Abstract :

Working Capital (WC) is an important aspect of any firms because of its correlation to risk (liquidity) and return (profitability). This research examines the influence of WC Management and Policy (WCMP) to profitability of 21 listed retail trading sector firms in Indonesia from 2011-2020 using panel data regression. In this research, WC Management (WCM) is measured by Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) and its components which are Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), Days Inventory Outstanding, and Days Payable Outstanding (DPO); WC Policy is measured current assets divided by total assets or referred to as WC Investment Policy (WCIP) and current liabilities divided by total assets or referred to as WC Financing Policy (WCFP); and profitability is measured by Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization Margin (EBITDAM). The results show that firms can increase EBITDAM by shortening CCC, primarily through shortening DIO and lengthening DPO. Further, firms may improve EBITDAM by adopting a conservative WC Policy instead of an aggressive one, which means having higher current assets and lower current liabilities with respect to total assets.

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Keywords :

Cash Conversion Cycle; Profitability; Working Capital Management; Working Capital Policy; Working Capital

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