代理冲突、董事会质量与“污点”审计师变更

当审计师因受监管部门处罚而致声誉受损时,公司变更"污点"审计师表明其对高质量审计服务存在较大需求。本文利用2002-2010年间被中国证监会处罚的会计师事务所及其上市公司客户数据,从代理冲突和董事会质量的角度,考察相关因素对上市公司变更其声誉受损审计师决策的影响。结果发现,就代理冲突变量而言,当原审计师受到处罚后,股权集中度与审计师变更之间呈显著正向关系,而财务杠杆及管理层是否持股与审计师变更之间没有表现出显著的关系;就董事会质量而言,董事会的规模、独立性和勤勉性与"污点"审计师变更之间均未表现出显著关联,仅是否同时设立四个专门委员会与"污点"审计师变更之间呈显著正向关系。     

管理层持股与审计师事务所规模

本文假定大的审计师事务所所提供较高质量的审计服务.通过检验管理层持股比例和审计师事务所规模的关系,检验代理理论的预测.通过管理层持股比例和代理成本之间关系和会计事务所规模和审计质量的结合,代理理论预测代理成本和雇佣高质量的会计师事务所之间是正相关关系     

公司战略差异度与审计师选择

本文考察战略差异度是否影响企业聘请高质量外部审计师的概率.研究发现:(1)战略差异度与高质量审计师的聘用显著正相关;(2)在代理冲突严重的公司中,战略差异度对高质量审计师聘用的影响更加显著;(3)经营风险和管理者自由裁量权所导致的代理冲突在战略差异度和高质量审计师聘用之间发挥着中介作用;(4)高质量审计师可以显著抑制战略差异度较大公司的盈余管理和大股东掏空行为,并降低其权益资本成本.本研究丰富了战略差异的经济后果以及审计师选择影响因素的相关文献,进一步加深我们对战略如何影响企业决策的理解.     

公司战略差异度与审计师选择

本文考察战略差异度是否影响企业聘请高质量外部审计师的概率.研究发现:(1)战略差异度与高质量审计师的聘用显著正相关;(2)在代理冲突严重的公司中,战略差异度对高质量审计师聘用的影响更加显著;(3)经营风险和管理者自由裁量权所导致的代理冲突在战略差异度和高质量审计师聘用之间发挥着中介作用;(4)高质量审计师可以显著抑制战略差异度较大公司的盈余管理和大股东掏空行为,并降低其权益资本成本.本研究丰富了战略差异的经济后果以及审计师选择影响因素的相关文献,进一步加深我们对战略如何影响企业决策的理解.     

审计质量的双维研究范式及其述评

审计质量的决定因素、影响路径和经济后果是审计实证研究的重要议题。基于本文提出的审计质量双维研究范式,审计质量包含了审计师监督强度和审计师声誉两个维度,双重维度的区分凸显了市场供需双方关注视角上的差异。公司治理观下监督需求、市场中介角色下的信息需求以及高诉讼风险环境下保险需求共同构成了声誉维度的审计质量需求方驱动因素。审计师的风险管理策略和市场竞争策略是审计师效用函数的主要决定因素并进而对审计师监督强度产生影响,二者构成了审计质量的供给方驱动因素。审计质量的不同维度决定了其影响路径分别表现为信息质量和信息可信度两个层面,然而间接导致的显著经济后果主要来自于声誉维度。     

审计师变更与审计质量:一个理论分析

本文通过建立股东、管理层和审计师三方参与的两委托人-单代理人博弈模型,研究了固定审计费用下不同审计师变更方式对审计质量的影响。研究结果表明,审计师强制性单期变更与审计师强制性定期变更下,审计师与管理层之间的合谋将导致严重的财务舞弊;而在审计师自愿性变更下,股东可以利用解聘现任审计师这一威胁来阻止审计师和管理层之间的合谋,使得审计师和管理层的最优策略均为真实披露公司的盈余信息,并发表标准无保留审计意见。     

审计师变更与审计质量：一个经验研究综述

本文对国内外有关审计师变更与审计质量的经验文献做了较为全面、系统的回顾。总的看来,已有的文献主要从审计师变更与审计意见购买、审计任期与盈余质量以及审计师变更与盈余质量三个方面来考察审计师变更对审计质量的影响,但并未取得一致性的研究结论。本文在对相关文献综述的基础上从多维度计量盈余质量和结合中国特殊的制度背景两个方面提出未来的研究方向。     

媒体负面报道、审计师变更与审计质量

本文基于新闻传播学的"议程设置"理论,并融合心理学的"铺垫效果"及"框架"理论为分析构架,以2008—2012年中国A股上市公司为样本,采用可操控性应计利润和会计稳健性作为审计质量衡量指标,研究媒体负面报道对审计质量的作用机制以及媒体负面报道对审计师变更的审计质量影响。研究表明:媒体负面报道与审计质量呈正相关。进一步地,审计师变更对审计质量的作用并不显著,但媒体负面报道的铺垫效应及框架设置对审计师变更的审计质量具有明显改善效果,且这种作用在审计师升级变更的审计质量方面更强。这一结论为加强新闻媒体在资本市场中的审计监管提供了建设性的指导意义。     

制度环境、审计供求与审计治理——基于我国证券市场中审计师变更问题的实证分析

本文基于我国证券市场中审计师变更问题这一动态视角考察了制度环境对外部审计治理的影响。通过研究,我们发现:首先,在制度环境发展相对落后的地区,上市公司频繁更换审计师的现象更严重;其次,在制度环境发展相对较好的地区,上市公司更可能发生审计师升级变更,表明其对高质量审计服务的需求;第三,在制度环境发展较差的地区,由于诉讼风险和诉讼成本较低,继任审计师为了获得审计客户更容易发生变通审计意见的行为,说明审计师难以发挥其外部治理的功能进而弥补制度环境的缺陷。本文的研究发现说明制度环境同时影响审计需求和审计供给两方面的行为表现,并支持了制度环境与外部审计治理是相互促进的关系。     

审计师变更的经济后果研究——来自中国证券市场的经验证据

本文运用2002—2008年我国上市公司数据研究了审计师变更的经济后果。以公司市场价值与其财务盈利的相关系数(简称为盈利可信度)作为审计师变更的经济后果的替代变量,通过研究我们发现:审计师变更总体上降低了上市公司的盈利可信度;变更前一年度财务报告被出具非标准审计意见或者处于财务困境的公司,发生审计师变更使其盈利可信度下降的程度更大;出于对审计服务级差需求的审计师变更,无论是升级变更还是降级变更公司的盈利可信度均显著高于同级变更的公司,而升级变更为声誉较好的国际四大会计师事务所带来的盈利可信度的提高程度最大;审计委员会的设立与否以及上市公司的盈余管理程度对于审计师变更的经济后果没有显著影响,这可能是由于我国上市公司审计委员会的独立性不强以及投资者对上市公司的盈余管理行为识别不足造成的。研究结论同时还说明审计意见分歧、上市公司财务困境以及对审计服务的级差需求是我国上市公司变更审计师的主要原因。本文的研究发现有助于包括上市公司、会计师事务所、投资者以及证券市场监管部门在内的信息使用者更好地理解和评价我国证券市场中的审计师变更现象,并为相关领域的研究提供了新的经验证据。     

Explaining auditors’ propensity to issue going‐concern opinions in Australia after the global financial crisis

We document an increase in auditors issuing going‐concern opinions in Australia over a prolonged period since the Global Financial Crisis that is not fully explained by changes in client risk. Overall, our evidence is consistent with auditors reporting more conservatively with the increased level of scrutiny from Australian Securities and Investments Commission inspections and other increased regulation, and in particular, the negative attention following the 2011–2012 inspections. As a result, auditor reports with reference to going‐concern issues have become less informative regarding future corporate failure.     

Audit quality, auditor compensation and initial public offering underpricing

We jointly study the impact of audit quality on auditor compensation and initial public offering (IPO) underpricing using a sample of Australian firms going public over the period 1996–2003. We find that quality (Big Four) audit firms earn significantly higher fees than non-Big Four auditors, and audit quality is positively associated with IPO underpricing. The positive relation between audit quality and underpricing is more pronounced for small issues, IPOs underwritten by non-prestigious underwriters, and those that are not backed by venture capitalists. Taken together, our results suggest that quality auditors serve as a signalling device that enhances post-issue market value of equity.     

审计师声誉机制：概念、特征及作用机理

当前”大力创建自主知名品牌”已成为注册会计师行业发展的目标之一,研究品牌声誉理论迫在眉睫。本文认为,审计师声誉机制是社会公众及利益相关者对审计师努力建立声誉、利用声誉获取溢价、毁损声誉以获得利润及付出艰辛重获声誉活动的整体认知与反馈。审计师声誉机制包括形成机制、作用机制、毁损机制与修复机制,这四种机制均有各自的特征,并在时间维度的动态过程中体现出长期博弈、价值波动与不规则运动三种作用机理。     

Same information,different value: New evidence on the value of voluntary assurance

This paper examines whether there is a difference in the value of voluntarily assured financial statements of private firms, depending on the availability of other information for the users of the statements. By using a within-firm estimator that completely controls for firm fixed effects, we find that the loan interest rate for private firms with voluntarily assured financial statements is lower when the firms have longer relationships with their banks. This finding suggests that the value of assured financial statements differs among the same type of users (banks), and is larger for those that accumulate soft information through long-term lending relationships. We also find that this larger value is not present when the tenure of the auditor with the client is very long.     

Auditor rotation and the appearance of independence: Evidence from non-professional investors

We examine the impact of audit firm versus partner rotation on non-professional investors’ independence-related perceptions, extending prior research on auditor rotation and independence in fact. Arguments for mandatory audit firm rotation continue to be made by regulators and investor groups based, in part, on the idea that firm rotation will incrementally strengthen independence in appearance relative to audit partner rotation. We report the results of two experiments. The first examines 5-year audit firm versus partner rotation under relatively weak or strong audit committees. We find no statistically significant difference in beliefs about how much of an income reducing audit difference management will record, or in beliefs about auditor independence, between the two auditor rotation conditions. On the other hand, we find that non-professional investors do believe more of the audit difference will be recorded, and the auditors will be more independent, under a strong audit committee than a relatively weak audit committee. The second experiment provides further evidence on audit firm versus partner rotation by examining a setting involving a 26-year audit firm–client relationship. Again, no statistically significant differences between the two auditor rotation conditions were found. These findings suggest that compared to audit partner rotation, audit firm rotation does not strengthen independence in appearance among non-professional investors and that non-professional investors recognize the value of strong audit committees.     

The distraction effect of non-audit services on audit quality

Regulators have expressed concerns that an emphasis on non-audit services (NAS) could distract from the audit function, even for clients with minimal NAS purchases. Motivated by this concern, we examine whether a greater emphasis on providing NAS to audit clients generally (i.e., not to a specific client) can distract from the audit function, thus reducing audit quality. We find evidence of an NAS distraction effect, where a greater emphasis on NAS at the audit office-level results in more client financial statement restatements, even after controlling for client-specific NAS. Further, the association exists among clients that purchase minimal NAS, suggesting that this association relates to distraction effects in addition to independence issues examined in prior research. This study should be of interest to audit firms, audit committees, and regulators because it provides new evidence regarding issues related to a business model that includes both audit and non-audit services.     

Earnings quality: Some evidence on the role of auditor tenure and auditors’ industry expertise

Prior studies suggest that auditors with short tenure are associated with lower earnings quality because of the lack of client-specific knowledge and/or low balling. In this study, we examine whether industry specialization of auditors and low balling affect the association between auditor tenure and earnings quality. We find that the association between shorter auditor tenure and lower earnings quality is weaker for firms audited by industry specialists compared to non-specialists. In addition, we do not find results consistent with the low balling explanation.     

Educational interventions for teaching the new auditor independence rules

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 brought sweeping changes to the accounting profession. One important mandate was for the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to strengthen the rules of auditor independence. To meet its legal responsibility, the SEC issued Final Rule No. 68 [United States Securities and Exchange Commission (USSEC) (2003). Final Rule 68: Strengthening the commission’s requirements regarding auditor independence. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office [Issue Date: January 28, 2003 (www.sec.gov/rules/final/33-8183.htm and Retrieval Date: January 25, 2004)]], thereby adopting new independence rules for auditors of public companies.     

Acquirers’ abnormal returns and the non-Big 4 auditor clientele effect

I analyze the effect of auditor choice on acquirers’ values around merger announcements and the factors affecting the interaction between auditor size and the market reaction to merger announcements. I find that acquirers audited by non-Big 4 accounting firms outperform those audited by Big 4 firms. This effect is more pronounced when the targets are privately held and when the likelihood of the auditors playing a prominent advisory role increases. While the largest auditing firms are usually assumed to offer superior services, the study suggests that smaller firms have a comparative advantage in assisting their clients in merger transactions.     

Using machine learning to predict auditor switches: How the likelihood of switching affects audit quality among non-switching clients

In this paper, we utilize machine learning techniques to identify the likelihood that a company switches auditors and examine whether increased likelihood of switching is associated with audit quality. Building on research that finds a deterioration in audit quality associated with clients that engage in audit opinion shopping, we predict and find lower audit quality among companies that are more likely to switch auditors but remain with their incumbent auditor. Specifically, we find that companies more likely to switch auditors have a higher likelihood of misstatement and larger abnormal accruals. These results are consistent with auditors sacrificing audit quality to retain clients that might otherwise switch. Our findings are especially concerning because there is no public signal of this behavior, such as an auditor switch. Our methodology is designed such that it could be implemented by investors, audit firms and regulators to identify companies with a higher probability of switching auditors and preemptively address the deterioration in audit quality.