1. Around the world, utilities generally have the highest dividend payouts of any industry, yet they also tend to have massive investment programs to finance through external funding. How do you reconcile high payouts and large-scale security issuance?
2. Why do firms with diverse shareholder bases typically pay higher dividends than private firms or public firms with concentrated ownership structures? How are fixed dividends used as a bonding (commitment) mechanism by managers of firms with dispersed ownership structures and large amounts of free cash flow?