scholarly journals Business cycles and earnings management strategies: a study in Brazilian public firms,

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (80) ◽  
pp. 216-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edilson Paulo ◽  
Renato Henrique Gurgel Mota
Keyword(s):  
Business Cycles ◽  
Business Cycle ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Real Earnings Management ◽  
Economic Environment ◽  
Opportunistic Behavior ◽  
The Business Cycle

ABSTRACT This study contributes to the literature dealing with the influence of macroeconomic factors on accounting information quality, since it analyzes the earnings management strategies of firms, specifically identifying different discretionary behaviors among economic cycles: 1) different levels of earnings management through accruals between phases of the business cycle, and 2) the trade-off between earnings management through accruals and real earnings management. The results indicate that the accounting information reported should be analyzed with greater caution by its users, especially in periods of great economic oscillations, when managers can increase or reduce opportunistic behavior. The research population comprised non-financial companies with shares traded on the São Paulo Stock, Commodities, and Futures Exchange (BM&FBovespa) and the sample was composed of 247 firms per year, covering the period from 2000 to 2015 and totaling 2,501 observations. The phases of business cycles were used as a proxy for the economic environment and were based on Schumpeter's (1939) study, which divides an business cycle into four distinct phases: expansion, recession, contraction, and recovery. Discretionary accruals were estimated according to the Pae (2005) and Paulo (2007) models. Real earnings management was estimated as described by Roychowdhury (2006), using only the abnormal behavior of production costs and operational decisions. The results of this research show that earnings management strategies, using either accruals or real manipulation, as well as the choice between these strategies, are impacted by the economic environment. The evidence suggests that managers have different opportunistic behavior in each phase of the business cycle. Specifically, they increase the level of discretionary accruals in contractionary phases and reduce it during recoveries, while they manage earnings downwards via real manipulation in recessions and contractions.

scholarly journals The Economic Effects of Earnings Management Pre- and Post-SOX

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry W. Mason ◽  
Richard M. Morton
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Firm Value ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Economic Effects ◽  
Real Earnings Management ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Accounting Scandals ◽  
Financial Oversight

Research suggests that following several high-profile accounting scandals and the passage of SOX legislation in 2002, firms substituted real earnings management strategies for accrual manipulation. However, the broader implications of this trade-off from a public policy and financial oversight perspective are not well understood. Consistent with our expectations, we find that abnormal operating decisions are less informative about future ROA in the post-SOX period. We also find that the increase in real earnings management negatively impacts firm value, but investors appear slow to recognize and price the myopic behavior. We do not observe a corresponding increase in the quality of discretionary accruals after SOX, but market mispricing of abnormal accruals essentially disappears, consistent with greater investor scrutiny. Although the shift away from accrual manipulation to real earnings management should result in less distortion of underlying economic events, the net effect appears to be value destroying for the average firm.

EXPANSIONS AND RECESSIONS IN THE MEXICAN STATES: A CLASSICAL BUSINESS CYCLES APPROACH

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
Pablo Mejía-Reyes
Keyword(s):  
Business Cycles ◽  
Business Cycle ◽  
Monthly Basis ◽  
Production Index ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Output Measure ◽  
Central Regions ◽  
The Business Cycle ◽  
National Business ◽  
Cycle Indicator

This paper aims to document expansions and recessions characteristics for 17 states of Mexico over the period 1993-2006 by using a classical business cycle approach. We use the manufacturing production index for each state as the business cycle indicator since it is the only output measure available on a monthly basis. According to this approach, we analyse asymmetries in mean, volatility and duration as well as synchronisation over the business cycle regimes (expansions and recessions) for each case. Our results indicate that recessions are less persistent and more volatile (in general) than expansions in most Mexican states; yet, there is no clear cut evidence on mean asymmetries. In turn, there seems to be strong links between the business cycle regimes within the Northern and Central regions of the country and between states with similar industrialisation patterns, although it is difficult to claim that a national business cycle exists.

scholarly journals The Effect Of Short-Term Debt On Accrual Based Earnings Management And Real Earnings Management

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 1287-1300
Author(s):  
Sun-young Park
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Liquidity Risk ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Debt Financing ◽  
Real Earnings Management ◽  
Financing Constraints ◽  
Total Current ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Management Method

This study investigates whether short-term debt is related to earnings management. Short-term debt is divided into total current liabilities, debt in current liabilities and short-term borrowings. In addition, this study examines how short-term debt is related to how firms manage their earnings. I use discretionary accruals and real operating decisions as the earnings management method. The study finds that debt in current liabilities only has a statistically significant impact on accrual earnings management, and short-term borrowings are only shown to have a statistically significant impact on real earnings management. These results indicate that managers engage in accrual earnings management of debt included in current liabilities and use real earnings management of short-term borrowings from financial institutions.Therefore, this evidence indicates that managers engage in accrual earnings management of debt in included current liabilities when they face the liquidity risk of short-term debt, and the firms with debt financing constraints are likely to manage real earnings in spite of enhanced firm monitoring by lenders such as financial institutions. The findings in this study may have implications in the debate about the monitoring function of financial institutions such as banks.

scholarly journals Political and financial background in board interlocking and earnings management in Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristian Baú Dal Magro ◽  
Roberto Carlos Klann
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Real Earnings Management ◽  
The Political ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Quality Of Accounting Information

Purpose Although board interlocking underlying forces are largely hidden, the purpose of this paper is to provide managers, auditors, analysts, regulators and other stakeholders with sociological board interlocking information considering the different backgrounds of their members. Design/methodology/approach The research sample gathered 1,606 observations from 2010 to 2017. For data analysis, the direct and indirect board interlocking linkages, considering the different backgrounds of board members, established the centrality indicators. Subsequently, the authors used these indicators according to each measured background in the regression models. Findings The results indicate that the political background of board interlocking members is positively related to real earnings management practices, while the financial background has a mitigating effect on such practices. Research limitations/implications The findings suggest that individual skills and interests conveyed across the corporate social network have shaped corporate governance, with distinct impacts on the quality of accounting information. Practical implications The authors conclude that both backgrounds could have implications on agency conflicts, increasing (policy) or reducing (financial) information asymmetry between the company and its various stakeholders, which indicates that the authors must consider sociological and not just economic aspects within corporate governance. Social implications The sociological background of individuals is necessary for the congruence of monitoring mechanisms, and consequently, the quality of accounting information. Originality/value This study examines the influence of the political and financial background of board interlocking members on real earnings management practices in Brazilian publicly traded companies in the International Financial Reporting Standards post-adoption period.

Long-Term Orientation and Earnings Management Strategies

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 97-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesper Haga ◽  
Fredrik Huhtamäki ◽  
Dennis Sundvik
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
High Precision ◽  
Management Strategy ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Real Earnings Management ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Earnings Benchmarks ◽  
Jel Classifications

ABSTRACT In this study, we investigate how country-level long-term orientation affects managers' willingness to engage in earnings management and choice of earnings management strategy. Using a comprehensive dataset of 47 countries for the period from 2003 to 2015, we find that firms in long-term-oriented cultures rely relatively more on earnings management through accruals, while firms in short-term-oriented cultures engage in relatively more real earnings management. Furthermore, we find a larger discontinuity around earnings benchmarks in long-term-oriented cultures suggesting that manipulation of accruals enables benchmark beating with high precision. JEL Classifications: M14; M16; M21; M41.

Book Reviews

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 538-540 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Business Cycles ◽  
Business Cycle ◽  
Early Years ◽  
African Studies ◽  
Intellectual Biography ◽  
The Business Cycle ◽  
The University

Michael Assous of Universite Paris I Pantheon-Sorbonne P.H.A.R.E. reviews “Michal Kalecki: An Intellectual Biography: Volume I, Rendezvous in Cambridge 1899–1939”, by Jan Toporowski. The Econlit abstract of this book begins: “Presents an intellectual biography of Polish economist Michal Kalecki, focusing on the years 1899–1939. Discusses the early years; the crucible of the Polish Revolution; economic journalism; a move to Warsaw; the Institute for the Study of Business Cycles and Prices; the socialist discussions; the enigma of the business cycle; Sweden; London; from London to Cambridge; seeking work again; the first synthesis of theory; Kalecki and his colleagues at the Cambridge Project; and shared ideas amid mutual incomprehension. Toporowski is with the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.”

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document