DIVIDEND POLICY AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF DEPOSIT MONEY BANKS IN NIGERIA

Summary

This work examined the influence of capital structure and financial performance of oil and gas companies in Nigeria. The study finds that:

1.       Long term debt (LTDR), short term debt (STDR), and total debts (TDR) are positively related to financial performance of oil and gas companies (return on equity (ROE)).
2.       Long term debt ratio and total debt ratio (that is leverage) is statistically related to oil and gas companies’ financial performance (ROE). This is an indication that oil and gas firms are highly leveraged and hence long term debt is the major capital structure variable that has significant influence on their financial performance.
3.       In addition, short term debt ratio and total-debt equity ratio have no significant influence on oil and gas firms’ financial performance.
4.       While, short debt has positive influence on oil and gas companies’ financial performance, total debt-equity ratio has a negative influence on performance. Hence, long term debt rather than short term debt and debt-equity ratio is the significant determinant of financial performance (ROE) of oil and gas companies in Nigeria.