The influence of corporate governance characteristics on profitability of Indian firms: An empirical investigation of firms listed on Bombay Stock Exchange

Abstract

This article aims to empirically examine corporate governance features and their association with Indian listed companies’ profitability. Thirty-three listed firms are selected from the top 100 companies in India. Corporate governance is defined by two parts: board of directors (size, structure, diligence) and audit committee (size, structure, diligence). In contrast, the profitability of Indian listed firms is calculated by two indicators: return on assets (ROA) and earnings per share (EPS). The outcomes concerning ROA reveal that board diligence, size of audit committee, audit committee composition, diligence of audit committee, and size of a company has a significant relationship with ROA. In contrast, board size and board composition have an insignificant association with ROA. Concerning earnings per share (EPS) model, the results show that size of audit committee, audit committee composition, diligence of audit committee, and firm size have a significant relationship with EPS. In contrast, board size, board composition, and board diligence have an insignificant association with EPS. The results may be of benefit to those scholarly researchers, practitioners, and governors who are interested in exploring the quality of corporate governance practices in an emerging market such as India and its effect on firms’ profitability.