EFFECT OF EXPENSE STRUCTURE ON THE PROFITABILITY OF LISTED CONGLOMERATE FIRMS IN NIGERIA

Résumé fourni par la source

This study examined the effect of expense structure on the profitability of conglomerate firms in Nigeria. This study examined the effects of operating, management, and income tax expenses on profit after tax. The study was anchored on the trade-off theory of cost management, agency theory, and stakeholder theory. An ex post facto research design was adopted, using secondary data extracted from the audited annual reports of 12 listed conglomerate firms in Nigeria from 2020 to 2025. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, heteroskedasticity tests, and Fixed-Effects panel regression with White cross-section robust standard errors were employed for the data analysis. The selection of the estimation technique was as a result of the presence of heteroskedasticity in the panel data. The findings revealed that operating expenses had a negative but insignificant effect on profit after tax (β = -0.223109; p > 0.05), while management expenses exerted a positive and statistically significant effect on profitability (β = 1.087352; p < 0.05). Income tax expenses had a negative but insignificant effect on profit after tax (β = -0.000913; p > 0.05). The study concluded that the components of expense structure influence profitability differently, with management expenses emerging as the only significant determinant of profit after tax among Nigerian listed conglomerate firms. The study recommended that firms strengthen operational cost-control measures, sustain strategic investments in management functions, and adopt effective tax-planning practices to enhance profitability and promote long-term financial sustainability

Ce résumé expose les affirmations des auteurs. BNTIC ne l’interprète pas comme une validation indépendante des résultats.