What factors affect a company's EBITDA margin over time?

A company's EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) margin fluctuates over time due to both internal decisions and external factors.

Key external factors include - inflation/deflation affecting input costs, changes in laws and regulations impacting the way of doing business, competitive pressures from rivals eroding pricing power, market price movements for key goods/services influencing cost structures, and shifts in consumer preferences requiring realignment of product mix.

Internally, pricing changes, cost control initiatives, economies of scale from growth, capacity additions altering supply-demand balance, marketing costs for new products, and changing customer/product mix also impact EBITDA margins.