The impact of GAAP guidance on asset retirement obligations

In this study, we assess issues faced by accountants in implementing Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (SFAS) 143, Accounting for Asset Retirement Obligations (AROs) and Financial Interpretation Number (FIN) 47, which was issued to clarify accounting for conditional AROs. The assessments were made by accountants of companies belonging to the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) since the EEI originally initiated the Financial Accounting Standards Boards’ (FASB’s) ARO agenda item. The findings suggest that SFAS 143 and FIN 47 have provided accountants with increased clarity for ARO identification and have resulted in more meaningful recognition. In addition, more liabilities are reported even though it can be argued that ceteris paribus management will choose the method that minimizes the amount of the liability. Overall, the findings suggest that the FASB’s guidance on asset retirement obligations improved the reporting model and their implementation guidance improved companies’ application of the rules.     

The impact of financial reporting flexibility on auditor risk judgement: Evidence from the implementation of FIN 46R

This paper investigates how auditors respond, in terms of their pricing and audit work, to a reduction of clients’ financial reporting discretion upon the implementation of FIN 46R, which requires firms to consolidate the variable interest entities (VIE) under their control. Using a difference-in-differences research design, we find that auditors charge relatively fewer audit fees and have shorter audit report lags for firms that are significantly affected by FIN 46R, compared to a group of control firms. This result concurs with the view that auditors react favorably to the reduction of clients’ financial reporting discretion. Our finding is concentrated among clients with higher accrual earnings management constraints, auditors with less client-specific knowledge, and auditors who have no recent experience of audit failures (e.g., severe client restatements). Our results are robust to alternative identifications of treatment and control samples, and our conclusion remains valid after controlling for the contemporaneous adoption of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act. We also show that the relatively reduced audit fees and audit effort do not lead to the deterioration of audit quality.     

Have IFRS Affected Earnings Management in the European Union?

There has recently been considerable discussion of those features of IFRS that are likely to help improve financial reporting in the European Union. However, certain issues may also have a negative impact on the quality of information. This paper focuses on the effect of IFRS on earnings management. Its main purpose is to examine whether the adoption of IFRS in the European Union has increased or decreased the scope for discretionary accounting practices by comparing discretionary accruals in the periods preceding and immediately after the regulatory change. Another objective is to determine which firms' features and country factors may explain the accounting discretion observed before and after IFRS. We consider a sample of non-financial firms listed on 11 EU stock markets. The results obtained show that earnings management has intensified since the adoption of IFRS in Europe, as discretionary accruals have increased in the period following implementation. The variables explaining accounting discretion are the same before and after IFRS (business size, leverage, investor protection and legal enforcement). These results suggest that variations in earnings management might be due to some room for manipulation under international standards when compared with local standards.     

Understanding accounting discretion in China: An analysis of fair value reporting for investment property

This study sheds light on the discretionary accounting practices in China, the largest emerging market in the world. In particular, we focus on whether Chinese firms use discretion in investment property fair values to manage reported performance. We examine whether firms’ ex ante needs for accounting discretion affect their decisions to adopt fair value reporting for investment property and the ex post performance management by these fair value adopters. Our findings show that the voluntary adoption of fair value reporting for investment property in China remains low. However, the fair value option for investment property is significantly more likely to be chosen by firms with greater needs for accounting discretion. Consistent with the conjecture that firms choose the fair value model to manipulate reported earnings, we show that fair value adopters use the unrealized gains and losses associated with investment properties to smooth earnings and that these firms are also more likely to meet or beat earnings benchmarks after adoption. Overall, our findings indicate that the use of fair value reporting for investment property in the emerging Chinese market is driven by managerial opportunism.     

Transition Period of Mandated Accounting Changes — Timing of Adoption and Economic Consequences: The Case of SEAS No. 13

This study examines the economics of the timing of adoption of SFAS No. 13, Accounting for Leases by Lessees . We analyzed actual debt contracts of the affected firms to determine whether they were based on GAAP or Non-GAAP accounting rules. We also examined what actions were taken by management to alleviate the negative effects of complying with SFAS No. 13 . The results indicate that late adopters had a higher percentage of debt convenants based on GAAP measures, and that the late adopters would have experienced significant increases in closeness to default had they adopted SFAS No. 13 early. The results also indicate that by choosing late adoption, the firms were able to reduce the expected negative effects of the new accounting standard on financial statements.     

The impact of SFAS No. 141 on earnings predictability of merging firms: Evidence from the initial year of implementation

This study examines the impact of SFAS 141 on earnings predictability of merging firms. I expect a relative improvement in analysts’ earnings forecast accuracy for merging firms versus non-merging peers after SFAS 141 adoption. I restrict the post-SFAS 141 sample to the initial year of SFAS 141 implementation. This research design disentangles effects of SFAS No. 141 from those of SFAS No. 142. The evidence from analysis of 48 pairs of merging and matched non-merging firms is consistent with expectations and confirms the increase in earnings predictability for merging firms versus their non-merging peers post-SFAS 141. Results of additional tests suggest that earnings predictability improvement more likely follows from extended disclosure requirements and the other changes in the Purchase Method (“better purchase” issue) than from the elimination of Poolings-of-Interest (“purchase vs. pooling” issue).     

Equity Financial Assets: A Tool for Earnings Management—A Case Study of a Chinese Corporation

With China’s adoption of principles-based international accounting standards and its convergence with International Accounting Standard 39 (IAS 39), Chinese companies have discretion under the original Accounting Standards for Enterprises 22 (CAS 22) as to how they account for the initial measurement, sale, and subsequent reclassification of financial assets. We use a Chinese company (‘Company A’) as a case study to illustrate how earnings are managed to exploit this discretion. We document that the company re-classifies its available for sale equity investments as long-term equity investments to decrease the volatility of the company’s apparent profits. We also make some predictions regarding how the company will handle its financial assets under the new standard, which is the same as IFRS 9. Our research contributes to the continuous improvement of China’s accounting standards and has implications for regulators of the capital market.     

The impact of IFRS on accounting quality: Evidence from Greece

This paper examines the impact of IFRS adoption on the quality of accounting information within the Greek accounting setting. Using a sample of 101 firms listed in the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) for a period of eight years (2001–2008) we find convincing evidence that the implementation of IFRS contributed to less earnings management, more timely loss recognition and greater value relevance of accounting figures, compared to the local accounting standards. Also, our findings document that audit quality further complements the beneficial impact of IFRS since those companies that are audited by Big-5 audit firms exhibit higher levels of accounting quality. Our findings are robust in regard to different model specifications and after controlling for firm-specific effects like size, risk, profitability and growth opportunities.     

Effective board monitoring over earnings reports and forecasts: Evidence from CFO outside director appointments

Prior evidence that firms adjust their board structure following accounting restatements suggests that firms expect the board to effectively monitor the firm’s financial accounting system. However, little is known about signals firms use to identify monitoring weaknesses or the types of individuals firms appoint to improve the quality of monitoring. We expand on Ghannam, Bujega, Matolcsy, and Spiropolous (2019)’s evidence that firms appoint directors with accounting experience after financial fraud by investigating whether firms that file restatements or issue highly inaccurate earnings forecasts appoint individuals with CFO experience (i.e., a subset of accounting experts) to their audit committee. We find that firms are more likely to appoint an outside director with CFO experience to the audit committee when they have recently restated earnings and when they have higher prior management forecast error. We also find that the appointment of a CFO outside director to the audit committee is followed by a lower likelihood of restatement and more accurate management forecast. Together, our results suggest that firms respond to accounting failures by appointing outside directors with CFO experience. Thus, we provide insight into the signals firms use to identify weaknesses in the monitoring of the accounting function and the types of expertise firms value in addressing those weaknesses.     

Managing earnings risk under SFAS 133/IAS 39: the case of cash flow hedges

Whereas empirical studies suggest that firm hedging is influenced by accounting standards such as SFAS 133 and IAS 39, the nature of earnings risk management remains a puzzle. I develop a model that shows how non-financial firms that prefer predictable earnings jointly optimize their hedging strategy and the choice between fair-value and hedge accounting. I also examine the implications of these decisions for earnings predictability under SFAS 133/IAS 39. In this model, which has two accounting periods, earnings uncertainty arises from economic shocks and accounting mismatches. The specific influence of accounting mismatches is isolated with two benchmarks, one for firm hedging (cash flow hedging) and another for an accounting system that fully complies with the matching principle. In this forward-looking analysis, most firms significantly decrease the hedging of long-term earnings when faced with persistent price dynamics. Under non-persistent price dynamics, the levels of long-term earnings hedging are only slightly reduced. Therefore, the influence of accounting mismatches on firm hedging is highly dependent on the economic environment in which a firm operates, which suggests that the potential influence of accounting on firm hedging may be difficult to identify in archival studies. The analysis also offers a forward-looking perspective on the changing properties of earnings since the late 1970s that supplements the existing body of archival accounting studies. For example, under persistent price dynamics, forward-looking short-term earnings volatility may increase tenfold or more for cash flow hedging under fair-value accounting compared with a perfectly matched accounting system.     

The effects of SFAS 133 on foreign currency exposure of US-based multinational corporations

This study examines the change in foreign currency exposure of US-based multinational corporations (MNCs) upon implementation of SFAS 133—Disclosure of Derivative Instruments. We attempt to answer the question of whether this accounting requirement, which seeks to eliminate earnings surprises associated with derivatives, actually impacts earnings volatility and hedging strategies of exporting firms. Our results indicate that firms who were hedged prior to SFAS 133, i.e., those which managed their exposure using operational hedges, derivatives, or both, were able to decrease exposure to exchange rates following SFAS 133. However, those that were hedged prior to SFAS 133 and remained hedged following SFAS 133 did so without significantly changing their imbalances, i.e., without using operational hedges. These firms also experienced an increase in earnings volatility and a decrease in earnings predictability, as predicted by critics of the regulation. However, market value does not change following SFAS 133, implying that investors do not equate accounting regulation changes and EPS volatility with changes in cash flow.     

An exploratory study of earnings management detectability,analyst coverage and the impact of IFRS adoption: Evidence from China

Analysts serving as external monitors to managers is a topic of considerable interest in the analyst coverage literature. There are two outcomes of analyst coverage studies: curbing and stimulating earnings management. However, recent studies (such as Yu, 2008) only provide evidence supporting the curbing side. Given the fact that the data of these studies focus on developed markets and the finding of Rodríguez-Pérez and Hemmen (2010) that external governance mechanisms may stimulate earnings management in an opaque information environment, we conjecture whether stimulating side would be dominant in emerging markets. China offers a valuable setting for us to test the question. Using the data of China capital market from 2003 to 2009, we find that analyst coverage stimulates earnings management through above-the-line items (ALIs) where earnings management cannot be easily detected, and curbs earnings management through below-the-line items (BLIs) where earnings management can be easily detected. We also find that the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in China does create many new opportunities for managers’ earnings management but does not significantly improve the monitoring effect of analyst coverage. We only find that compared to those without analyst coverage, firms with analyst coverage have a lower level of earnings management through BLIs after IFRS adoption. These findings suggest that information opacity may weaken the monitoring effect of external corporate governance mechanisms and high quality accounting standards in the literal sense may not enhance the monitoring effect of external corporate governance mechanisms if it is not compatible with the market’s institutional environment. In addition, we find that firms with earnings meeting the benchmark have a lower level of earnings management, which indicates that bright-line accounting based rules used in emerging capital markets may constrain the managers’ behavior.     

The Differential Impact of IFRS Adoption on Aspects of Seasoned Equity Offerings in the UK and France

We examine the potential for IFRS to influence the market for SEOs in the UK and France. The divergence between the UK domestic accounting standards and IFRS is minor (low-divergence firms) whereas domestic accounting standards in France differ materially from IFRS (high-divergence firms); however, both countries have similar legal enforcement and institutional settings that might confound the effect of IFRS adoption. We argue that IFRS adoption serves to mitigate information asymmetry and improve accounting quality. Accordingly, we find that, following IFRS adoption, earnings management activities decrease among high-divergence firms prior to issuing SEOs. As a result of the lower levels of earnings management and information asymmetry, we predict and find that the market reaction to issuing SEOs improves significantly for high-divergence firms following IFRS. Given that equity financing becomes less costly, we find that the propensity to issue new SEOs increases among high-divergence firms after IFRS adoption. We find no similar changes among low-divergence firms. The results persist after running a matched-sample analysis and controlling for potential self-selection bias.     

Accounting for inventory costs and real earnings management behavior

Prior research finds that managers engage in inventory overproduction to inflate current earnings despite the fact that overproduction is associated with significant economic costs. Additionally, Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 151 (SFAS 151) limited the fixed costs that can be capitalized to inventory in periods of low production, thereby introducing a penalty for underproduction by requiring firms to expense unallocated overhead in the current period. Because periods of underproduction often follow periods of overproduction, and because SFAS 151's emphasis on the subjective determination of normal capacity can erroneously categorize overproducing firms as underproducers in subsequent years, we posit that SFAS 151 makes overproduction less desirable than before. Therefore, we posit that management's propensity to use overproduction to meet earnings benchmarks should decrease after the adoption of SFAS 151. Consistent with expectations, we find a lower propensity to use overproduction to meet benchmarks following SFAS 151. These results challenge the view that SFAS 151 inadvertently encouraged overproduction.     

Value relevance and timeliness of transitional goodwill-impairment losses: Evidence from Canada

Focusing on transitional goodwill-impairment losses (losses) recorded by Canadian firms following the adoption of revised standards on purchased goodwill, we investigate the value relevance and timeliness of mandatory changes in accounting principles accounted for using the retroactive method. We find a negative relationship between reported losses and share price. Such a finding is consistent with investors perceiving losses as being sufficiently reliable measurements of a reduction in the value of goodwill to incorporate them in their valuation assessments. We find also that investors put a higher valuation weight on losses reported by firms that are expected to record a loss. In addition, we show that investors perceive that there are reduced opportunities for managerial discretion when there is a more effective audit committee. Finally, our results show that returns lead losses, i.e., that losses represent a catch-up adjustment to reflect the cumulative effect of using the impairment approach for the first time. Overall, our evidence supports U.S. standard setters' decision, through SFAS 154, to favour enhanced comparability and consistency over the potential costs of frequent restatements. Our results also show that fair-value measurements can be relevant even when the financial statement elements of interest are inherently bound to measurement error and subject to significant managerial discretion. They support the notion that reliability is about faithful representation, not precision.     

Geographic earnings disclosure and trading volume

Beginning with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 131 (SFAS 131), Disclosures about Segments of an Enterprise and Related Information, most US multinational firms no longer disclose geographic earnings in their annual reports. Given the recent growth in foreign operations of US firms and the varying operating environments around the world, information (or lack thereof) related to geographical performance can affect investors’ information set. Using empirical tests that closely follow the [Kim, O., Verrecchia, R., 1997. Pre-announcement and event-period private information. Journal of Accounting and Economics 24, 395–419] model, we find results consistent with their predictions. Specifically, using a sample of firms with substantial foreign operations, we find evidence of a decrease in event period private information following adoption of SFAS 131 for firms that no longer disclose geographic earnings. These results suggest that decreased public information (i.e., non-disclosure of geographic earnings) reduces the ability of investors to utilize or generate private information in conjunction with the public announcement of quarterly earnings, which dampens trading. We also find evidence of a decrease in pre-announcement private information following adoption of SFAS 131. This is consistent with an overall improvement in public disclosures that has the effect of reducing differences in the precision of private information across investors in the period prior to the earnings announcement. However, such an effect is observed for both firms which no longer disclose geographic earnings and for firms that continue to disclose geographic earnings.     

An analysis of the effect of mandatory adoption of IAS/IFRS on earnings management

This paper examines whether mandatory adoption of international accounting standards, IAS/IFRS, by French companies is associated with lower earnings management. In addition, the impact of six factors that may be related to earnings management level are also considered: the independence and the efficiency of the board of directors, the separation of roles of CEO and Chairman of the board, the existence of an independent audit committee, the existence of block shareholders, the quality of the external audit and the listing on foreign financial markets.Based on a sample of 353 French listed groups relating to the period 2003–2006, our results show that the mandatory adoption of IAS/IFRS is associated with a reduction in the earnings management level. In addition, the independence and the efficiency of the board of directors, the existence of an independent audit committee, the existence of block shareholders, the quality of the external audit and the listing on foreign financial markets are important factors for enforcement of IAS/IFRS in France. Mandatory adoption of IAS/IFRS has decreased earnings management level for companies with good corporate governance and those that depend on foreign financial markets.     

Managerial Empire Building and Firm Disclosure

This study tests the agency cost hypothesis in the context of geographic earnings disclosures. The agency cost hypothesis predicts that managers, when not monitored by shareholders, make self‐maximizing decisions that may not necessarily be in the best interest of shareholders. These decisions include aggressively growing the firm, which reduces profitability and destroys firm value. Geographic earnings disclosures provide an interesting context to examine this issue. Beginning with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 131 (SFAS 131), most U.S. multinational firms are no longer required to disclose earnings by geographic area (e.g., net income in Mexico or net income in East Asia). Such nondisclosure potentially reduces the ability of shareholders to monitor managers' decisions related to foreign operations. Using a sample of U.S. multinationals with substantial foreign operations, we find that nondisclosing firms, relative to firms that continue to disclose geographic earnings, experience greater expansion of foreign sales, produce lower foreign profit margins, and have lower firm value in the post–SFAS 131 period. Our conclusions are strengthened by the fact that these differences do not exist in the pre–SFAS 131 period and do not relate to domestic operations. We find differences in the predicted direction only for foreign operations and only after adoption of SFAS 131. Our results are robust to the inclusion of an extensive set of control variables related to alternative corporate governance mechanisms, operating performance, and the firm's information environment. Overall, the results are consistent with the agency cost hypothesis and the important role of financial disclosures in monitoring managers.     

The valuation and reliability implications of FIN 46 for synthetic lease liabilities

We examine whether adoption of FASB Interpretation No. 46/R (FIN 46), Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities–an Interpretation of ARB No. 51, changed the market valuation and related measurement reliability of synthetic lease liabilities. Adopted in 2003, FIN 46 requires financial statement recognition of many previously off-balance sheet structures, including synthetic leases. Synthetic leases are hybrid financing structures that, prior to FIN 46, allowed firms to maximize the benefits of asset ownership for tax purposes while retaining operating lease treatment within the firm’s financial statements. We identify a sample of 125 synthetic leasing firms impacted by FIN 46. Utilizing methodology consistent with Dhaliwal et al. (2011), we constructively capitalize these lease liabilities in the period preceding FIN 46 and compare market valuation of these liabilities with capitalized leases after adoption of the standard. We find that the market places greater weight on synthetic lease obligations recognized within the body of the financial statements than it does liabilities disclosed within the associated notes. Finally, we rely on econometric procedures developed in Barth (1991) and extended in Choi et al. (1997) to examine whether the differential market valuation of lease liabilities post FIN 46 is due in part to perceived differences in measurement reliability. The results indicate there is a post FIN 46 reliability effect for all lease liabilities examined. However, while the synthetic lease amounts are the most unreliable examined, they also experience the greatest increase in reliability post FIN 46, indicating that perceived measurement reliability explains in part differential market valuation associated with FIN 46. Our findings have the potential to inform the ongoing standard setting debate surrounding the possible capitalization of all leases. Further, our study also has economic implications for managers concerned with the potential constraints on asset financing options imposed by accounting regulation.     

Information Content of Earnings and Earnings Components of Commercial Banks: Impact of SFAS No. 115

SFAS No. 115 modified classification of debt and equity securities held by firms and also modified the reporting format for unrealised gains/losses on security transactions (URGL). This study investigates whether implementation of SFAS No. 115 improved information content of earnings and earnings components of commercial banks. Improvement in the information content is measured by comparing the association between equity returns and earnings and earnings components of the post-adoption period of SFAS No. 115 with the pre-adoption period.The test results indicate that the association of equity returns with earnings components and aggregate earnings is significantly stronger in the post-adoption period compared to the pre-adoption period. The improvement is especially evident for the components of URGL and non-interest revenues. These results suggest that information provided by earnings components is considered more value relevant for investment decision after implementation of SFAS No. 115. Findings on non-interest revenues indicate that revenues from banking activities other than lending also play an important role in the commercial banks' profitability.