Volume and composition of debt on the economic performance of brazilian industrial companies in the Covid-19 crisis

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4025/enfoque.v45i2.71254

Keywords:

Debt volume; Debt composition; Economic performance; Covid-19 crisis; Pre-crisis, crisis and resumption of the crisis.

Abstract

Objective: verify the influence of the volume and composition of debt on the economic performance of brazilian industrial companies in the Covid-19 crisis.

Methodology: descriptive, documentary and quantitative research. Sample composed of 74 brazilian industrial companies listed on Brasil, Bolsa, Balcão (B3). Data covering the time period from 2017 to 2022 – 6 years in total –, analyzed using statistical techniques, with an emphasis on multiple linear regression.

Originality/relevance: this is the first study known to assess the influence of debt on the economic performance of companies, simultaneously considering the economic scenarios of pre-crisis, crisis and resumption of the Covid-19 crisis. The brazilian environment is favorable for such a configuration, given that the sudden economic fall of 2020 was soon recovered.

Results: considering the total period – from 2017 to 2022 –, onerous debt and, also, its preponderance in the long term, negatively affect the return on equity of brazilian industrial companies. When the Covid-19 crisis period – 2020, in this case – is isolated, the results are not significant, and the previous considerations are maintained. Finally and most importantly, when the resumption of the Covid-19 crisis – 2021 and 2022, in this case –, the onerous debt starts to positively affect the return on equity, while the negative effect of the greater allocation of long-term onerous debt in the return on equity is substantially minimized in the resumption of the crisis.

Theoretical/methological/practical contributions: corporate managers are directed to consider economic stages in order to better capture financial resources with a view to leveraging the performance of the organizations they manage. Furthermore, it is noted that capital structure approaches can act in the same grouping, with pecking-order theory and market timing theory being preponderant in the scenario studied here.

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Author Biographies

  • Edgar Pamplona, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul - UFMS

    Doutor em Ciências Contábeis e Administração pela Universidade Regional de Blumenau (FURB)
    Professor da Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campus de Três Lagoas (UFMS-CPTL)

  • Lívia Beatriz Gomes Marim, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul - UFMS

    Especialista em Contabilidade Estratégica pela Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS)

  • Thiago Henrique Coelho dos Santos, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul - UFMS

    Especialista em Contabilidade Estratégica pela Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS)

  • Cleston Alexandre dos Santos, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS)

    Doutor em Ciências Contábeis e Administração pela Universidade Regional de Blumenau (FURB)
    Professor da Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campus de Três Lagoas (UFMS-CPTL)
    Professor do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Contábeis da Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande (UFMS)

  • Tamires Sousa Araújo, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS)

    Doutora em Ciências Contábeis pela Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU)
    Professora da Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campus de Três Lagoas (UFMS-CPTL)

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Published

2026-05-04

Issue

Vol. 45 No. 2 (2026): Enf.:Ref. Cont.

Section

Original Articles

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How to Cite

Volume and composition of debt on the economic performance of brazilian industrial companies in the Covid-19 crisis. (2026). Enfoque: Reflexão Contábil, 45(2), 121-137. https://doi.org/10.4025/enfoque.v45i2.71254