heard anything like it. I also realized that, without even trying, Lissa was using her spirit-induced charisma. I think it came from the same place compulsion did. People were enraptured and sympathetic. When Lissa described the torture Victor had put her through to force her to heal him, I saw faces go pale with shock. Even Tatiana's stern mask faltered a little, though whether she felt pity or just simple surprise, I couldn't say. The most amazing thing, though, was how calmly Lissa managed to deliver the story. On the outside, she was steady and beautiful. But as she spoke the words, describing exactly how Victor's henchman had tortured her, she relived the pain and terror of that night. The guy had been an air user, and he'd toyed with that element, sometimes taking it away so she couldn't breathe and at other times smothering her with it. It had been horrible, and I'd experienced it right along with her. In fact, I experienced it with her again now as she spoke about the events on the stand. Each painful detail was still etched in her mind, the pain echoing back to both of us. We were both relieved when her testimony finished. Finally, it was Victor's turn. From the look on his face, you never would have guessed he was on trial. He wasn't angry or outraged. He wasn't contrite. He didn't plead. He looked like we were all hanging out somewhere, like he had nothing in the world to worry about. Somehow, that made me that much angrier. Even when answering, he spoke as though he made perfect sense. When the prosecuting lawyer asked why he'd done what he had, he looked at her as though she were crazy. â€Å"Why, I had no choice,† he said pleasantly. â€Å"I was dying. No one was going to condone me openly experimenting with the princess's powers. What would you have done in my place?† The lawyer ignored that. She was having a hard time keeping the disgust off of her face. â€Å"And you found coaxing your own daughter into turning Strigoi also necessary?† Everyone in the courtroom shifted uncomfortably. One of the most awful things about Strigoi was that they were made, not born. A Strigoi could force a human, a dhampir, or a Moroi into becoming Strigoi if the Strigoi drank the victim's blood and then fed Strigoi blood back to the victim. It didn't matter if the victim wanted it or not, and once she became Strigoi, she lost all sense of her old, moral self. She embraced becoming a monster and killing others to survive. Strigoi converted others if they found someone they thought would strengthen their ranks. Sometimes they did it just out of cruelty. The other way a Strigoi could be made was if a Moroi willingly chose to kill another person during feeding, destroying all the magic and life within themselves. Christian's parents had done that because they'd wanted to be immortal, no matter the cost. Victor's daughter Natalie had done it because he had talked her into it. The extra strength and speed she'd gotten from being a Strigoi had helped her free him, and he'd felt his goals were worth the sacrifice. Again, Victor showed no remorse. His answer was simple. â€Å"Natalie made that decision.† â€Å"Can you say that about everyone you used to meet your ends? Guardian Belikov and Miss Hathaway had no say in what you made them do.† Victor chuckled. â€Å"Well, that's a matter of opinion. I honestly don't think they minded. But if you have time after this case, Your Honor, you might want to consider trying a statutory rape case.† I froze. He'd done it. He'd really done it. I expected everyone in the room to turn and point at Dimitri and me. No one even looked in our direction, though. Most people were giving Victor appalled looks. I realized that was exactly what Victor had known would happen. He just wanted to tease us; he didn't actually expect anyone to take him seriously. Lissa's feelings through the bond confirmed as much. She felt like Victor was trying to shift attention off of himself by making up stories about Dimitri and me. She was horrified that Victor would stoop so low. The judge was too, and she chastised Victor for getting off topic. By that point, most of the questioning was done. The lawyers wrapped up, and it was time for the queen to deliver her verdict. I held my breath again, wondering what she would do. He hadn't denied any of the charges. The evidence was overwhelming, thanks to my friends' testimonies, but as even Victor had pointed out, there was a lot of corruption among royals. The queen could very well decide that she didn't want the scandal involved with imprisoning someone so well known. Even if no one knew the details, his imprisonment would start a buzz. Maybe she didn't want to deal with that. Maybe Victor had bought her off too. But in the end, she found Victor guilty and sentenced him to life in prison – a different prison, not the one at Court. I'd heard stories about Moroi prisons, and they were terrible places. I suspected his new home would be very different from the cell we'd found him in. Victor remained calm and amused throughout it all, just as he had yesterday. I didn't like that. The conversation I'd had with him made me think he wasn't going to accept this as serenely as he pretended. I hoped they'd watch him closely. A gesture from the queen ended formalities. The rest of us stood up and began talking while she surveyed the room with a sharp eye, probably taking notes. Victor's escort started to lead him out. He passed by us again. This time, he stopped and spoke. â€Å"Vasilisa, I trust you've been well.† She didn't answer. She still hated and feared him, but with this verdict, she finally believed he could no longer hurt her. It was like the end of a chapter she'd been stuck in for months. She could finally move on and hopefully let those horrible memories fade. â€Å"I'm sorry we didn't get a chance to talk, but I'm sure we will next time,† he added. â€Å"Come on,† said one of the guardians with him. They led him away. â€Å"He's crazy,† muttered Lissa once he was gone. â€Å"I can't believe he said that stuff about you and Dimitri.† Dimitri was standing behind her. I looked up and met his eyes as he moved past us. His relief mirrored my own. We'd danced with danger today – and we'd won. Christian came up to her and hugged her, holding her for a long time. I watched them fondly, surprised at my own kind feelings for them. When a hand touched my arm, I jumped. It was Adrian. â€Å"You okay, little dhampir?† he asked softly. â€Å"Dashkov said a few †¦ uh †¦ suggestive things.† I stepped closer, keeping my voice low as well. â€Å"No one believed him. I think it's okay. Thanks for asking, though.† He smiled and tapped my nose. â€Å"Two thank-yous in as many days. I don't suppose I'll get to see any, uh, special gratitude?† I scoffed. â€Å"Nope. You'll just have to imagine it.† He gave me a half-hug and released me. â€Å"Fair enough. But I have a good imagination.† We started to leave, and then Priscilla Voda hurried over to Lissa. â€Å"The queen would like to meet with you before you leave. In private.† I glanced over to the raised chair where the queen sat. Her gaze was fixed on us, and I wondered what this could be about. â€Å"Sure,† said Lissa, as confused as I was. To me, she sent through the bond: Will you listen again? I gave her a quick nod before Priscilla spirited her off. I returned to my room, tuning in to Lissa while I packed my things up. It took a little while because Tatiana had to finish a few courtroom formalities, but she finally arrived in the same room as yesterday. Lissa and Priscilla bowed as she entered and waited for the queen to sit. Tatiana made herself comfortable. â€Å"Vasilisa, you need to be in the air soon, so I'll make this brief. I would like to make an offer to you.† â€Å"What kind of an offer, Your Majesty?† â€Å"You'll need to go to college soon.† She spoke like it was a done deal. And yeah, Lissa did plan on going to college, but I didn't like the presumption. â€Å"I understand you're dissatisfied with your choices.† â€Å"Well†¦it's not that I'm dissatisfied, exactly. It's just, all the places Moroi are supposed to go are small. I mean, I understand it's for safety, but I don't know. I'd like to go somewhere bigger. Somewhere prestigious.† Guardians monitored a handful of select colleges in the country so that Moroi could safely attend them. As Lissa had noted, though, they tended to be smaller schools. Tatiana nodded impatiently, like she already knew this. â€Å"I'm going to give you an opportunity that no one else has ever been given, to my knowledge. After graduation, I would like you to come live here, at the Royal Court. You have no family, and I think you'd benefit from learning politics right in the heart of our government. Along with this, we would make arrangements for you to attend Lehigh University. It's less than an hour from here. Have you heard of it?† Lissa nodded. I'd never heard of it, but she was enough of a nerd to have researched every college in the U.S. â€Å"It's a good school, Your Majesty. But†¦ still small.† â€Å"It's bigger than the ones Moroi usually attend,† she pointed out. â€Å"True.† In her mind, Lissa was trying to puzzle out what was going on here. Why was Tatiana making this offer? Especially considering how she'd seemed to disagree with Lissa earlier. There was something weird going on here, and she decided to see how far she could push it. â€Å"The University of Pennsylvania isn't that far either, Your Majesty.† â€Å"That school is enormous, Vasilisa. We couldn't ensure your safety there.† Lissa shrugged. â€Å"Well, then it probably doesn't matter if I go to Lehigh or one of the others.† The queen looked shocked. So did Priscilla. They couldn't believe Lissa seemed indifferent to the offer. Truthfully, Lissa wasn't indifferent. Lehigh was a step up from what she'd expected, and she wanted to go. But she also wanted to see how badly the queen wanted her to go. Tatiana frowned and appeared to be weighing matters. â€Å"Depending on your grades and experiences at Lehigh, we could possibly arrange for you to transfer in a couple years. Again, the safety logistics would be very difficult.† Wow. The queen did want her around. But why? Lissa decided to simply ask. â€Å"I'm very flattered, Your Majesty. And grateful. But why are you offering me this?† â€Å"As the last Dragomir, you're a precious commodity. I'd like to make sure your future is secure. And I do so hate to see bright minds wasted. Besides†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She paused, hesitant to speak her next words. â€Å"You were right to a certain extent. The Moroi do have trouble changing. It could be useful to have a dissenting voice around here.† Lissa didn't answer right away. She was still analyzing this offer from every possible angle. She wished I was there to advise her, but I wasn't sure I'd have much of an opinion. Splitting my guardian duty between the Court and a cool university could be pretty neat. On the other hand, we'd have more freedom elsewhere. In the end, Lissa decided in favor of higher education. â€Å"All right,† she said at last. â€Å"I accept. Thank you, Your Majesty.† â€Å"Excellent,† said Tatiana. â€Å"We'll see that the arrangements are made. You may go now.† The queen made no signs of moving, so Lissa bowed again and scurried to the door, still reeling with this news. Tatiana suddenly called out to her. â€Å"Vasilisa? Will you send your friend here to talk to me? The Hathaway girl?† â€Å"Rose?† she asked in astonishment. â€Å"Why do you – ? Yes, of course. I'll get her.† Lissa hurried toward guest housing, but I met her halfway. â€Å"What's going on?† I asked. â€Å"I have no idea,† said Lissa. â€Å"Did you hear what she said?† â€Å"Yup. Maybe she wants to tell me how I have to be extra careful with you going to that school.† â€Å"Maybe. I don't know.† Lissa gave me a quick hug. â€Å"Good luck. I'll see you soon.† I went to the same room and found Tatiana standing with her hands clasped, posture stiff and impatient. She was dressed like a corporate businesswoman again, with a sleek brown blazer and skirt set. That color wouldn't have been my first choice to go with her dark gray hair, but that was her style adviser's problem, not mine. I bowed just as Lissa had and glanced around the room. Priscilla was gone; only a couple guardians remained. I expected Tatiana to tell me to sit, but instead, she stood up and walked right over to me. Her face did not look happy. â€Å"Miss Hathaway,† she said sharply, â€Å"I'm going to keep this brief. You are going to stop this atrocious affair you're having with my great-nephew. Immediately.†

Friday, August 30, 2019

A Virtuous Woman Essay

Kay Gibbons can be said as one of the remarkable writers during her time. Despite of her past experiences especially during her childhood, remained strong and determined to pursue her dreams and make everything possible through her novels. Gibbons was born in 1960 at Wilson North Carolina. She is the daughter of Charles and Alice Butts. Her father is a tobacco farmer who is an alcoholic while her mother is a simple housewife. Her mother has a bipolar disorder that caused her death. She was first married to Michael Gibbons but after few years, they separated. Despite of the separation, Gibbons had her children namely Mary, Leslies, and Louise. She got married again to Frank Ward who is an attorney, but they separated in 1995. Now, she lived in Raleigh, North Carolina. According to researches about Kay Gibbons’ life, she loved reading a lot. In order to read books, she walked for three miles just to go to the Bookmobile where everything can be read for free. Acknowledging this kind of talent, she started writing her own novel. Her first novel was â€Å"Ellen Foster† in 1987. After a successful launch of this novel, she wrote another novel entitled â€Å"A Virtuous Woman† in 1989 that brought more success to her uprising career. After the two novels, she made another 6 novels – â€Å"A Cure for Dreams† in 1991, â€Å"Charms for Easy Life† in 1993, â€Å"Sights Unseen† in 1995, â€Å"On the Occasion of my last Afternoon† in 1998, â€Å"Diving Women† in 2004, and â€Å"The Life All around Me by Ellen Foster† in 2005. As we can see through Gibbons’ title of her novel, everything is about women. She talks about the weaknesses and strengths of women through her novels. However, she makes sure that women are winner in their duel against men in terms of social situations and relationships. One of the examples of Gibbons’ comparison of men and women’s capability in terms of relationship and love was her novel â€Å"A Virtuous Woman†. The story of Kay Gibbons entitled â€Å"A Virtuous Woman† is about an incomparable love between a couple that has been in love with one another despite of their age gap. Ruby is 20 years old while Jack is already 40 years old when they met each other and fall in love to one another. Despite having their gap, their love to one another bloomed in a lavishing way. Until one day, Ruby died due to lung cancer. Jack became paralyzed emotionally and intellectually because of her wife’s death. He grieved alone after his wife’s death. He also remained strong physically but he could not already utilize his body. This is a love story, plain and simple. It’s the tale of a 40-year-old tenant farmer and a 20-year –old daughter of the gentry, who happen upon each other through fate or by chance. Jack and Ruby alternately tell the story of their marriage, painting a picture of deep and varied color. They speak of the everyday events that shaped their lives, their shard philosophies, and their different approaches to problem solving. This creates a crystal-clear picture of a deep and abiding marriage of both body and soul. But late in the novel, Ruby dies of lung cancer, and Jack is left alone with his recollections and his grief. This audio review shows that Gibbons made a good attack in her novel. She opened a wide variety of perspectives and ideologies within her story. Though it was a simple story, stating everything of the characters’ everyday life and relationship, Gibbons put something into those scenarios in the story that readers could not also express. It means that her point of attack with every chapter of the novel is not the usual content of a story. These are the images and symbolisms in the novel. Readers can see but they could not understand the real meaning for they were showered with abundant conditions of the characters and their conflicts. Because the theme of the novel is love, Gibbons stated different arguments of acceptance, humility, contentment, and happiness. By showing the situation of the relationship of Ruby and Jack, Gibbons also explored the life of a young woman feel in love to an old man. Even if Jack is not that old, their age gap gave definition to the quotation, â€Å"love is blind for it comes in different sizes and shapes. † Her justification and evidence of true love were all stated in the novel. However, the question with this is that Ruby died first while Jack lives longer, why does Ruby became the virtuous woman? It is an amplification of women’s gravity towards men. Despite of her sickness, Ruby still work for her husband’s contentment while at home. Before she died, she preserved all things and foods needed by Jack for the next few weeks. She remained strong before she died. Her life during her first relationship was very tortuous that gave her inoperable tumors. However, despite all of these causes, she opened her life again to jack and gave him the best while she was suffering from her illness. Though Jack knows that Ruby is already suffering from her cancer, he still thought for his own self. As both characters in A Virtuous Woman come to grips with their impending tragedy, the interior monologues that Gibbons has Jack and Ruby voice in the novel propel it forward. Toward the end, Gibbons switches to a third-person perspective as the motivations and actions of other characters involved in Jack and Ruby’s life come into play. Elements of fiction developed the theme through its setting that gives atmosphere and connection between the story and the characters. Another element is the characters. They are the determiners of the story, whether to push each other’s character or to leave one another in vain. Characterization is also important in this theme because characterization moulds the characters into a certain aspect that is connected to the theme of the story. Another important thing to consider in showing the theme of the story is the plot. There must be a convincing conflict, a distinct climax, and a strategic resolution and lastly, the symbolism within the story. The theme of the story mostly manifests on the author’s symbolism whether nature, actions, or words of the characters. All of these things should be stated clearly in order to give its readers the justification to conclude the theme of the story because the author does not state his or her theme in the beginning of the story. Readers should obtain the meanings of the symbols, setting, and characters of the story in order to acquire the theme. When it comes to these elements of fiction, Gibbons stated her setting, characters, symbolisms, plot, conflict, and characterization thoroughly. She characterizes her characters in a simple but significant way. Her setting is also simple but her strategic attack towards every single situation in the story is different. She showered her readers with different symbolisms even if the plot and conflicts are simple. It means that a writer does not need to find strange plot and conflict just to attract readers. In terms of Kay Gibbons’ effectiveness, it can be said that she is an effective writer. She knows how to create imaginative characters with true personality. Once a reader read her novel, it was like a form of watching because the reader cold explore various elements of the characters, the settings, the images, and the whole plot of the story. She can also be seen as a feminist because she made sure in her novels that women are higher than men in almost every aspect. It is maybe because of her personal experiences as a wife and a daughter. As a whole, Kay Gibbons’ creativity and style towards her novels gave an opportunity to other women to show their meanings through their novels. It should not be an autobiography story but a way to show the society that women are not just instruments of men for they have their own identities. Kay Gibbon had learned from all her experiences in life. What she wants to experience with men was stated in her novels because in her novels, she can control men and gave them their weaknesses. It means that Gibbons’ is empowering women to stand in whatever kind of situation they may be. She described women as virtuous for in the society, women are only instruments and subjects. Through her novels, women are powerful and amazing in everything they do. Works Cited DeMarr, Mary Jean. Kaye Gibbons: A Critical Companion. Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2003. Gibbons, Kaye. A Virtuous Woman. New York: Vintage Books, 1990. â€Å"Kaye Gibbons. † Contemporary Authors Online. 2006. Thomson Gale. Northeast Alabama Community College Lib. , AL 17 Oct. 2007 . Kaye Gibbons Home Page. 2007. 17 Oct. 2007 . Taylor, Maurice. â€Å"A Virtuous Woman. † Library Journal Apr. 1989. 17 Oct. 2007. MAS Ultra – School

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Argument synthesis and analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Argument synthesis and analysis - Essay Example Makey Makey in a way demystified the computer. The hardware and engineering of a computer used to be intimidating that we thought it requires a high degree of understanding electronics and engineering and Makey Makey showed that it does not necessarily need to be so. One can make his or her pet a mouse or replace the keyboard with a banana. This innovation can in fact enable anyone to make his or her own customize computer depending on the application of their preference. If people chose to, they can now make a piano with bananas or stairs as their keyboard. This invention is already proven in the market and its application is clearly illustrated in the clip. Its claim to replace computer’s input devices such as keyboard and mouse can be done through the use of Arduino although Makey Makey can run through it without understanding what Arduino is. The technology behind Makey Makey is through a â€Å"printed circuit board with an  ATMega32u4 microcontroller running Arduino Leonardo bootloader. It uses the Human Interface Device (HID) protocol to communicate with your computer, and it can send keypresses, mouse clicks, and mouse movements† (Silver). This explains why a banana or a stairs can be used as a keyboard or piano because it replaces the keyboard and mouse with any object through the Human Interface Device (HID) protocol to communicate with your computer. It is done through the alligator pin where the object suddenly becomes a Human Interface Device. The technology behind also to make it responsive to human skin including animals, leaves, it used With regard to the use high resistance switching   with a â€Å"pull-up resistor of 10-50 mega ohms. This technique attracts noise on the input, so we use a moving window averager to lowpass the noise in software, saving money on hardware filtering. There are six inputs on the front of the board, which can be

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Beneficiary Principle Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Beneficiary Principle - Case Study Example Therefore, it can be safely deduced that Grant's final intention was to give the "Gatesgarth" house to Polly. The latter's failure to register the title transfer in her favor with the Land Registry is of no moment. This is so despite the provision in Section 23 of the Probate Law subsequent conveyance or any other act done after the execution of the will shall not prevent the operation of the will. b.) No, Joe is not entitled to the shares in Smallco Ltd. It is required by law that in case of transfer of stocks or shares in a company, the same must be done by executing a stock transfer form and deliver it to the company together with the stock or share certificate for the specific purpose of transferring the name in the stock certificate and in the stock and transfer book of the company. It is only upon registration of such transfer that the transfer binds third parties. The act of Grant handing his share certificate for 1000 shares in Smallco Ltd. ... RSCPA is entitled to the shares in Smallco Ltd. This is in accordance with Grant's valid will, giving the rest of his estate to RSPCA, which is a registered charity. Since the state does not recognize the principle of "legitime" or "forced heirship", it is the will of the decedent that should be followed in the distribution of estate. By virtue of this provision in Grant's will which gives effect to the principle of residuary devises, all monies and properties of Grant that did not pass to some particular beneficiaries shall be given to RSPCA. c.) Grant's telephone conversation with Tom during his lifetime regarding the trust has no legal effect whatsoever. A mere telephone conversation will not suffice as to validly effect a transfer of benefits under a trust agreement. To effect such transfer of shares to Polly, Grant must have executed a formal deed of conveyance during his lifetime, prior to the transfer of shares to Polly so as to validate the same. Tom's act of transferring the shares to Polly without a formal act on the part of Grant has no legal effect whatsoever as it is not supported by a legal document to prove the intent of Grant to let go of his shares in favor of Polly. Since transfer of stocks requires compliance with certain formalities as execution of a deed of transfer or any act of formal conveyance and presentation thereof together with the stock certificate to the company for purposes of transferring the registration in the stock and transfer book, and issuing a new stock certificate in the name of another person, the transfer made by Tom is therefore unlawful and is considered null and void. Henceforth, title to the shares of stock must revert back to Grant's estate and be distributed according to his

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

High School Graduation celeberation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

High School Graduation celeberation - Essay Example In some occasions the students receive a piece of paper wrapped in a ribbon; this is usually a mock of the diploma, which is awarded much latter. Students are thanked and appreciated during this ceremony for being able to complete the course and successfully graduating. In most cases the students are always present during the graduation and during speeches. In some cases some students a re also appointed to appreciate the teaches and the parents the parents are appreciated for letting the students go to school , the teachers are mentioned to have worked with the students tirelessly to see them through education and finally graduating. Students are then asked to form alumni. In this way, they are requested to support the school in all possible means as will as coming back to the school to encourage other students to work hard and look forward to such a graduation as that. In other institutions they are requested to support the school financially may be in its expansion .the immediate former students of each school should act as role models of all the remaining students. Supporting the school may even include holding fundraising in support of the school in many matters which include paying school fees for needy students in the school or building up a project in the same school. Most parents are aware that a successful education involves more than the teachers and the students , they are also supposed to be part of the learning experience. To succeed, the parents are also supposed to include their support in all ways possible including financial and moral support .the parents should form a parent and teacher’ s organization or committee so that they are able to discuss matters that should help the school. Competition is very healthy in every day life and so should it be even in education, healthy competition is where one competes with himself first before competing with the rest of the students as well as other schools latter in the education

Monday, August 26, 2019

The Experiences of Dick Spencer in Modrow Plant of Tri-American Essay - 1

The Experiences of Dick Spencer in Modrow Plant of Tri-American Corporation - Essay Example Dick inherited problems at Modrow plant; he was not included in initial planning and spent a lot of time in getting up to speed. His friendly and easy going attitude was not appreciated in the English plant as well as the Modrow plant by Canadian workers, as his casual strolls were considered as suspicious and steadily his stature and authority as a plant manager was undermined by the workers. The limitations he had as a leader was his inability to understand accounting practices and delegating tasks to his sub-ordinates, as a result he started taking interest in minor or unimportant issues of the plant. This micro management kept him away from core issues rising from expansion and modernization of the plant. His attempts to gain insights by spending time in manufacturing area were not ideal and a trusting behavior towards middle management should have brought better results in implementing the changes he wanted. He was not furnished by the relevant information by middle management a s they had doubts about his abilities as a leader additionally his obsession for gaining insight from workers left the middle management with lack of trust in him. In order for a successful change to come whether it is cost saving initiative, modernization or expansion Dick should have paid attention to more strategic issues of the time and used his time for inculcating trust within management, there are many leaders who lack the technical knowledge or experience but they achieve results by leaving the technical aspects of the work to technical staff communicating with their line managers and not seeing everything as a potential for cost saving initiatives. A gradual or incremental change would have helped Dick in first normalizing the situation due to his appointment ahead of local operating staff, gain trust of managers by staying away from the workers followed by understanding the modernization and expansion challenges.  This change is suggested keeping the personality of Dick in consideration, consequently an authoritative leader would have opted for a rapid change while resisting forces would have been removed or sidelined.  

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Musculoskeletal System Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Musculoskeletal System - Article Example Since this system is comprised of bone and muscle, it is also responsible for giving mass or shape to our body and protecting our internal organs. This system is also responsible for storing calcium in bones and producing red and white blood cells as well as corpuscles (Judge, 2007). There are four common conditions that affect this system and these are osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis and injuries relating to muscles from strenuous activities such as with sports. Some of the conditions are more related to age and the general degeneration of tendons and ligaments, such as with osteoarthritis that damages tendons and ligaments due to the bearing down of weight on the joints (Judge, 2007). Before diagnosing musculoskeletal conditions, it is important to make a patient assessment first. Taking note of the patients' past medical history, family history and social history need to be taken in consideration because these play an important factor in some musculoskeletal conditions. The medication or drug history of the patient should also be assessed because some drugs cause muscular degeneration. Certain ethnic groups are also predisposed to conditions that affect this system due to their diet, an example of which are Asians who lack Vitamin D in their diets and are at high risk for osteoporosis (Judge, 2007). Next is the pain assessment where the mnemonic PQRST is used. The mnemonic stands for Provoke, Quality, Region, Severity and Timing. These keywords are used in order for the patient to describe the pain, for example if the pain is provoked by sudden movement, or where the pain is localized. Once the description of the pain is noted, physical examination can be done on the affected region where pain is reported. General inspection of the affected region requires the patient and the nurse to assess how much pain or swelling there is and if the patient can move or mobilize the affected part without adding more injury. This inspection may also require assistance especially for those who may find it difficult to move because of the pain or swelling. One of the common methods in managing sprains that affect the musculoskeletal system is to cold or hot compress the affected area. Resting and elevating the affected region is also one of the common methods of management in order to alleviate the pain and swelling. This is for minor conditions that help alleviate the pain and swelling. Monitoring the affected region for possible complication is the next step in the management process if the pain aggravates or the swelling gets worse. In monitoring the pain or swelling, checking the temperature of the swelling is important so that it can be checked for further infections. Taking pain killers like analgesics can help in the management of musculoskeletal conditions. The prescribing of analgesics depend on the gravity of the pain and if it will not counteract with any medication currently taken by the patient. There are non-medication types of pain management such as positioning of the body, distractions or massage of the affected area. Another part of management is immobilization and mobilization. The affected part may need to be rested or immobilized for a few days in order for the swelling to

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Law of Tort Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Law of Tort - Coursework Example Nevertheless, Gearty reports, an action in private nuisance now covers a wide array of malfeasances such as â€Å"smelly oil depots, noisy speedboats† as well as â€Å"dangerous natural hazards† and can even cover using one’s premises â€Å"for prostitution.3 It therefore follows that the manner in which an individual uses his/her own land can interfere with another’s enjoyment of his/her land. Loyd LJ reflects the essence of these developments in the tort of private nuisance and Professor Winfield’s definition of private nuisance.4 In this regard, Lloyd LJ identified three specific kinds of private nuisances. First a private nuisance exists when a neighbour’s land is encroached upon. Secondly, a private nuisance occurs with a neighbour’s land sustains physical damages directly and finally, private nuisance occurs when the quiet enjoyment of the neighbour’s land is interfered with.5 It would appear that the first definition of private nuisance is essentially the same as the third definition. ... To begin with, in order to successfully claim damages for private nuisance, the harm must be reasonably foreseeable.6 The requirement of reasonably foreseeable damages effectively replaces the previously available defence of natural use of the land as expressed in Rylands v Fletcher.7 Rylands established that in the event an individual makes unnatural use of his land and that unnatural use results in an escape that is likely to cause harm, and no steps are taken to circumvent that escape, liability will exist for any damages that are natural consequences of that escape.8 Rylands therefore implies that the natural use of one’s land may not give rise to liability for private nuisance or nuisance generally. Cambridge Water v Eastern Counties Leather however, changes this defence by insisting that the resulting harm must merely be reasonably foreseeable. Brearly explains that the natural user defence was significant for preventing a floodgates of nuisance claims. However, the natu ral user defence was â€Å"intrinsically flawed† in that it could conceivably render ensuing harm from the natural use of one’s land incapable of recovery.9 Therefore the requirement that the harm itself is reasonably foreseeable falls more comfortably under the definition of private nuisance and ensures that interference in the private use of one’s land should not only result in harm, but that harm should be reasonably foreseeable. This requirement is more likely to balance the rights of the neighbour’s use of his land and the defendant’s use of his own land. The unnatural and natural use of one’s land does not always result in harm or interference in one’s neighbour’s use of his/her land. Interference with one’s enjoyment of the use

Friday, August 23, 2019

An Overview Of The Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

An Overview Of The Law - Essay Example There are particular safeguards for expectant women. The Act disbars transsexual individuals from being incorporated in gender-specific programs if, by so doing, it would be a fair approach to realizing a legitimate objective. The disabled are also taken care of under the piece of legislation: for instance, organizations are obligated to make appropriate adjustments to the employment area, in order to accommodate the disabled in terms of the easy movement of the group. In light of these initiatives, the Equality Act 2010 is not a new legislation; rather, it seeks to strengthen the already existing non-discrimination legal structures in the country. Even though the Equality Act was crafted based the need to transform Great Britain into a society without discrimination, the lukewarm government response to the implementation of the legislation is likely to hinder the effort and spirit which pioneered its formation. As at now, the law, to some extent, has been rendered ineffectual follow ing the admission by the national government that only some sections of the statute would be put into effect when it was enacted in effect in 2010. The failure by the government to implement the legislation in totality undermines every assurance coalition officers ever gave rooting the philosophy of a non-discriminatory Britain. As intended, sections 71, 77 and 78 of the Act would have prompted big for-profit organizations to ascertain whether they have, within their jurisdiction, before 1970.... As at now, the law, to some extent, has been rendered ineffectual following the admission by the national government that only some sections of the statute would be put into effect when it was enacted in effect in 2010. The failure by the government to implement the legislation in totality undermines every assurance coalition officers ever gave rooting the philosophy of a non-discriminatory Britain. As intended, sections 71, 77 and 78 of the Act would have prompted big for-profit organizations to ascertain whether they have, within their jurisdiction, the discrepancies of pay across gender as witnessed in the country, before 1970 (John et al. 2010, pp21-36). The law had clear provisions that would eliminate pay secrecy, which were and may still be cited by the organizations to conceal discriminatory practices targeted at women regarding remuneration issues (Steele 2010, pp264-274). The government’s suspension of some sections of the law from implementation, arguably to facilit ate a review of the numerous clauses endorsed by legislature early in the second quarter of 2010 is not only suspect but a trigger for the continuation of discriminatory practices in the country. According to Steele (2010, p270), pressure groups and rights organizations, as well as non-governmental organizations indicate that refusing the implementation of the entire law was a clear pointer to the failure on the part of government to commit itself to a fair society. They argue that back-pedalling on the legal provision for multinationals and big organizations to reveal and act on any disparities in remuneration between feminine and masculine workers, negates the letter and spirit of a liberal and fair society. Additionally, the failure carry out gender pay appraisals is

Hewlett-Packard (HP) Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hewlett-Packard (HP) - Research Paper Example The Middle East countries are Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and others (HP, â€Å"Welcome to HP†). 4 3.0 Strategies Used 5 4.0 Success of HP 6 5.0 Reasons for Success 7 References 9 1.0 Product and/or Service Hewlett-Packard develops such products that may be easily accessible globally. Their services and technologies are handy to the disabled as well as the aged ones. Their technology is highly beneficial to the customers who use their products as well as services. The major focus of their product is to make the life of the people better with uncomplicated and valuable along with trusted experience associated with technology (HP, â€Å"HP Accessibility†). There are various products of HP that include laptop and tablet PCs, printers, ink, toner along with paper, desktop and workstation, scanner and faxing machine, server and storage, monitors, smart phones and networking along with accessories and various parts (HP. â€Å"Products and Services†). The services of Hewlett-Packard comprise of imaging along with printing services, computing systems as well as information technology services required for personal use and business (Lynn, â€Å"Trading Idea - Momentum Building in Hewlett Packard†). ... 2.0 Countries or Regions The products and services of HP are available in various regions such as Africa, America, Asia Pacific, Europe and Middle East. In Africa, it is available in Morocco, Nigeria, Kenya and other regions. In America, it has its presence in Brazil, Mexico, the United Sates, Venezuela, Colombia, Canada and Argentina among others. The countries of Asia Pacific involve Australia, India, China, Hong-Kong, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand and various others. The European countries where products and services of HP are available include Austria, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Turkey, Switzerland and few other countries. The Middle East countries are Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and others (HP, â€Å"Welcome to HP†). 3.0 Strategies Used HP has developed various strategies while marketing in the international arena. The company has given importance in three areas of strategies such as Cloud, Connectivity and Software. They decided to develop complete Cloud Stack as well as help the transition customers with an intention to mix cloud environments. They also try to leverage the scales as well as maintain consistency and security in their recent software, hardware along with other services they offer. HP has developed higher-value services that may offer them with greater strategic importance. A device-aware HP Cloud would construct and send suitable services related to the device that has been used by the customers. This service of the device might fulfill the need of the customers (HP, â€Å"HP Sets Strategy to Lead in Connected World with Services, Solutions and Technologies†). The other strategy is Connectivity which means that HP tends to be

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Rhetoric and Reality Essay Example for Free

Rhetoric and Reality Essay In chapter four â€Å"Black Radicals: Rhetoric and Reality†, writer tried to locate whether black powers i. e. militants and radicals had any viable program to organize black people or their ideas and action were disarray with no clear agenda. For this purpose, he provides an insight into the ideas and efforts of pioneer of black movement. He starts with the ideas of Malcolm X and analyzed his â€Å"intellectual framework for revolutionary Black Nationalism† (p. 246) Malcolm X asserted that psychological liberation and black pride are essential elements to shape black American into an organized whole. But writer is of the view that mostly. His (Malcolm’s) ideas were misunderstood or misinterpreted and hence they were unable to influence the black movement. He further analyzed the idea of another pioneer of black movement, Stokely Carmichael who stressed on the importance of reformation in black ideology and advocated â€Å"independent politics†. His considered the capitalist structure as the primary cause if all injustice and racial discrimination prevalent in the American. He developed a two-pronged strategy to counter racism and capitalistic exploitation. There is marked shift in his ideology after visits to several south American countries and he considered guerrilla warfare an important tool to establish their right on the land, houses and stores†. Rap Brown, another chairman of the SNCC advocated military and armed struggle in a more unequivocal way. Carmichael developed a new approach after his visits to Latin world and â€Å"in February 1968, the enemy of the blacks was no longer the capitalist system. The prime enemy was the white man, the honky. † (p. 250) So Carmichael added racism to capitalism as the new enemy but his reformatory efforts for restructuring the black community and to counter these two evil systems were ambiguous as he mostly advocated in favor of socialism as the remedy of these evil system. His ideas are mostly paradoxical and writer is of the view that his middle class background torn him â€Å"between militant nationalism and accomodationist integrationism† (p. 252). Writer further delves deep into the different strategies and programs of SNCC to charge the batteries of black movement but he asserts that mere speeches and statement does not yield into viable activities. Writer further explores the black student movements and says that typically black students adopt a bourgeois outlook after their graduation and try to assimilate and identify themselves with white community. This attitude of black students made them distrustful in the eyes of less-privileged classes of black community. As black student were not part of White community so they were entangled into a dilemma and this identity crisis was more heightened in Ivy League Schools where they were labeled as â€Å"white Negroes† by their own community. However there was a growing resentment in black students against the racial policies and they took several armed revolts against the college and government authorities. Writer provides comprehensive details of black students’ struggle in various college campuses across America during 1968. SNCC and other black activists were in favor a political party that would the sole representative of African American. The SNCC experience had taught it that both Democrats and Republican parties are not a cure to their afflictions so they worked to establish a black political party at the national level. In this attempt, SNCC and â€Å"black panthers† created an alliance and advocated a struggle for self-determination. Due to several inherent and structural differences these organization failed to merge and turned into a political party. Writer sums up the chapter by illustrating that although SNCC and black panther were not representative of the all black radicals but their ideas manifested the ideas and activities pf radicals elements during the black movement.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Cash Flow and Profitability of Dividend Payout

Cash Flow and Profitability of Dividend Payout CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Overview The issue of dividend has been studied comprehensively in last few decades. Still it remained as one of the most debatable issue in the field of Finance. The contradictory nature and massive importance 0f dividend in finance had made it one of the most discussable topics for researchers. Researchers in the past enclosed many aspects of dividend; few among them are views about dividend, dividend payment effects on firm value, dynamics and determinants of dividend policy, and dividend movement of different markets. Lintner (1956) study the allocation of income of corporations among dividends, retained earnings and taxes by taking data from the years 1918 to 1941 as a training period and data from the years 1942 to 1951 as the testing period. Researchconcluded that the basic origin of dividend changes werenet earning and preceding year dividends. In addition, firms attempt to continue a constant stream of dividend and influence to make a regularly partial adjustment to a target payout ratio relatively hysterically changing their payout when a change in income occurs. In the short run, dividends are consistent to avoid frequent changes. This dispute is rooted back to the significant effort of Miller and Modigliani (1961), in which it was challenged in a perfect market condition dividend policy did not affect the value of firm. In contrast, Lintner (1962) and Gordon (1963) based à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Bird-in-handà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? theory and argued that in the world of ambiguity and imperfect information, hig h dividend payment is linked with high firm value. In addition, Black (1976) called dividend as great puzzle which need extensive researched. Furthermore, the Brealey and Myers (2005) listed dividend as one of the top ten significantvague topic in advance corporate finance. According to Anil and Sujjata(2008) emerging consensus was that no individual factor alone can describe dividend behavior. The existing corporate theories supported that cash flow and profitability have significant impact on dividend. The aim of this study was to know the impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout of non financial firms in Pakistan market. This study considered free cash flow and profitability was most important for non financial firm in Pakistan market. Talat and Mirza(2010) conducted research related to ownership structure and cash flow as predictor of dividend payout policy. According to that personal ownership, cash flow delicacy, size, and leverage were negatively associated with dividend payout policy. In contrast, profitability and operating cash flow was found as determinants of cash dividend. In addition, Researcher concluded that executive ownership, personal ownership, operating cash flow, and size were important determinants of dividend while, leverage and cash flow delicacy did not contribute considerably in determining the level of corporate dividend payment. DeAngelo and DeAngelo (1990) found significant relation between cash flow and dividend changes. Problem Statement In the field of corporate finance, the dividend was considered as one of the most noteworthy issues. The main purpose to study the impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout of non financial firm in Pakistani market was to analyze the cash dividend behavior of developing countries firm. In addition, study was conducted to find out how strongly these two variables free cash flow and profitability have impact on the dividend payout because, profitability was most likely used as determinants of dividend payout in most of the previous researches but free cash flow was not taken too much in previous research. Furthermore, how these two variables serve as an indicator for dividend payout. Hypothesis This research study has tested the following hypothesis to fulfill the objective of the research. H1: There is significant impact of free cash flow on dividend payout. H2: There is significant impact of return on assets on dividend payout. H3: There is significant impact of return on equity on dividend payout. H4: There is significant impact of earning per share on dividend payout. H5: There is significant impact of net profit margin on dividend payout. Outline of the Study The research structured follows. Chapter one was consist on the introduction of the thesis, it is essential to review the views and theoretical background of dividend, the statement o problem, scope and objective, hypothesis. Chapter two consisted of literature review given by various authors, theories on dividend and impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout. Chapter three explained methodology, it consisted of explanation of the selection of the variables, the sampling and research design, the data technique and hypothesis. Chapter four represents the analysis of results after processing the data. Chapter five composed of final result, conclusion and recommendation. Chapter six consisted of references. CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW Since 1956, dividend has always considered one of the most interested and investigated topic in world of finance.Lintner (1956) analyzed the allocation of earning of corporation among dividends, retained earnings, and taxes by taken data into consideration for years 1918 to 1941. It was found the basic determinants of dividend change are net earning and preceding year dividends. In addition, firms tried to continue a stable flow of dividend and likely made a regularly limited adjustment to a target payout ratio instead radically changing payout when earning changed. Jensen and Meckling (1976) paid attention toward agency cost hypothesis and described that dividend restricted the funds under management control, as a result putting them under strict capital market examination. Owner responsibility was reduced to deal with the quality of investment and to handle the expenditure on manager prerequisites. Marke, Langrehr, and Hexter(1998) conducted research on dividend policy determinants. Researchers had taken focus of firm, natural log of sales of firm, inside ownership for firm, no of common shareholder for firm, free cash flow for firm, sales growth of firm, and standard deviation of returns o f firm as determinants of dividend policy. Authors concluded that corporate focus has negative impact on dividend payout. While inside ownership had also negative impact, according to researcher the firms have greater inside ownership have small dividend payout. In addition, the firms with higher free cash flow have higher dividend payout and lower payout ratio of firms with higher standard deviation of returns. William and Nanda (1994) conducted research on free cash flow, shareholder value, and the unallocated profits after tax of 1936 and 1937. In this study researcher tried to explore the investor reaction toward the anticipated decrease in free cash flow presented to corporate managers. In addition, researchers suggested agency costs as partial determinants of dividend policy. To avoid the agency problem corporate have to pay higher dividend and imposed higher tax on undistributed profit so the problem of agency cost handled efficiently. The study conducted on determinants of dividend payout ratio in GhannabyAmidu and Abor (2006). In this study 20 listed firms of Ghana Stock Exchange were used as a sample which shows 76% of the total listed firm in Ghana Stock Exchange. Researchers have taken the Payout Ratio as controlled variable and explanatory variables includes risk, profitability, cash flow, corporate tax, institutional holding, sales growth, and market to book value. It was foundthat more profitable firms paid more dividends and profitability is positively related to dividend payout. In addition, cash flow and taxes are also positively related to dividend payout. Further, they also concluded there is a positive relationship between increase in liquidity and dividend payout. Results suggested negative relationship of dividend payout with growth, market to book value, risk, and institutional holding. The firms with the earning instability found hard to pay low and no dividends. Al-Malkawi (2007) worked on determinants of corporate dividend payout policy in Jordan. Researcher used a firm level panel data of all publicly traded firms on the Amman Stock Exchange for the year 1989-2000. Researcher used dividend payout as a depended variable and agency cost, Ownership, annual share turnover, market to book ratio, market capitalization of common equity, financial leverage ratio, profitability ratio, and taxes as independent variables. By using Tobit specification researcher concluded that positive relationship between size, age, and profitability with dividend payout and negative relationship between signaling device, ownership, and taxes in Jordan. Fairchild (2010) worked on Dividend policy, signaling and free cash flow: an integrated approach. Researcher has tried to examine the dividend policy by taking only two hypothesis signaling and free cash flow. In order to understand the composite environment of dividend policy, signaling game is developed in which most of the information possesses by managers than investors about the quality of the firms. The signaling hypothesis shows that asymmetric information between managers and investor, dividend work as signal regarding current performance and future prospect. The study found that high dividend has positive effect on the firm performance, in term of providing a positive signal for current performance and as will as future scenario. In addition, dividend payout reduces the free cash flow problem, which may attract the manager to invest in negative NPV project for personal interest. But if the project shows positive NPV so investment opportunities are available which lead toward the higher dividend in future. Gill, Nahum, and Rajendra (2010) worked on determinants of dividend payout ratio in United States. In this study researcher extend the Amidu and Joshua, and Anil and Kapoor finding for the American service and manufacturing firms. Researcher took same variables into account such as profitability, tax, market to book value, cash flow, and sale growth. The sample size was 266 out of 500 financial reports. According to the researcher dividend payout ratio of manufacturing firms is the function of profit margin, tax, and market to book value ratio. It was also found that result differ when the dividend payout ratio was defined as the ratio between after tax cash flow and cash dividend, not considering after tax earning of the companies. Reddy (2006), studied the dividend behavior of Indian companies, movement, and determinants and struggled to decide the behavior of the companies listed at Bombay Stock Exchange with theassist of trade off theory and signaling theory hypothesis. According to researcher analysis of dividend trend depicted that stock traded on New York Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange indicated that percentage of companies paying dividend has declined from 60.5% in 1990 to 32.1% in 2001 and there is only few companies paying dividend constantly. Beside that firms paying dividend are more profitable, large in size, and having enough growth. Indian context did not represent corporate tax and ax preference theory. Lastly the dividend change indicated signal to current and lagged earning performance rather than future earning performance. Baker, Farrelly and Edelman (1986) studied New York Stock Exchange 318 firms. According to the researchers main determinants of dividend payments were expected future earning and picture of past dividend. Gitman and Pruitt (1991) asked 1000 largest US firms financial managers and concluded present and precedent year earning were significant determinants effect dividend payment. According to Baker and Powell (2000) survey companies listed on New York Stock Exchange were industry explicit and predicted level of future income was the main factor of dividend payout Anil and Kapoor (2008) studies Indian information technology sector for determinants of dividend payout ratio. The phase for study 2000-2006 encompass both recessionary and booming phase of Indian information technology sector. Researcher concluded that beta and liquidity was discovered a notable determinant of dividend payout ratio. In addition, authors concluded that due to recession from 2003 onwards IT sector observed exponential growth, and it was anticipated linear growth in IT sector after 2006. Recently in Pakistani perspective, Ahmed and Attiya (2009) investigated sample of 320 non-financial firms listed on Karachi Stock Exchange from 2001 to2006.Researchers concluded Pakistani companies dependent more on current earning than past dividend. In addition, authors highlighted few predictors that may affect payout policies. Firstly, the finding demonstrated companies containing high profit with consistent earning can manage larger amount of free cash flow as a result to payout larger dividend. The firms having larger investment chance can easily affect and have a significant role in determinants of dividend payout policy in Pakistan. The companies paid more dividends to shareholders where inside ownership exist. Ownership structure has considered major factor in determining dividend policy in Pakistan. Beside that dividend payout was not affected pay growth of the firms and market liquidity has a significant impact on dividend payout. Furthermore, size was significant determin ants for dividend payout that means companies invest in assets relatively paying dividends to its stockholders. 2.1 Dividend irrelevance theory: Miller and Modigliani (1961) proposed that dividend policy is irrelevant to the shareholder and stockholder wealth was constant in the world of perfect market condition and any growth in the current payout is financed by literally priced stock sales. The basic assumption was that management paid 100 percent payout in every period. Other assumptions were as follow. First, market is perfect capital market that means there were no taxes on transaction cost, single buyer and seller not influenced price and everyone have free access to information. Second, investors are rational and value of securities was based on the discounted future cash flow to investor. Third, manager act as a agent of shareholders, and there was no uncertainty about the investment policy of the firm. 2.2 Bird-in-hand theory: Al-Malkawi (2007) emphasized that dividend valued differently from retained earnings (capital gains) in world of ambiguity and irregularity information. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“A bird in hand (dividend) is valued more than two in the bush (capital gain)à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. Investors always preferred dividends to retained earnings due to uncertainty of future cash flow. Although, this controversy has been extensively condemned and has not get strong empirical base, but, it was supported by Gordon and Shapiro (1956), Lintner (1962), and Walter (1963). The basic assumptions were as followed Firstly, investors have inadequate information regarding the profitability of a firm. Secondly, cash dividend was taxed at a higher rate when capital gain was realized on the sale of share. Thirdly, dividend serves as a signal of expected cash flow. 2.3 Agency cost and free cash flow theory: Ross (2008) define agency cost is the cost of the conflict of interest that exists among shareholders and management. It was happened when management act for own interest rather than shareholders interest who own the firm. This could be direct and indirect. It was in contrast to assumption of Millar and Modigliani (1961) that mangers act as an agent of shareholders. This is somewhat dubious, as the owners of the firm are different from the management. Managers are bound to carry out some activities, which could be costly to shareholders, such as undertaking unprofitable investments that would yield excessive returns to them, and unnecessarily high management compensation (Al-Malkawi, 2007). These costs are borne by shareholders; therefore, shareholders of firms with excess free cash flow would require high dividend payments instead. Agency cost may also arise between shareholders and bondholders: while shareholders require more dividends, bondholders require fewer dividends than shar eholders by putting in place a debt covenant to ensure availability of cash for their debt repayment. Easterbrook (1984) also identified two agency costs: the cost of monitoring managers and the cost of risk reluctance on the part of managers. Jensens free cash flow/overinvestment hypothesis (1988) provides a surrogate description for the positive association between the direction of the dividend change and the stock price reaction. Jensen argues that managers tend to hold cash to invest in negative NPV projects for their own utility maximization. The agency costs that result from this overinvestment decrease the value of the firm. Like the signaling hypothesis, the FCF argument suggests there should be a positive relationship is the direction of the dividend policy change and the stock price reaction. However, the FCF argument differentiates itself with respect to the level of growth opportunities faced by the firm. If a firm initiated a cash dividend, FCF arguments postulate there are fewer funds available for costly overinvestment. Likewise, if company didnt pay dividend, the strongest form of a decrease would reduce the value of the firm because there are more funds available to invest in less present value projects. The FCF hypothesis assumes larger stock price volatility for the firms who have few growth opportunities as compared to the firms with many growth opportunities. There is disagreement between different researchers on dividend policy. Allen and Rachim (1996) in Australia found no significant association between stock price volatility and divided policy. According to Gordon (1963) the stock price volatility is influenced by dividend payout. The firms who pay large dividend have minimum risks in terms of stock price value. Some of hypothetical mechanism also suggests the universal relationship of dividend yield and dividend payout ratio with stock price volatility. Jensens and Meckling (1976) developed Agency cost argument which proposed that dividend payout lower the cost of funds and increase the cash flows for the company. The company after paying cash dividends to stock holders would have less cash in hands of the managers to invest at below the cost of capital. According to Asquith and Mullin (1983), Born, Moser, and Officer (1984) and Miller and Rock (1985) dividend declaration provide information to the share holders to forecast the financial position of the company and the present firms earnings. This also depends on the source of information that either it is doubtful or not to respond on announcement of dividend. Hence, there remains disagreement till yet, the relation of dividend yield and stock price volatility and it is still unexplained and is considered as debatable in corporate CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODS 3.1 Method of Data Collection Required data was collected from Karachi Stock Exchange as given by State Bank of Pakistan in publication of Balance Sheet Analysis of Joint Stock Companies Listed on the KSE (2005-2009). The period of study covered five years, 2005-09. The sample size of 100 non-financial firms was taken from all non financial firm listed at KSE. The required sample was chosen on the basis of cash dividend paid by firms at-least for two years. The sample represents major industry. 3.2 Sample Size Sample of 100 non-financial firms was collected from KSE. Sample consisted of firms which paid cash dividend for at least two years. Firms that was selected for study represented all major industries functioning in Pakistan and listed at KSE from 2005-2009. The impact of the cash flow and profitability on dividend payout was examined on selected sample of 100 non-financial firms. 3.3 Research Model Developed There were various financial factors of the non-financial firms which affected the Dividend payout of the firms. This research study investigated the impact of free cash flow and profitability on the dividend payout. 3.3.1 Dividend payout Dividend payout and dividend amount are taken as the dependent variables. Since dividend payout is the generally used alternative for dividend policy, almost every financial researcher has used payout as a proxy for corporate dividend policy (See for example Gugler, 2003; Reddy and Rath, 2005; Papadopoulos, 2007; Al-Malkawi, 2007; Ahmed Attiya, 2009). In order to calculate dividend payout was calculated as cash dividend per share divided by earning per share. 3.3.2 Earning per share According to Hafeez and Attiya (2009) high profitability with constant earnings can manage to pay for larger free cash flows as a result to pay out larger dividends. The earnings per share after tax were used as independent variable. Earning per share after tax was used because dividend has been paid after interest, taxes and after depreciation and calculated as net earnings divided by number of shares. H1: There is significant impact of earning per share on dividend payout 3.3.3 Return on Equity This variable is used in different previous studies such as: Abor (2005), Miller (2007), Al-Ajmi et al. (2009), and Ebaid (2009) etc. Some authors measured profitability or performance by three measurements such Gross profit margin (GPM), Return on Equity (ROE), and Return on Assets (ROA) and same predictors Ebaid (2009). Likely results with this variable are same as revealed by Abor (2005) and Ebaid (2009) such as: Significance and positive relationship with dividend payout. Return on Equity is considered best measure of firm profitability. Return on Equity (ROE) is one measure of how efficiently a company uses its assets to produce earnings. ROE was calculated by dividing Net Income minus preferred dividend by Share holder equity H2: There is significant impact of Return on Equity on dividend payout. 3.3.4 Free Cash flow According to Jensens (1986) free cash flow hypothesis, companies choose to use their cash resources to invest in profitable projects first; dividend is paid out of residual. From a companys point of view, cash generated from operations plays an important role in deciding the level of payout, among all three sources of cash flows i.e. operating; investing and financing, cash generated from operations is considered as most desirable source of funds for the company for distribution of dividends. Anil and Sujjata (2008) also found cash flow from operations as the most significant determinant of dividend policy in Indian IT industry. A  measure of financial performance calculated as Net income minus depreciation minus change in working capital minus change in capital expenditure. Free cash flow (FCF) represents the cash that a company is able to generate after  placing out the money required to maintain or expand its asset base.  Free  cash flow is important be cause it  allows a company to  pursue opportunities that enhance shareholder value. H3: There is a significant impact of free cash flow on dividend payout. The model developed was a linear model and its specifications are provided below: Div payout = a0 a1EPS + a2ROE + a3FCF + ц Dividend payout = Dividend per share divided by earning per share EPS = Net income divided by number of share outstanding ROE =Net income minus preferred dividend divided by common shareholder equity FCF =Net income minus Depreciation minus change in working capital minus change in Capital expenditure à Ã¢â‚¬Å¾ = error term 3.4 Statistical Technique Multiple Linear Regression Analysis (MLR) technique was used for this research study to examine the impact of the distinctive financial characteristics of the non-financial firms on their dividend payout of the selected firms; Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for the examination of the secondary data. CHAPTER 4: RESULT The sample of 100 non-financial firms from Karachi Stock Exchange was taken into consideration. This research study used multiple regression analysis (MLR). Researcher examined the behavior of non-financial firms of KSE about dividend payout. The selected technique was used to study the impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout. 4.1 Finding and Interpretation of the results In the beginning, the regression technique was applied on collected data by using SPSS, and there was no single variable was significant. It was clear from the result that there was the high co-linearity among the independent variables of the dividend payout and this means there was strong interrelationship present among the predictors. Return on assets and net profit margin was omitted from the data, thus, the issue of co-linearity was resolved. Now, proceeding with the analysis of the results because issue of co-linearity was addressed. The interpretation and analysis is presented in the next sections of this research study. Table 4.1: Model Summary Mod R R Sq. Adj. R Sq. 1 .289 .084 .078 Tables 4.1 depict the summary about the regression model. The R square of 8.4% showed that all the predictors of dividend payout together explained 8.4% variation in the dependent variable and the remaining variation was unexplained or hidden predictor were not included in the model. TABLE 4.2:ANOVA Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig. 1 Regression 31503.936 3 10501.312 15.236 .000a Residual 345316.428 501 689.254 Total 376820.364 504 The table 4.2 checked the significance of the linear regression model in such a way that the reliability of the data file regarding the applicability of the regression technique can be understood from the above table; however, ANOVA table was reliable test of checking the linear regression models ability to explain any variation in the dependent variable of liquidity. This was perfectly obvious from the sig value of .000 that meant that the linear regression model was highly significant for the data collected for the research study conducted. In addition, ANOVA explained that all means are not equal. In table4.3 the final model of regression included only three independent variable that were free cash flow, earning per share, and return on equity These variables were included in the model due to highly significantly describing the relation with dependent variable dividend payout. Returns on equity and free cash flow have positive impact on dividend, while earning per share has negative impact on dividend payout. 4.2 Hypothesis Assessment Summary The hypothesis of research was unique financial factors had significant impact on the non-financial firms dividend payout decision. These financial characteristics were cash flow taken as free cash flow of firms and profitability taken as earning per share and return on Equity of firms. This research tasted individual financial characteristics and concluded the result as follow. TABLE 4.4: Hypothesis Assessment Summary S.No. Hypothesis ÃŽÂ ² SIG. RESULT H1 There is significant impact of free cash flow on dividend payout. .001 .005 Accepted H2 There is significant impact of Return on equity on dividend payout. .216 000 Accepted H3 There is significant impact of Earning per Share on dividend payout. -.123 .016 Accepted H4 There is significant impact of Return on Assets on dividend payout. .340 .170 Rejected H5 There is significant impact of Net profit margin on dividend payout. -.034 .530 Rejected CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSIONS, IMLICATION, FUTURE RESEARCH AND CONCLUSION 5.1Conclusion It was concluded with support of results of this research study return on equity, earning per share, and free cash flow were significant independent variables in Pakistani market. These result were matching with the study under taken by Hafeez and Attiya (2009) in Pakistani context, Researchers concluded firms with high profitability and with stable earning can afford larger free cash flow therefore pay out larger dividends to its shareholder. In addition, Talat and Hammad (2010) examined the ownership structure and cash flow as determinants of dividend policy. Researchers concluded that companies in which high proportion of share were occupied by managers and individual were more reluctant of pay high dividends. In contrast, companies in which managerial and individual ownership is low paid less dividends. It was also concluded that companies having high operating cash flow increase companies potential to pay high dividend and it was considered cash flow sensitivity reduce the compa nies payout but still it was not determined as potential determinants of corporate payout in Pakistan. 5.2 Discussions Profitability and free cash flow could lay significant impact on dividend payout in Pakistani context. Hafeez and Attiya(2009) was also considered profitability as significant determinant of dividend payout, But study conducted by Talat and Hammad (2010) concluded operating cash flow cannot consider significant determinant of dividend payout in Pakistani market.This research considered that free cash flow and profitability measured through earning per share and returns on equity have significant impact on dividend payout of the companies. 5.3 Implication and Recommendations This research was encompasses non-financial companies listed on Karachi Stock Exchange Pakistan. The required data collected from 100 non-financial firms listed at KES for the period of 2005 t0 2009. Only firms were included in samples which were paid cash dividend for atleast two years. It is recommended that such type of study should be carried out in other countries of Asia. Further, it also recommended that other determinants except one analyzed in this study should be researched in more extensive manner so the dividend payout policy and its dynamics became clearer. 5.4 Future Research This research addressed the problems of investor, management and other researcher conductor in examining and observing the behavior of firm regarding their payout decisions. Research students who want to work further on dividend payout could be benefited by this study. In addition, all non financial firms will get benefit from this study because this research study taken all major sectors into the consideration and study clarified the impact of free cash flow and profitability on dividend payout. Cash Flow and Profitability of Dividend Payout Cash Flow and Profitability of Dividend Payout CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Overview The issue of dividend has been studied comprehensively in last few decades. Still it remained as one of the most debatable issue in the field of Finance. The contradictory nature and massive importance 0f dividend in finance had made it one of the most discussable topics for researchers. Researchers in the past enclosed many aspects of dividend; few among them are views about dividend, dividend payment effects on firm value, dynamics and determinants of dividend policy, and dividend movement of different markets. Lintner (1956) study the allocation of income of corporations among dividends, retained earnings and taxes by taking data from the years 1918 to 1941 as a training period and data from the years 1942 to 1951 as the testing period. Researchconcluded that the basic origin of dividend changes werenet earning and preceding year dividends. In addition, firms attempt to continue a constant stream of dividend and influence to make a regularly partial adjustment to a target payout ratio relatively hysterically changing their payout when a change in income occurs. In the short run, dividends are consistent to avoid frequent changes. This dispute is rooted back to the significant effort of Miller and Modigliani (1961), in which it was challenged in a perfect market condition dividend policy did not affect the value of firm. In contrast, Lintner (1962) and Gordon (1963) based à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Bird-in-handà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? theory and argued that in the world of ambiguity and imperfect information, hig h dividend payment is linked with high firm value. In addition, Black (1976) called dividend as great puzzle which need extensive researched. Furthermore, the Brealey and Myers (2005) listed dividend as one of the top ten significantvague topic in advance corporate finance. According to Anil and Sujjata(2008) emerging consensus was that no individual factor alone can describe dividend behavior. The existing corporate theories supported that cash flow and profitability have significant impact on dividend. The aim of this study was to know the impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout of non financial firms in Pakistan market. This study considered free cash flow and profitability was most important for non financial firm in Pakistan market. Talat and Mirza(2010) conducted research related to ownership structure and cash flow as predictor of dividend payout policy. According to that personal ownership, cash flow delicacy, size, and leverage were negatively associated with dividend payout policy. In contrast, profitability and operating cash flow was found as determinants of cash dividend. In addition, Researcher concluded that executive ownership, personal ownership, operating cash flow, and size were important determinants of dividend while, leverage and cash flow delicacy did not contribute considerably in determining the level of corporate dividend payment. DeAngelo and DeAngelo (1990) found significant relation between cash flow and dividend changes. Problem Statement In the field of corporate finance, the dividend was considered as one of the most noteworthy issues. The main purpose to study the impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout of non financial firm in Pakistani market was to analyze the cash dividend behavior of developing countries firm. In addition, study was conducted to find out how strongly these two variables free cash flow and profitability have impact on the dividend payout because, profitability was most likely used as determinants of dividend payout in most of the previous researches but free cash flow was not taken too much in previous research. Furthermore, how these two variables serve as an indicator for dividend payout. Hypothesis This research study has tested the following hypothesis to fulfill the objective of the research. H1: There is significant impact of free cash flow on dividend payout. H2: There is significant impact of return on assets on dividend payout. H3: There is significant impact of return on equity on dividend payout. H4: There is significant impact of earning per share on dividend payout. H5: There is significant impact of net profit margin on dividend payout. Outline of the Study The research structured follows. Chapter one was consist on the introduction of the thesis, it is essential to review the views and theoretical background of dividend, the statement o problem, scope and objective, hypothesis. Chapter two consisted of literature review given by various authors, theories on dividend and impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout. Chapter three explained methodology, it consisted of explanation of the selection of the variables, the sampling and research design, the data technique and hypothesis. Chapter four represents the analysis of results after processing the data. Chapter five composed of final result, conclusion and recommendation. Chapter six consisted of references. CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW Since 1956, dividend has always considered one of the most interested and investigated topic in world of finance.Lintner (1956) analyzed the allocation of earning of corporation among dividends, retained earnings, and taxes by taken data into consideration for years 1918 to 1941. It was found the basic determinants of dividend change are net earning and preceding year dividends. In addition, firms tried to continue a stable flow of dividend and likely made a regularly limited adjustment to a target payout ratio instead radically changing payout when earning changed. Jensen and Meckling (1976) paid attention toward agency cost hypothesis and described that dividend restricted the funds under management control, as a result putting them under strict capital market examination. Owner responsibility was reduced to deal with the quality of investment and to handle the expenditure on manager prerequisites. Marke, Langrehr, and Hexter(1998) conducted research on dividend policy determinants. Researchers had taken focus of firm, natural log of sales of firm, inside ownership for firm, no of common shareholder for firm, free cash flow for firm, sales growth of firm, and standard deviation of returns o f firm as determinants of dividend policy. Authors concluded that corporate focus has negative impact on dividend payout. While inside ownership had also negative impact, according to researcher the firms have greater inside ownership have small dividend payout. In addition, the firms with higher free cash flow have higher dividend payout and lower payout ratio of firms with higher standard deviation of returns. William and Nanda (1994) conducted research on free cash flow, shareholder value, and the unallocated profits after tax of 1936 and 1937. In this study researcher tried to explore the investor reaction toward the anticipated decrease in free cash flow presented to corporate managers. In addition, researchers suggested agency costs as partial determinants of dividend policy. To avoid the agency problem corporate have to pay higher dividend and imposed higher tax on undistributed profit so the problem of agency cost handled efficiently. The study conducted on determinants of dividend payout ratio in GhannabyAmidu and Abor (2006). In this study 20 listed firms of Ghana Stock Exchange were used as a sample which shows 76% of the total listed firm in Ghana Stock Exchange. Researchers have taken the Payout Ratio as controlled variable and explanatory variables includes risk, profitability, cash flow, corporate tax, institutional holding, sales growth, and market to book value. It was foundthat more profitable firms paid more dividends and profitability is positively related to dividend payout. In addition, cash flow and taxes are also positively related to dividend payout. Further, they also concluded there is a positive relationship between increase in liquidity and dividend payout. Results suggested negative relationship of dividend payout with growth, market to book value, risk, and institutional holding. The firms with the earning instability found hard to pay low and no dividends. Al-Malkawi (2007) worked on determinants of corporate dividend payout policy in Jordan. Researcher used a firm level panel data of all publicly traded firms on the Amman Stock Exchange for the year 1989-2000. Researcher used dividend payout as a depended variable and agency cost, Ownership, annual share turnover, market to book ratio, market capitalization of common equity, financial leverage ratio, profitability ratio, and taxes as independent variables. By using Tobit specification researcher concluded that positive relationship between size, age, and profitability with dividend payout and negative relationship between signaling device, ownership, and taxes in Jordan. Fairchild (2010) worked on Dividend policy, signaling and free cash flow: an integrated approach. Researcher has tried to examine the dividend policy by taking only two hypothesis signaling and free cash flow. In order to understand the composite environment of dividend policy, signaling game is developed in which most of the information possesses by managers than investors about the quality of the firms. The signaling hypothesis shows that asymmetric information between managers and investor, dividend work as signal regarding current performance and future prospect. The study found that high dividend has positive effect on the firm performance, in term of providing a positive signal for current performance and as will as future scenario. In addition, dividend payout reduces the free cash flow problem, which may attract the manager to invest in negative NPV project for personal interest. But if the project shows positive NPV so investment opportunities are available which lead toward the higher dividend in future. Gill, Nahum, and Rajendra (2010) worked on determinants of dividend payout ratio in United States. In this study researcher extend the Amidu and Joshua, and Anil and Kapoor finding for the American service and manufacturing firms. Researcher took same variables into account such as profitability, tax, market to book value, cash flow, and sale growth. The sample size was 266 out of 500 financial reports. According to the researcher dividend payout ratio of manufacturing firms is the function of profit margin, tax, and market to book value ratio. It was also found that result differ when the dividend payout ratio was defined as the ratio between after tax cash flow and cash dividend, not considering after tax earning of the companies. Reddy (2006), studied the dividend behavior of Indian companies, movement, and determinants and struggled to decide the behavior of the companies listed at Bombay Stock Exchange with theassist of trade off theory and signaling theory hypothesis. According to researcher analysis of dividend trend depicted that stock traded on New York Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange indicated that percentage of companies paying dividend has declined from 60.5% in 1990 to 32.1% in 2001 and there is only few companies paying dividend constantly. Beside that firms paying dividend are more profitable, large in size, and having enough growth. Indian context did not represent corporate tax and ax preference theory. Lastly the dividend change indicated signal to current and lagged earning performance rather than future earning performance. Baker, Farrelly and Edelman (1986) studied New York Stock Exchange 318 firms. According to the researchers main determinants of dividend payments were expected future earning and picture of past dividend. Gitman and Pruitt (1991) asked 1000 largest US firms financial managers and concluded present and precedent year earning were significant determinants effect dividend payment. According to Baker and Powell (2000) survey companies listed on New York Stock Exchange were industry explicit and predicted level of future income was the main factor of dividend payout Anil and Kapoor (2008) studies Indian information technology sector for determinants of dividend payout ratio. The phase for study 2000-2006 encompass both recessionary and booming phase of Indian information technology sector. Researcher concluded that beta and liquidity was discovered a notable determinant of dividend payout ratio. In addition, authors concluded that due to recession from 2003 onwards IT sector observed exponential growth, and it was anticipated linear growth in IT sector after 2006. Recently in Pakistani perspective, Ahmed and Attiya (2009) investigated sample of 320 non-financial firms listed on Karachi Stock Exchange from 2001 to2006.Researchers concluded Pakistani companies dependent more on current earning than past dividend. In addition, authors highlighted few predictors that may affect payout policies. Firstly, the finding demonstrated companies containing high profit with consistent earning can manage larger amount of free cash flow as a result to payout larger dividend. The firms having larger investment chance can easily affect and have a significant role in determinants of dividend payout policy in Pakistan. The companies paid more dividends to shareholders where inside ownership exist. Ownership structure has considered major factor in determining dividend policy in Pakistan. Beside that dividend payout was not affected pay growth of the firms and market liquidity has a significant impact on dividend payout. Furthermore, size was significant determin ants for dividend payout that means companies invest in assets relatively paying dividends to its stockholders. 2.1 Dividend irrelevance theory: Miller and Modigliani (1961) proposed that dividend policy is irrelevant to the shareholder and stockholder wealth was constant in the world of perfect market condition and any growth in the current payout is financed by literally priced stock sales. The basic assumption was that management paid 100 percent payout in every period. Other assumptions were as follow. First, market is perfect capital market that means there were no taxes on transaction cost, single buyer and seller not influenced price and everyone have free access to information. Second, investors are rational and value of securities was based on the discounted future cash flow to investor. Third, manager act as a agent of shareholders, and there was no uncertainty about the investment policy of the firm. 2.2 Bird-in-hand theory: Al-Malkawi (2007) emphasized that dividend valued differently from retained earnings (capital gains) in world of ambiguity and irregularity information. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“A bird in hand (dividend) is valued more than two in the bush (capital gain)à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. Investors always preferred dividends to retained earnings due to uncertainty of future cash flow. Although, this controversy has been extensively condemned and has not get strong empirical base, but, it was supported by Gordon and Shapiro (1956), Lintner (1962), and Walter (1963). The basic assumptions were as followed Firstly, investors have inadequate information regarding the profitability of a firm. Secondly, cash dividend was taxed at a higher rate when capital gain was realized on the sale of share. Thirdly, dividend serves as a signal of expected cash flow. 2.3 Agency cost and free cash flow theory: Ross (2008) define agency cost is the cost of the conflict of interest that exists among shareholders and management. It was happened when management act for own interest rather than shareholders interest who own the firm. This could be direct and indirect. It was in contrast to assumption of Millar and Modigliani (1961) that mangers act as an agent of shareholders. This is somewhat dubious, as the owners of the firm are different from the management. Managers are bound to carry out some activities, which could be costly to shareholders, such as undertaking unprofitable investments that would yield excessive returns to them, and unnecessarily high management compensation (Al-Malkawi, 2007). These costs are borne by shareholders; therefore, shareholders of firms with excess free cash flow would require high dividend payments instead. Agency cost may also arise between shareholders and bondholders: while shareholders require more dividends, bondholders require fewer dividends than shar eholders by putting in place a debt covenant to ensure availability of cash for their debt repayment. Easterbrook (1984) also identified two agency costs: the cost of monitoring managers and the cost of risk reluctance on the part of managers. Jensens free cash flow/overinvestment hypothesis (1988) provides a surrogate description for the positive association between the direction of the dividend change and the stock price reaction. Jensen argues that managers tend to hold cash to invest in negative NPV projects for their own utility maximization. The agency costs that result from this overinvestment decrease the value of the firm. Like the signaling hypothesis, the FCF argument suggests there should be a positive relationship is the direction of the dividend policy change and the stock price reaction. However, the FCF argument differentiates itself with respect to the level of growth opportunities faced by the firm. If a firm initiated a cash dividend, FCF arguments postulate there are fewer funds available for costly overinvestment. Likewise, if company didnt pay dividend, the strongest form of a decrease would reduce the value of the firm because there are more funds available to invest in less present value projects. The FCF hypothesis assumes larger stock price volatility for the firms who have few growth opportunities as compared to the firms with many growth opportunities. There is disagreement between different researchers on dividend policy. Allen and Rachim (1996) in Australia found no significant association between stock price volatility and divided policy. According to Gordon (1963) the stock price volatility is influenced by dividend payout. The firms who pay large dividend have minimum risks in terms of stock price value. Some of hypothetical mechanism also suggests the universal relationship of dividend yield and dividend payout ratio with stock price volatility. Jensens and Meckling (1976) developed Agency cost argument which proposed that dividend payout lower the cost of funds and increase the cash flows for the company. The company after paying cash dividends to stock holders would have less cash in hands of the managers to invest at below the cost of capital. According to Asquith and Mullin (1983), Born, Moser, and Officer (1984) and Miller and Rock (1985) dividend declaration provide information to the share holders to forecast the financial position of the company and the present firms earnings. This also depends on the source of information that either it is doubtful or not to respond on announcement of dividend. Hence, there remains disagreement till yet, the relation of dividend yield and stock price volatility and it is still unexplained and is considered as debatable in corporate CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODS 3.1 Method of Data Collection Required data was collected from Karachi Stock Exchange as given by State Bank of Pakistan in publication of Balance Sheet Analysis of Joint Stock Companies Listed on the KSE (2005-2009). The period of study covered five years, 2005-09. The sample size of 100 non-financial firms was taken from all non financial firm listed at KSE. The required sample was chosen on the basis of cash dividend paid by firms at-least for two years. The sample represents major industry. 3.2 Sample Size Sample of 100 non-financial firms was collected from KSE. Sample consisted of firms which paid cash dividend for at least two years. Firms that was selected for study represented all major industries functioning in Pakistan and listed at KSE from 2005-2009. The impact of the cash flow and profitability on dividend payout was examined on selected sample of 100 non-financial firms. 3.3 Research Model Developed There were various financial factors of the non-financial firms which affected the Dividend payout of the firms. This research study investigated the impact of free cash flow and profitability on the dividend payout. 3.3.1 Dividend payout Dividend payout and dividend amount are taken as the dependent variables. Since dividend payout is the generally used alternative for dividend policy, almost every financial researcher has used payout as a proxy for corporate dividend policy (See for example Gugler, 2003; Reddy and Rath, 2005; Papadopoulos, 2007; Al-Malkawi, 2007; Ahmed Attiya, 2009). In order to calculate dividend payout was calculated as cash dividend per share divided by earning per share. 3.3.2 Earning per share According to Hafeez and Attiya (2009) high profitability with constant earnings can manage to pay for larger free cash flows as a result to pay out larger dividends. The earnings per share after tax were used as independent variable. Earning per share after tax was used because dividend has been paid after interest, taxes and after depreciation and calculated as net earnings divided by number of shares. H1: There is significant impact of earning per share on dividend payout 3.3.3 Return on Equity This variable is used in different previous studies such as: Abor (2005), Miller (2007), Al-Ajmi et al. (2009), and Ebaid (2009) etc. Some authors measured profitability or performance by three measurements such Gross profit margin (GPM), Return on Equity (ROE), and Return on Assets (ROA) and same predictors Ebaid (2009). Likely results with this variable are same as revealed by Abor (2005) and Ebaid (2009) such as: Significance and positive relationship with dividend payout. Return on Equity is considered best measure of firm profitability. Return on Equity (ROE) is one measure of how efficiently a company uses its assets to produce earnings. ROE was calculated by dividing Net Income minus preferred dividend by Share holder equity H2: There is significant impact of Return on Equity on dividend payout. 3.3.4 Free Cash flow According to Jensens (1986) free cash flow hypothesis, companies choose to use their cash resources to invest in profitable projects first; dividend is paid out of residual. From a companys point of view, cash generated from operations plays an important role in deciding the level of payout, among all three sources of cash flows i.e. operating; investing and financing, cash generated from operations is considered as most desirable source of funds for the company for distribution of dividends. Anil and Sujjata (2008) also found cash flow from operations as the most significant determinant of dividend policy in Indian IT industry. A  measure of financial performance calculated as Net income minus depreciation minus change in working capital minus change in capital expenditure. Free cash flow (FCF) represents the cash that a company is able to generate after  placing out the money required to maintain or expand its asset base.  Free  cash flow is important be cause it  allows a company to  pursue opportunities that enhance shareholder value. H3: There is a significant impact of free cash flow on dividend payout. The model developed was a linear model and its specifications are provided below: Div payout = a0 a1EPS + a2ROE + a3FCF + ц Dividend payout = Dividend per share divided by earning per share EPS = Net income divided by number of share outstanding ROE =Net income minus preferred dividend divided by common shareholder equity FCF =Net income minus Depreciation minus change in working capital minus change in Capital expenditure à Ã¢â‚¬Å¾ = error term 3.4 Statistical Technique Multiple Linear Regression Analysis (MLR) technique was used for this research study to examine the impact of the distinctive financial characteristics of the non-financial firms on their dividend payout of the selected firms; Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for the examination of the secondary data. CHAPTER 4: RESULT The sample of 100 non-financial firms from Karachi Stock Exchange was taken into consideration. This research study used multiple regression analysis (MLR). Researcher examined the behavior of non-financial firms of KSE about dividend payout. The selected technique was used to study the impact of cash flow and profitability on dividend payout. 4.1 Finding and Interpretation of the results In the beginning, the regression technique was applied on collected data by using SPSS, and there was no single variable was significant. It was clear from the result that there was the high co-linearity among the independent variables of the dividend payout and this means there was strong interrelationship present among the predictors. Return on assets and net profit margin was omitted from the data, thus, the issue of co-linearity was resolved. Now, proceeding with the analysis of the results because issue of co-linearity was addressed. The interpretation and analysis is presented in the next sections of this research study. Table 4.1: Model Summary Mod R R Sq. Adj. R Sq. 1 .289 .084 .078 Tables 4.1 depict the summary about the regression model. The R square of 8.4% showed that all the predictors of dividend payout together explained 8.4% variation in the dependent variable and the remaining variation was unexplained or hidden predictor were not included in the model. TABLE 4.2:ANOVA Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig. 1 Regression 31503.936 3 10501.312 15.236 .000a Residual 345316.428 501 689.254 Total 376820.364 504 The table 4.2 checked the significance of the linear regression model in such a way that the reliability of the data file regarding the applicability of the regression technique can be understood from the above table; however, ANOVA table was reliable test of checking the linear regression models ability to explain any variation in the dependent variable of liquidity. This was perfectly obvious from the sig value of .000 that meant that the linear regression model was highly significant for the data collected for the research study conducted. In addition, ANOVA explained that all means are not equal. In table4.3 the final model of regression included only three independent variable that were free cash flow, earning per share, and return on equity These variables were included in the model due to highly significantly describing the relation with dependent variable dividend payout. Returns on equity and free cash flow have positive impact on dividend, while earning per share has negative impact on dividend payout. 4.2 Hypothesis Assessment Summary The hypothesis of research was unique financial factors had significant impact on the non-financial firms dividend payout decision. These financial characteristics were cash flow taken as free cash flow of firms and profitability taken as earning per share and return on Equity of firms. This research tasted individual financial characteristics and concluded the result as follow. TABLE 4.4: Hypothesis Assessment Summary S.No. Hypothesis ÃŽÂ ² SIG. RESULT H1 There is significant impact of free cash flow on dividend payout. .001 .005 Accepted H2 There is significant impact of Return on equity on dividend payout. .216 000 Accepted H3 There is significant impact of Earning per Share on dividend payout. -.123 .016 Accepted H4 There is significant impact of Return on Assets on dividend payout. .340 .170 Rejected H5 There is significant impact of Net profit margin on dividend payout. -.034 .530 Rejected CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSIONS, IMLICATION, FUTURE RESEARCH AND CONCLUSION 5.1Conclusion It was concluded with support of results of this research study return on equity, earning per share, and free cash flow were significant independent variables in Pakistani market. These result were matching with the study under taken by Hafeez and Attiya (2009) in Pakistani context, Researchers concluded firms with high profitability and with stable earning can afford larger free cash flow therefore pay out larger dividends to its shareholder. In addition, Talat and Hammad (2010) examined the ownership structure and cash flow as determinants of dividend policy. Researchers concluded that companies in which high proportion of share were occupied by managers and individual were more reluctant of pay high dividends. In contrast, companies in which managerial and individual ownership is low paid less dividends. It was also concluded that companies having high operating cash flow increase companies potential to pay high dividend and it was considered cash flow sensitivity reduce the compa nies payout but still it was not determined as potential determinants of corporate payout in Pakistan. 5.2 Discussions Profitability and free cash flow could lay significant impact on dividend payout in Pakistani context. Hafeez and Attiya(2009) was also considered profitability as significant determinant of dividend payout, But study conducted by Talat and Hammad (2010) concluded operating cash flow cannot consider significant determinant of dividend payout in Pakistani market.This research considered that free cash flow and profitability measured through earning per share and returns on equity have significant impact on dividend payout of the companies. 5.3 Implication and Recommendations This research was encompasses non-financial companies listed on Karachi Stock Exchange Pakistan. The required data collected from 100 non-financial firms listed at KES for the period of 2005 t0 2009. Only firms were included in samples which were paid cash dividend for atleast two years. It is recommended that such type of study should be carried out in other countries of Asia. Further, it also recommended that other determinants except one analyzed in this study should be researched in more extensive manner so the dividend payout policy and its dynamics became clearer. 5.4 Future Research This research addressed the problems of investor, management and other researcher conductor in examining and observing the behavior of firm regarding their payout decisions. Research students who want to work further on dividend payout could be benefited by this study. In addition, all non financial firms will get benefit from this study because this research study taken all major sectors into the consideration and study clarified the impact of free cash flow and profitability on dividend payout.