High accruals momentum

We examine the information content of high accruals momentum defined as a string of high discretionary accruals for four consecutive years. We find that firms that consistently report high levels of discretionary accruals experience low subsequent returns. The results are robust after we control for annual levels of discretionary accruals for the estimation period of high accruals momentum. Furthermore, the predictive power of the high accruals momentum for future returns is strongly persistent even after the existing accruals anomaly disappears. Our results also show that the high accruals momentum impact is more pronounced for low growth firms, suggesting that the overpricing of stocks with high accruals momentum is driven by managerial discretion to manage earnings.     

Work-limiting health,earnings, and employment: an analysis with SIPP data

ABSTRACT

This study examines the role of work-limiting health conditions on employed people’s earnings, employment status, and working hours, and distinguishes between the different degree and severity of predictable shocks. Using data from the 2004 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), we evaluate the impact of any work-limiting health condition as well as a subset of health conditions that appear to arrive largely exogenously on post-onset earnings, employment, and working hours. We find that people who report being employed and later experience the onset of any work-limiting health condition tend to have lower subsequent earnings, a reduced probability of being employed, and fewer working hours per month compared to those who remain healthy. The adverse impact is even greater for people with health conditions that arrive less predictably. We use a difference-in-differences regression model with person and year fixed effects as the primary estimation method.     

Earnings management of initial public offering firms: evidence from regulation changes in China

Discretionary current accruals of Chinese initial public offering (IPO) firms decreased after the abolition of fixed‐price offering systems that directly linked offering price to reported earnings. Results suggest IPO firms that decrease managerial ownership manage earnings upward during the fixed‐price offering period, but this relationship disappeared after the introduction of a book‐building system. We also find that bank debt is negatively related to discretionary current accruals during the fixed‐price offering period, but no relation exists for the book‐building period. Leverage has a significant positive relationship with earnings management. However, this finding is potentially attributable to nonoffering price objectives or endogeneity biases.     

管理股权、会计选择与盈余质量

本文根据异常应计项目框架和修正的Jones模型,以1995—2004年上市公司数据为样本,对上市公司管理股权通过会计选择影响企业的盈余质量进行了分析。实证研究发现,管理股权比例与盈余质量之间呈U型分布,相对集中的管理股权有利于提高盈余质量。     

关联交易、线下项目与盈余管理——来自中国上市公司的经验证据

近年来,关联交易盈余管理愈演愈烈,极大地损害了投资者的利益。以往大量研究提供了上市公司操纵应计项目及线下项目进行盈余管理的证据,本文则以中国上市公司2002--2004年的面板数据为研究样本,首次大样本检验关联交易、线下项目与盈余管理的关系。本文的主要结论包括：（1）有配股盈余管理动机的公司的第一类关联交易（通常计入线上项目的关联交易）比例显著高于控制样本,第三类关联交易（担保抵押类关联交易）比例显著低于控制样本。（2）有避亏盈余管理动机的公司的第二类关联交易（通常计入线下项目的关联交易）比例显著高于控制样本。（3）有盈余管理动机的公司,当其附属企业集团时,或者其控股股东处于绝对控股地位时,其关联交易比例更高。（4）第一类关联交易与线下项目显著负相关,有盈余管理动机的公司,线下项目较低时第一类关联交易比例较高。（5）配股公司配股后的关联销售和关联采购比例显著低于配股前。扭亏为盈的公司扭亏当年的第二类关联交易比例显著高于扭亏前一年。综上所述,计入线上项目的关联交易是上市公司为获取配股资格而进盈余管理的重要手段,计入线下项目的关联交易是上市公司为避免亏损而进行盈余管理的重要手段;上市公司控股股东处于绝对控股地位时,或控股股东隶属某一企业集团时,关联交易盈余管理行为更严重;进行盈余管理时,线下项目与计入线上项目的关联交易具有替代性。     

理顺和规范Shibor决定机制的思考

由于目前Shibor与存贷款利率之间没有稳定联系,因而它还不能算基准利率。发挥Shibor的基准利率功能是推进利率市场化的关键,而要规范和完善Shibor的功能,则不能只关注Shibor操作的本身,更要分析决定Shibor的变量所处的状态,以及Shibor在利率体系中的地位,只有消除造成Shibor扭曲的变量,并使Shibor处于核心主导地位,Shibor才能成为调控利率体系的基准利率。     

Is earnings management opportunistic or beneficial? An agency theory perspective

Earnings management has been cast into negative light due to the recent corporate scandals and, therefore, is viewed as detrimental to the firm. Enron and Worldcom represent two of the most egregious cases of opportunistic earnings management that led to the largest bankruptcies in U.S. history. However, some argue that earnings management may be beneficial because it improves the information value of earnings by conveying private information to the stockholders and the public. We offer agency theory as a tool to distinguish between the opportunistic and beneficial uses of earnings management. The empirical evidence suggests that firms where earnings management occurs to a larger (less) extent suffer less (more) agency costs. Moreover, a positive relation is documented between firm value and the extent of earnings management. Taken together, the results reveal that earnings management is, on average, not detrimental.     

Market perceptions of discretionary accruals by debt renegotiating firms during economic downturn

This study addresses how a stock market prices earnings components around a sudden and severe economic downturn. In particular, the study examines the market valuation of discretionary accruals for debt renegotiating Malaysian firms during the Asian financial crisis. Our analysis shows that negative discretionary accruals for debt renegotiating firms are associated with higher market values of equity and are not related to the firms' future earnings. These findings are consistent with investors placing a positive value on the probability that negative accruals increase the likelihood that concessions can be extracted from lenders during renegotiation. In contrast, discretionary accruals for a control sample of non-debt renegotiating firms are not significantly associated with stock prices but are positively associated with future earnings.     

Influence of Culture on Earnings Management: A Note

This article examines the influence of national culture on earnings management across a broad cross-section of countries. In addition to examining the relation between culture and earnings management in general, two different types of earnings management are examined, namely, earnings smoothing and earnings discretion. Regression results indicate that, as expected, the cultural dimensions of uncertainty avoidance and individualism are significantly related to earnings management, even after controlling for investor protection and other legal institutional factors. Culture has a stronger relation with earnings smoothing than with earnings discretion, and cultural dimensions explain a greater percentage of the variation in aggregate earnings management and earnings smoothing than do investor protection variables. These findings suggest that there is a significant link between culture and cross-national differences in earnings management, especially in the form of earnings smoothing.     

Economic and financial themes in Australian aged care

This contribution reflects the results of work for a review of aged care in Australia. Initial material covers the policy arrangements in place prior to the beginning of the Review in September 2002. The main feature of the contribution is a survey of economic and financial performance of aged care entities not hitherto attempted. Most attention is directed to labour costs in relation to total costs and earnings before interest and taxes. Cross-section analyses are based on institutional differences between providers of services with some operating as “for profit” entities but most are not reflecting their religious, community-based and charitable origins. Locational differences are also examined. The results show a very great disparity in experiences so that notions of the average experience across providers of services cannot be upheld. Differences between the top 10 percent of entities offering services and the bottom quartile are striking. The implications for development of new strategic approaches to policies are clear.