Ownership structure and firm performance in G5 countries: a dynamic panel ARDL approach with a focus on employee shareholding

Purpose This study examines how institutional, concentrated and employee ownership structures impact the financial performance of publicly listed firms across G5 countries. It aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how different ownership types influence firm performance metrics (ROA and Tobin's Q) while addressing gaps in existing literature regar, Faculty of Economic Sciences and Management of Tunis ding comparative cross-country analysis and the underexplored role of employee ownership. Design/methodology/approach The research utilizes panel data from 550 firms across G5 nations spanning 2016–2023. The methodology centers on the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model using the pooled mean group (PMG) estimator, which accommodates mixed-order integration of variables and enables simultaneous examination of short-run adjustments and long-run relationships. Robustness checks include panel unit root tests and cointegration analysis. Findings The analysis reveals that employee shareholding has a significant positive long-run relationship with firm profitability, though no short-term effect. For institutional ownership no significant impact on profitability was found in either the long or short run. Conversely, majority shareholder ownership demonstrates a significant positive long-term association with firm profitability but an insignificant short-term effect. Practical implications The findings offer useful implications for corporate governance. The positive effect of ownership concentration suggests that large shareholders can enhance monitoring and reduce agency conflicts, thereby improving firm performance. In contrast, the insignificant impact of institutional ownership indicates limited monitoring by institutional investors. This highlights the need to encourage more active institutional investor participation in corporate governance. Originality/value This research represents the first comprehensive application of ARDL panel techniques to simultaneously analyze all three ownership types across major economies. It systematically incorporates employee ownership into performance analysis, an aspect frequently overlooked in financial research. The comparative framework across G5 countries reveals how institutional contexts moderate ownership-performance relationships, particularly showing stronger employee ownership effects in coordinated market economies.