US corporates held larger cash balances the fourth quarter of 2012 than they did for the previous quarter or the previous year, according to the AFP’s most recent quarterly study measuring “recent and anticipated changes” in US company cash balances.
According to the study, the AFP Corporate Cash Indicators, which was underwritten by State Street Global Advisors, quarter-to-quarter, 37 percent of respondents had greater cash balances at the end of 4Q than they had at the end of 3Q in 2012. Meanwhile, 32 percent had cut cash reserves.
Looking forward, the AFP report said, many companies anticipate reducing their cash positions in the first quarter of 2013, with 28 percent expecting to reduce cash balances vs. 23 percent expecting to increase cash balances.
Although the AFP survey didn’t mention what might be behind companies shedding cash, it may be for reputational reasons. Recent disclosures that companies – most notably Amazon in the UK and GE in the US – are using tax avoidance strategies have inflamed debate over corporate tax contributions around the world.
The tax-avoidance strategies have also drawn official scrutiny of companies’ transfer pricing policies. Further to that scrutiny, the government may just decide to tax it anyway, which could pit domestic cash rich companies against cash-rich companies. In efforts to shift the US to a territorial-based tax system, domestic-oriented firms might be willing to sacrifice their cash-rich brethren with piles of offshore cash in order to secure a lower corporate rate.