*Associate Professor, Department of Accounting, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
**M.A. Student of Accounting, Department of Accounting, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
Online published on 5 July, 2014.
The main purpose of this study is investigating the relationship between capital structure and financial performance, paying particular attention to the degree of industry level competition. The sample of this study, includes 111 companies listed in the Tehran Stock Exchange during the period 2009 to 2013 and for processing and testing hypotheses, Estimated Generalized Least Squares (EGLS) method is used. Study results show that leverage, industry Lerner index, and industry concentration (Herfindahl–Hirschman Index) have negative and significant impact on the firm performance. Also, only industry concentration decreases the negative impact of leverage on the firm performance.
Capital Structure, Leverage, Industry Level Competition, Firm Performance, Tehran Stock Exchange