Financial Performance of the U.S. Forest-Product Companies : Value-added determinants of business success

Considering the current global recession, the U.S. pulp and paper industry started already in 2008 facing the impact of the U.S. housing downturn, on top of the continued suffering from relatively weak financial performance. In this case, the main purpose of the study - determination of the value- added components (gross value-added and investments), size and leverage effects on the long- and short-term financial performance gains its particular significance. The analysis output indicates that companies focused on tangible investments tend to have poor performance in the short run. In addition, small firms outperform large companies in growth opportunities and are considered to be more flexible in strategic choices. Furthermore, higher leveraged firms are discovered to improve their performance by aggressive financing of their business with debt. However, no evidence on the gross value-added impact on the firm's business success has been obtained. The presented analysis should support strategic managers in their decision- making procedures giving advice in potential factors and techniques that could be successfully applied in their work.