U.S.-Listed Foreign Companies' Choice of a U.S.-Based versus Home Country-Based Big N Principal Auditor and the Effect on Audit Fees and Earnings Quality

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 631-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharad C. Asthana ◽  
K. K. Raman ◽  
Hongkang Xu
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Home Country ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Audit Fees ◽  
Foreign Companies ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Just Price ◽  
Reporting Environment ◽  
The U.S

SYNOPSIS We examine why U.S.-listed foreign companies choose to have a U.S.-based (rather than home country-based) Big N firm as their principal auditor for SEC reporting purposes and the effects of that choice for audit fees and earnings quality. We find that the likelihood of the Big N principal auditor being U.S.-based is decreasing in client size and the level of investor protection in the home country, and increasing in the proportion of income earned outside the home country. We also find compelling evidence that U.S.-based Big N auditors are associated with higher-quality earnings (albeit for a higher fee), despite two factors—the greater distance between the U.S.-based (vis-à-vis home country-based) Big N auditor and the client, and the likelihood that much of the audit work is done outside the U.S.—which potentially could lower the earnings quality of the U.S.-listed foreign client when the Big N principal auditor is U.S.-based. Overall, our study suggests that the higher fees associated with a U.S.-based Big N principal auditor is not just price protection; rather, U.S.-based Big N principal auditors are also improving the financial reporting environment by reporting higher-quality audited earnings for their U.S.-listed foreign clients. JEL Classifications: L11; L15; M42.

scholarly journals Corporate Reputation And Earnings Quality

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Luchs ◽  
Marty Stuebs ◽  
Li Sun
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Corporate Reputation ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Individual Investors ◽  
Font Size ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Investor Confidence ◽  
Reporting Environment ◽  
The Impact

<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0.5in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 10pt;">Investor confidence and the quality of reported information are primary issues in our current financial reporting environment as a result of recent scandals and financial crises. Assessing the quality of reported financial information is an important issue for investors. Can investors use corporate reputation to assess earnings quality? This paper examines the association between corporate reputation and earnings quality. We use a public measure &ndash; &ldquo;America&rsquo;s Most Admired Companies&rdquo; &ndash; as a proxy for corporate reputation. These firms are considered to possess superior reputation. A cross-sectional accruals-based measure proxies for earnings quality. We compare the firms listed on America&rsquo;s Most Admired Companies of 2006 to a sample of control firms and find that sample firms have higher earnings quality than control firms. Our results should be of interest to managers who engage in behavior leading to or maintaining a positive corporate reputation, and to financial analysts who conduct research on the impact of corporate reputation on earnings quality. Moreover, our study can increase individual investors&rsquo; confidence in assessing the earnings quality of companies with a superior reputation. </span></p>

scholarly journals Heterogeneity in earnings quality between different classes of companies after IFRS adoption: evidence from Brazil

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (73) ◽  
pp. 113-131
Author(s):  
Roberto Black ◽  
Sílvio Hiroshi Nakao
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Management ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Value Relevance ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Economic Incentives ◽  
Net Income ◽  
Accounting Earnings ◽  
Ifrs Adoption ◽  
Before And After

ABSTRACT This paper aims to investigate the existence of heterogeneity in earnings quality between different classes of companies after the adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). IFRS adoption is generally associated with an increase in the quality of financial statements. However, companies within the same country are likely to have different economic incentives regarding the disclosure of information. Thus, treating companies equally, without considering the related economic incentives, could contaminate earnings quality investigations. The case of Brazil is analyzed, which is a country classified as code-law, in which tax laws determined accounting practice and in which IFRS adoption is mandatory. First, Brazilian companies listed on the São Paulo Stock, Commodities, and Futures Exchange (BM&FBOVESPA) were separated into two classes: companies issuing American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) before IFRS adoption and companies that did not issue ADRs until the adoption of IFRS. Then, this second class of companies was grouped, using cluster analysis, into two different subclasses according to economic incentives. Based on the groups identified, the quality of accounting earnings is tested for each class of the companies before and after IFRS adoption. This paper uses timely recognition of economic events, value relevance of net income, and earnings management as proxies for the quality of accounting earnings. The results indicate that a particular class of companies began showing conditional conservatism, value relevance of net income, and lower earnings management after IFRS adoption. On the other hand, these results were not found for the two other classes of companies.

Accounting Standards and Earnings Quality — Evidence from Registered ADRs

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (04) ◽  
pp. 1850022
Author(s):  
Yaseen S. Alhaj-Yaseen ◽  
Kean Wu ◽  
Leslie B. Fletcher
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Securities And Exchange Commission ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Reporting Standard ◽  
International Financial Reporting Standard ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Gaap

This paper examines the changes in earnings quality of registered American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) as a result of switching accounting standards. We aim to shed light on the potential impact of International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) adoption on US firms. A suboptimal approach to achieve this goal is through examination of US firms’ surrogates such as ADRs. Unlike previous studies, we made a distinction between registered and unregistered ADRs and affirmed that registered ADRs are the closest surrogates with which to conduct our analysis because they are exclusively required to adhere to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s stringent disclosure requirements. When cross-listing their equity on the US exchanges, foreign issuers can file their financial reports with the SEC using IFRS, US GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles), or their domestic GAAP with reconciliation to US GAAP. An improvement in earnings quality is documented when ADRs adopt US GAAP or IFRS versus domestic GAAP. However, when the comparison is made between US GAAP and IFRS, no difference in earnings quality is documented. These results indicate that switching to high-quality accounting standards is likely to improve earnings quality. This improvement is maximized when the difference between reporting standards is high and minimized if otherwise. Our conclusion is that the adoption of IFRS in the US is unlikely to change earnings quality of local issuers. Moreover, we drew a distinction between reconciliation with and adoption of high-quality accountings standards and find that while the former can enhance earnings quality, the latter can further improve it.

scholarly journals Corporate Social Responsibility, Audit Committee Expertise, and Financial Reporting: Empirical Evidence from Korea

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 10517
Author(s):  
Haeyoung Ryu ◽  
Soo-Joon Chae ◽  
Bomi Song
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Audit Committee ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Audit Committees ◽  
Accounting Expertise ◽  
Corporate Social

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) involves multiple activities and is influenced by the cultural and legal environment of the country in which a firm is located. This study examines the role of audit committees’ (AC) financial expertise in the relationship between CSR and the earnings quality of Korean firms with high levels of CSR. Using a multivariate analysis, it investigates whether the ACs that include members with accounting expertise, finance expertise, or supervisory expertise individually affect a firm’s decision making. It also examines how ACs with diverse expertise contribute toward improving the financial reporting quality of firms with high levels of CSR. The results demonstrate that when there is a certified accountant in the AC of a firm that practices CSR based on ethical motivation, the earnings management through discretionary accruals is more strictly controlled. This is more effective when the AC comprises members with accounting and non-accounting expertise. This finding implies that the AC plays a positive role in improving the accounting information quality of firms with CSR excellence. Moreover, while the role of accounting experts in the AC is important for maintaining high earnings quality, combining other types of expertise creates synergy.

scholarly journals Impact of external factors on quality financial reporting: The case of Vietnam

2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-70
Author(s):  
Thuan Quoc Pham ◽  
Dao Xuan La
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
External Factors ◽  
Internal Factors ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Accounting Software ◽  
Major Factors ◽  
Pressure Factor ◽  
Independent Audit

The objective of this study is to identify the major factors that impact on the quality of financial reporting and to suggest model of the factors affecting on the quality of financial reporting for Vietnamese enterprises . There are two factors group affecting on the quality of financial reporting: internal factors and external factors, this study is limited to the scope of the external factors. By using case studies, analytical results indicate that Tax Pressure factor has the greatest impact on the quality of financial reporting, the remaning factors include: Listed Securities, Accounting Software and Independent Audit. Two factors, Politics and Regulatory Environment have limited impact on the quality financial reporting.

Family ownership and financial reporting quality: Iranian evidence

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahmoud Mousavi Shiri ◽  
Mahdi Salehi ◽  
Fatemeh Abbasi ◽  
Shayan Farhangdoust
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Reporting Quality ◽  
Audit Fees ◽  
Financial Reporting Quality ◽  
Family Ownership ◽  
Content Type

PurposeIn the process of reporting accounting information, the auditor’s objective is to detect possible misstatements and errors in accounting information. Audit evidence aids auditors in providing reasonable assurance about the quality of financial reporting. Studying the quality of family firms’ financial reporting is of higher importance relative to non-family firms due to lower risk of accounting manipulation. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between family ownership structure and financial reporting quality from an auditing perspective.Design/methodology/approachTo analyze the research hypotheses, the authors use a sample data consisted of 221 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange (including 52 family and 169 non-family firms) over a five-year span from 2011 to 2015.FindingsUsing multivariate regression analysis of panel data, our results indicate that audit risk in family firms is lower than their counterparts. Likewise, the findings are indicative of lower audit fees paid by family firms as compared to non-family ones. The authors also find that auditors put more effort in family firms and thus audit effort is more significant for these kinds of firms.Originality/valueThe study focuses on family ownership and financial reporting quality in a developing country like Iran and the results of the study may be beneficial to other developing nations, as Iran stock market possesses some unique features which are not normally prevailing in other equity markets, even in the Middle East.

The efficiency of corporate boards and firms’ audit fees: the case of the FTSE financial institutions

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 297-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rabih Nehme ◽  
Mohammad Jizi
Keyword(s):  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Reporting Quality ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Audit Fees ◽  
Governance Structure ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Reverse Causality ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The quality of financial reporting for the financial institutions is vital for the public, as the negative consequences of manipulated financial statements will not only affect shareholders but also the regulators’ reputation and the society at large. The purpose of this paper is to assess the association between different corporate governance mechanisms and their impact on audit and reporting quality. The gender factor is introduced from a diverse boards’ perspective to highlight any impact of female presence on the quality of financial statements. Design/methodology/approach The authors examine a sample of financial institutions listed on the FTSE-350 index for the years 2011 to 2015. The financial sector has its own and different regulations, and financial reporting framework and auditors are expected to behave into more scrutiny. Bloomberg database is used to obtain governance and financial data, while firms’ annual reports are used to collect audit fees and audit committee information. A panel data regression is used to test hypotheses. The authors also control for unobservable heterogeneity, reverse causality and endogeneity. Findings The results suggest that boards with larger size and higher independence pay higher audit fees to enhance the monitoring capacity and protect the wider group of stakeholders. The results also show that women on boards are likely to reduce the risk of manipulated financial statements, as women are more inclined toward truthfulness, cautiousness and conservatism. In addition, the reported results show that audit committees with more independent members are more inclined toward obtaining higher quality audit to enhance firm’s reporting quality. Originality/value Given the recent governments’ intervention to avoid financial institutions’ negative impact on the economy, this study is relevant and provide policymakers insights into the existing relationships between audit fees and financial institutions’ governance structure.

How Would the Mandatory Adoption of IFRS Affect the Earnings Quality of U.S. Firms? Evidence from Cross-Listed Firms in the U.S.

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 837-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerry Sun ◽  
Steven F. Cahan ◽  
David Emanuel
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Earnings Persistence ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Ifrs Adoption ◽  
The Cross ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Timely Loss Recognition ◽  
The U.S

SYNOPSIS We examine the impact of IFRS adoption on the earnings quality of foreign firms cross-listed in the U.S. from countries that have already adopted IFRS on a mandatory basis. We use the cross-listed firms as surrogates for the U.S. firms so we can observe the effect of IFRS adoption in the U.S. We examine five measures of earnings quality related to discretionary accruals, target beating, earnings persistence, timely loss recognition, and the earnings response coefficient (ERC). To isolate the effect of IFRS adoption, we use a matched sample design where each cross-listed firm is matched to a U.S. firm. We find the difference in earnings quality from the pre- to post-IFRS period is not different for the cross-listed and matched firms when earnings quality is measured by absolute discretionary accruals, timely loss recognition, or a long-window ERC. However, for the incidence of small positive earnings and earnings persistence, we find significant difference-in-differences, indicating that IFRS adoption led to an improvement in earnings quality for cross-listed firms relative to the matched firms. Our results are slightly surprising since U.S. GAAP is generally viewed as high-quality standards with little room for improvement.

scholarly journals Earnings quality before and after the implementation of PSAK 69

Accounting ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 727-734 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naniek Noviari ◽  
I Gusti Ayu Eka Damayanthi ◽  
I Gusti Ngurah Agung Suaryana
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Agricultural Sector ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Fair Value ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Current Period ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Earnings Response

PSAK 69 Agriculture regulates the accounting treatment of agricultural activities in Indonesia. The measurement of biological assets is the most important part of the arrangement of PSAK 69. PSAK 69 deals with biological assets measured at fair value less costs to sell at the beginning and end of the reporting period. Characteristics of growing biological assets will have an impact on the growth in fair value of assets, so there will be differences in fair value at the beginning and end of the financial reporting period. The difference in fair value of biological assets, whether realized or not, is recognized as gain in the current period. This will have an impact on the quality of the company's earnings. This study aims to examine differences in earnings quality before and after the implementation of PSAK 69 in agricultural sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. The research was conducted on 14 agricultural companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in the 2016-2019 observation period. Earnings quality is measured by the earnings response coefficient. Earnings response coefficients are estimated using the firm specific coefficient model (FSCM) and pooled cross-sectional regression model (CSRM) methods. This study measures the quality of earnings before and after the application of PSAK 69. The quality of earnings before and after the application of PSAK 69 is tested by a paired two-sample t-test. The results of this study found no difference in earnings quality before and after the application of PSAK 69.

scholarly journals The effects of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) adoption on earnings quality: evidence from Korea

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 243-250
Author(s):  
Jee Hoon Yuk ◽  
Wook Bin Leem
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Financial Statements ◽  
Consolidated Financial Statements ◽  
Listed Firms ◽  
Financial Reporting Standards ◽  
Ifrs Adoption

This study investigates whether earnings quality of Korean listed firms was substantially improved after the IFRS adoption in long-term aspect and which firms listed in KOSPI or KOSDAQ market had been more enjoyed the benefit. Prior studies related to this subject don’t provide consistent results and have a limitation of insufficiency of research periods. Therefore, this study analyzes the positive effect of the IFRS adoption in Korea using long-term based approach and comparative analysis on each Korean stock market. Furthermore, this study considered Korean specific institutional environment in which main financial statements prepared and disclosed by listed firms were changed from individual financial statements to consolidated financial statements after the IFRS adoption. Results of the study found that earnings quality of Korean listed firms had been significantly improved during 5 years after the IFRS adoption. In addition, earnings quality on consolidated financial statements of KOSDAQ listed firms has improved more than that of KOSPI listed firms. The results provide meaningful implications to evaluate the effects of IFRS adoption on earnings quality and to assess accomplishment of fundamental purpose of the IFRS adoption in Korea.

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