Financial Distress, the Severity of Financial Distress and Direction of Earnings Management: Evidences from Indian Economy

2021 ◽  
pp. 231971452110393
Author(s):  
Debdas Rakshit ◽  
Chanchal Chatterjee ◽  
Ananya Paul
Keyword(s):  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Financial Condition ◽  
Low Degree ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
Distance To Default ◽  
The Relationship

This paper investigates the relationship between earnings management and financial distress and considers whether this relationship varies based on the severity of financial distress and signs of discretionary accruals (a proxy for earnings management). For this purpose, multiple regression analysis has been employed on a sample of 192 financially distressed Indian firms during the period 2011–2018, counting to 1,272 firm-year observations. Discretionary accruals are estimated by the Modified Jones model and Raman and Shahrur (2008) model, while Altman’s Z-score and distance-to-default model are used to detect the degree of financial distress. The findings disclose that the low distressed firms are indulged in higher earnings management than high distressed firms. Also, the low distressed firms are engaged more in income-decreasing earnings management. However, the results are not consistent across both earnings management and distress measures. The findings have significant implications for investors and creditors. They need to be aware of this fact while evaluating creditworthiness of a firm since firms with even a low degree of financial distress can indulge in earnings management to camouflage their true financial condition.

scholarly journals FINANCIAL CONDITION MODERATED THE EFFECTIVENESS OF AUDIT COMMITTEETOREDUCE EARNINGSMANAGEMENT

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michella Maria Virgine Prayogo ◽  
Yie Ke Feliana ◽  
Aurelia Carina Christanti Sutanto
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Audit Committee ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Score Test ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Financial Condition ◽  
Activity Frequency ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
The Impact

Some cases of financial fraud invite inquiries about the effectiveness of corporategovernance mechanism in financial distress companies. This study empiricallyexamines whether the financial distress moderate the impact of corporate governancemechanism to earnings management. The sample of this study is manufacturingcompanies listed at Indonesia Stock Exchange for period 2010 -2012. Discretionaryaccruals are used as a proxy for earnings management, while financially distressed andnon-distressed firms are identified based on Altman Z-score test. Corporate governancemechanism is measured by four characteristics of the audit committee, i.e. size (totalnumber of audit committee members), independence (audit committee composition),activity(frequency of audit committee meeting), and expertise (the number of auditcommittee have finance or accounting background).This study finds that (1) financialdistress does not moderate the impact of total members of audit committee to earningsmanagement; (2) financial distress does not moderate the impact of frequency of auditcommittee meeting to earnings management; (3) financial distress does not moderatethe impact of audit committee composition to earnings management; (4)financialdistress moderates the impact of audit committee finance/accounting knowledge toearnings management. These results suggestthat the effectiveness corporate governanceis low, and finance/accounting literacy of audit committee should be alert.Beberapa kasus manipulasi keuangan pada perusahaan yang mengalami kesulitankeuangan mengundang pertanyaan terkait efektifitas mekanisme tata kelola perusahaan.Penelitian ini secara empiris menguji apakah kondisi kesulitan keuangan dapatmemoderasi pengaruh mekanisme tata kelola perusahaan terhadap manajemen laba.Sampel dari penelitian ini adalah perusahaan sektor manufaktur yang terdaftar di BursaEfek Indonesia periode 2010-2012.Discretionary accruals digunakan sebagai proksiuntuk manajemen laba, sedangkan kondisi kesulitan keuangan diidentifikasimenggunakan uji Altman Z-score. Mekanisme tata kelola perusahaan diukur dengan 4karakteristik komite audit, yaitu ukuran (jumlah anggota komite audit), independensi(komposisi komite audit), aktivitas (frekuensi pertemuan komite audit), dan keahlian(jumlah anggota komite audit yang memiliki latar belakang keuangan atau akuntansi).Penelitian ini menemukan bahwa (1) kondisi kesulitan keuangan tidak memoderasipengaruh jumlah anggota komite audit terhadap manajemen laba; (2) kondisi kesulitankeuangan tidak memoderasi pengaruh frekuensi pertemuan komite audit terhadapmanajemen laba; (3) kondisi kesulitan keuangan tidak memoderasi pengaruh komposisikomite audit terhadap manajemen laba; (4) kondisi kesulitan keuangan memoderasi pengaruh jumlah anggota komite audit yang memiliki latar belakang keuangan atauakuntansi terhadap manajemen laba. Hasil ini menunjukkan bahwa efektifitas tatakelola perusahaan masih rendah dan anggota komite audit yang memiliki latar belakangkeuangan atau akuntansi harus mewaspadainya.

Earnings Management Response to Debt Covenant Violations and Debt Restructuring

2002 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 295-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bikki Jaggi ◽  
Picheng Lee
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Debt Restructuring ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
Debt Covenant ◽  
Financially Distressed ◽  
Covenant Violations

The study investigates whether the choice of income-increasing or income-decreasing discretionary accruals is related to the severity of financial distress and whether this choice is also influenced by the creditors' waivers of debt covenant violations. Financially distressed firms experiencing debt covenant violations and/or debt restructuring during the 1989–96 period are used to evaluate the management's choice of discretionary accruals. Discretionary accruals are calculated based on four different accrual models. The results show that managers of financial distressed firms use income-increasing discretionary accruals if they are able to obtain waivers for debt covenant violations, and use income-decreasing discretionary accruals if debt restructuring takes place or debts are renegotiated because waivers are denied. These findings thus provide support to the expectation that the choice of income-increasing or -decreasing discretionary accruals is influenced by the severity of financial distress. They also provide an explanation for divergence in the results of earlier studies on the use of income-increasing or -decreasing discretionary accruals by financially distressed firms.

The Effect of the Determinants of Accounting Discretion on the Relationship Between Earnings Management and Stock Returns

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 391
Author(s):  
Sondes Draief
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Stock Returns ◽  
Private Information ◽  
Firm Value ◽  
Financial Risk ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Growth Options ◽  
Future Prospects ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
The Relationship

This research investigates the effect of the determinants of accounting discretion (beating last year’s earnings, overinvestment problems, growth options, debt, and financial risk) on the relationship between earnings management and stock returns. We use discretionary accruals as a proxy of earnings management.Based on a sample of 486 American firms for the period 2002-2010, our results show that discretionary accruals are positively priced by the market. This relation is even stronger when firms beat last year’s earnings, have higher growth options and increase their debt ratio. Indeed, firms’ accounting manipulations are used, in these circumstances, to convey private information about future prospects and signal good financial situation to external investors. However, discretionary accruals are negatively priced by investors in distressed firms and when overinvestment problems are intense. These firms have greater motivation to use opportunistic earnings management to camouflage the fall of firm value.

Financial Distress, Earnings Benchmark and Earnings Management Practices

2021 ◽  
pp. 097226292110109
Author(s):  
Karan Gandhi
Keyword(s):  
Panel Data ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Real Earnings Management ◽  
Public Companies ◽  
Large Panel ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
Contradictory Evidence ◽  
Financially Distressed

Prior research exhibits contradictory evidence on earnings management practices, both accrual and real, undertaken by the firms in state of financial distress. This study uniquely examines the issue in the presence of earnings-increasing earnings management motivation- meeting earnings benchmark of avoiding losses. For examining the issue, this study analyzes large panel data of Indian public companies for the period 2000–2016. The findings indicate prevalence of earnings-decreasing real earnings management practices, that is, decrease in overproduction and increase in spending on discretionary expenses, in financially distressed firms despite there being motivation to increase earnings to avoid losses. No evidence of accrual earnings management practices has been observed in such firms.

Can Corporate Social Responsibility Decrease the Negative Influence of Financial Distress on Accounting Quality?

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 11124
Author(s):  
Jun Hyeok Choi ◽  
Saerona Kim ◽  
Dong-Hoon Yang ◽  
Kwanghee Cho
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Accounting Quality ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Positive Effect

This study aimed to test how corporate social responsibility (CSR) can affect the impact of corporate financial distress on earnings management. Based on the existing literature, distressed firms tend to hide their financial crises through earnings manipulation. However, as CSR can positively affect companies in terms of performance, risk reduction, and market response, the better a firm’s CSR is the less managers will attempt earnings management even if they experience temporary distress. Consistent with the literature, test results using Korean-listed companies show that distress increased earnings management, and we confirmed that CSR weakened the positive effect of distress on earnings management. After testing each of the CSR subcategories, significant results were found mainly on environmental performance, reflecting the globally increasing interest in environmental issues. This study contributes to the literature on distress and earnings management, which rarely considers CSR as a moderating factor.

Fixing the Core, Earnings Management, and Sustainable Emergence From Financial Distress: Evidence From China’s Special Treatment System

2021 ◽  
pp. 0148558X2110511
Author(s):  
Jiao Jing ◽  
Kenneth Leung ◽  
Jeffrey Ng ◽  
Janus Jian Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Operating Efficiency ◽  
Special Treatment ◽  
Multiple Stakeholders ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
The Core ◽  
Distressed Firms ◽  
Core Earnings

Throughout their business life cycle, firms may experience financial distress. Successful emergence from such distress is important to their multiple stakeholders. Using a sample of publicly listed firms in China that emerged from Special Treatment (an indicator of delisting risk), we focus on the key actions such firms take prior to emergence, namely, fixing the core of the business and earnings management. We examine how these actions are associated with sustainable emergence, which we define as emergence from Special Treatment without reentry in the next 5 years. Consistent with the expectation that shortcut fixes to problems do not yield a long-term solution, we find that repairing the core of the business by improving operating efficiency is positively associated with sustainable emergence, whereas earnings management is negatively associated with it. We also find that the positive (negative) association between fixing the core (earnings management) and sustainable emergence is pronounced only for state-owned enterprises. Our article adds to the limited literature that examines issues related to distressed firms’ sustainable turnaround.

Relationship between earnings management, CEO compensation, and stock return on Tehran Stock Exchange

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Mahdi Moardi ◽  
Mahdi Salehi ◽  
Simin Poursasan ◽  
Homa Molavi
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Cash Flow ◽  
Significant Relationship ◽  
Stock Return ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Cash Flow ◽  
Accruals Quality ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between earnings management and chief executive officers’ (CEOs) compensation. Owing to the fact that earnings management does not have only opportunistic effects, but signaling effects, this study focuses on accruals quality to examine earnings management incentives. Thus, accruals quality is described against future cash flow. The empirical evidences suggest that a positive relationship between discretionary accruals and future cash flow provides predictive elements for earnings management, whereas a negative relationship between discretionary accruals and future cash implies to opportunistic elements for earnings management. Should there is no significant relationship between discretionary accruals and future cash flow, there will be no earnings management, and such a result suggests that incentives and managers’ performance in these firms differ. Design/methodology/approach The statistical population of this research consists of all listed companies on the Tehran Stock Exchange during 2009–2016. Panel data method is applied in order to estimate the research model. Findings Findings of the study show that there is no significant relationship between discretionary accruals and future cash flow in pharmaceutical and food industries, thus they have neither predictive nor opportunist earnings management, while the results evidence a negative significant relationship between discretionary accruals and future cash flow in machineries, automobile, mineral and chemical industries. Furthermore, it can be alleged that there is no significant difference between CEOs’ compensation in firms with opportunistic earnings management (OEM) and other types of earnings management. It shows that firms do not have appropriate plans for CEOs’ compensation. Moreover, the relationship between earnings management and stock return has been investigated in this study. We document that stock return is influenced by accruals quality and its components. In other words, stock return significantly differs in firms with OEM and firms without any kind of earnings management. Research limitations/implications The authors’ findings provide contributions; for managers, it is noticeable that stock markets have sufficient comprehension about financial statements and the undertaken procedures on them, resulting in a higher return base on fair information. For investors and regulators, using the findings, may have deeper understanding to distinguish between industries that are recognized as opportunistic and non-opportunistic, which, in turn, results in better decision and regulation. Originality/value Previous studies have been mostly investigated OEM, while the current study examines both signaling and opportunistic aspects of earnings management.

Corporate social responsibility disclosures and earnings quality

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 277-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Badrul Muttakin ◽  
Arifur Khan ◽  
Mohammad I Azim
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Financial Reports ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Opportunistic Behaviour ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Responsible Manner

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosures and earnings quality proxied by earnings accruals. Specifically, we examine whether CSR disclosures are context-specific, that is, whether companies dominated by powerful stakeholders are obliged to behave in a responsible manner to constrain earnings management, thereby reporting higher-quality earnings to investors. Design/methodology/approach – This paper explores the relationship between CSR disclosures and earnings quality proxied by earnings accruals. Specifically, we examine whether CSR disclosures are context-specific, that is, whether companies dominated by powerful stakeholders are obliged to behave in a responsible manner to constrain earnings management, thereby reporting higher-quality earnings to investors. Findings – Results show that managers in an emerging economy manage earnings when they provide more CSR disclosures. Such earnings management is achieved through income increasing discretionary accruals. Furthermore, companies from export-oriented industries dominated by powerful stakeholders (international buyers) disclosing more CSR activities, provide transparent financial reports through constraining earnings management. Originality/value – The findings of this study are significant for both investors and policymakers. Investors should not take for granted that firms engage in CSR activities, behave ethically and provide transparent financial reports. As we document that firms might manipulate earnings through discretionary accruals and provide less transparent financial reports to shareholders, the credibility of firms’ CSR policies should be assessed with caution. Policies directing at promoting socially responsible practices instead of motivating the desired behaviour, may provide managers with additional incentives to utilise CSR for opportunistic behaviour. Thus, policymakers need to be cautious about this opportunistic behaviour and enhance monitoring to enforce social compliance. Possibly, some guidelines can be introduced to confirm that CSR disclosures are based on actual practice and not just a “green wash” statement to deceive stakeholders.

scholarly journals Financial distress as a moderating variable of the influence of audit opinion and public accounting firm size on voluntary auditor switching

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-176
Author(s):  
Choirul Huda ◽  
Ratno Agriyanto ◽  
Herwening Sindu Lestari ◽  
Bill Pangayow
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Firm Size ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Measuring Instrument ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Public Accounting ◽  
Audit Opinion ◽  
Accounting Firm ◽  
Auditor Switching ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose - This study aims to examine the effect of financial distress as a moderator of the effect of audit opinion and public accounting firm (KAP) size on auditor switching in companies listed on the Jakarta Islamic Index (JII) for the 2014-2019 period.Method - This study uses a sample of companies listed on the Jakarta Islamic Index (JII) for the 2014-2019 period. The number of companies sampled in this study were 12 companies. In this study, the researchers used a quantitative type of model and used the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 16 for analyzing the data.Result - The results show that audit opinion and public accounting firm size have no effect on auditor switching, financial distress is not able to moderate the effect of audit opinion with auditor switching, and financial distress is not able to moderate the relationship between public accounting firm size and auditor switching.Implication - For stakeholders in motivating management to retain or replace auditors from various factors that are considered including audit opinion, public accounting firm size and financial distress.Originality - The object used in this study is a list of companies registered on JII. There is a 2-year additional period from the previous study, which was 4 years to 6 years. The measuring instrument for the financial distress variable used in this study is the Altman Z-score. 

scholarly journals PENERIMAAN OPINI AUDIT GOING CONCERN BERDASARKAN LEVERAGE DAN FINANCIAL DISTRESS

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huda Aulia Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Sampling Method ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Mining Sector ◽  
Going Concern ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Research Period

AbstractThe purpose of this study is to determine the impact of leverage and financial distress on going concern audit opinions of mining sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) with the 2012-2017 research period. Leverage was proxied using debt to asset ratio (DAR), and financial distress was proxied using Altman Z-Score. The object of this research used were 17 mining sector companies selected based on the random purposive sampling method. This study used data processing logistic regression analysis using SPSS version 25. The results of this research was financial distress have negative effect on going concern modification opinions, while leverage had no effect on going concern audit opinion.                         Keywords: Financial Distress, Leverage, Going Concern Audit Opinion  

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document