Analysis of Free Cash Flow Influence on Economic Performance Indicators in Brazilian Public Companies

This study aims to investigate the relationship between Free Cash Flow (FCF) and the economic performance of publicly-held companies listed in Brazil, Bolsa, Balcao [B](3). To this end, the influence of FCF on the Economic Performance Indicators (EPI) of these companies was verified, using several variables for the tests. It is a quantitative, descriptive and documentary research. The period analyzed was from 2009 to 2017, with quarterly data, collected on the basis of Econornatica (R), totaling a sample of 5,292 company-year observations and 147 companies. To answer the research problem, estimations were made using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and via quantile regression with balanced panel data. The calculated FCF metrics presented different statistics, which corroborates the fact that this measure is arbitrary and at the same time subjective. The results of the regressions were also different for each measure. Therefore, the possibility of FCF influencing the EPI of Brazilian public companies is not disregarded, being the signs of the coefficients relative for each variable. Nevertheless, the findings of quantile regressions point to agency problems in the companies listed in [B](3), as their sensitivity increases at the highest quantiles. Consequently, the Free Cash Flow Theory cannot be rejected in the Brazilian market.