Estimation of Factors Shaping the Capital Structure of the Companies

Capital structure choosing is the most important issue of long-run development of the company. The decision of the CEO of the company about shaping of the capital structure is one of the main decisions among the others. The existing theories of the capital structure do not allow us to identify the determinants of the company's capital structure unequivocally. Economists analyze the capital structure of the companies from different countries, trying to identify key factors, but the number of Russian studies is not large. In this regard, this paper contains an analysis of the determinants of the capital structure of Russian and Ukrainian companies. The aim of this research paper is the definition of the factors which have the greatest impact on the capital structure of Russian and Ukraine companies and the identification of correspondences with the basic theories of capital structure. Based on data from the system ‘Ruslana’ regression analysis was conducted to identify significant determinants of the company's capital structure. The paper considers the main aspects of the Modigliani-Miller theory, traditional theories, and modern theories of capital structure (the Behavioral theory). The obtained results confirm the Trade-off theory in one case, the Pecking-order theory in the second case and the Behavioral theory in the third case.