Trends in Earnings Management and Informativeness of Earnings Announcements in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes Oxley Periods

Trends in Earnings Management and Informativeness of Earnings Announcements in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes Oxley Periods PDF Author: Daniel A. Cohen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 44

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Book Description
We document that firms' management of accounting earnings increased steadily from 1987 until the passage of the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX), with a significant increase during the period prior to SOX, followed by a significant decline after passage of SOX. However, the increase in earnings management preceding SOX was primarily in poorly performing industries. We also show that the informativeness of earnings increased steadily over time, and there was no significant change in earnings informativeness following the passage of SOX. Further, we find that earnings management increased the absolute informativeness of earnings, but reduced the informativeness for a given earnings surprise, as well as reduced the abnormal return for a given amount of earnings surprise. Finally, the evidence supports the hypothesis that the opportunistic behavior of managers, primarily related to the fraction of compensation derived from options, was significantly associated with earnings management in the period preceding SOX.

Trends in Earnings Management and Informativeness of Earnings Announcements in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes Oxley Periods

Trends in Earnings Management and Informativeness of Earnings Announcements in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes Oxley Periods PDF Author: Daniel A. Cohen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 44

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Book Description
We document that firms' management of accounting earnings increased steadily from 1987 until the passage of the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX), with a significant increase during the period prior to SOX, followed by a significant decline after passage of SOX. However, the increase in earnings management preceding SOX was primarily in poorly performing industries. We also show that the informativeness of earnings increased steadily over time, and there was no significant change in earnings informativeness following the passage of SOX. Further, we find that earnings management increased the absolute informativeness of earnings, but reduced the informativeness for a given earnings surprise, as well as reduced the abnormal return for a given amount of earnings surprise. Finally, the evidence supports the hypothesis that the opportunistic behavior of managers, primarily related to the fraction of compensation derived from options, was significantly associated with earnings management in the period preceding SOX.

Trends in Accrual Quality and Real Activity-based Earnings Management in the Pre and Post Sarbanes-Oxley Eras

Trends in Accrual Quality and Real Activity-based Earnings Management in the Pre and Post Sarbanes-Oxley Eras PDF Author: Nicholas Christopher Lynch
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Accrual basis accounting
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
An increase in the prevalence of earnings restatements and cases of financial statement fraud in the early 21st century led to a significant loss of market capitalization and investor confidence in the attestation process. In an effort to restore such confidence, Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) in July of 2002. The Act significantly increased the penalties for engaging in accrual activities aimed at either misleading users of the financial statements concerning the underlying economic condition of the firm or influencing contractual outcomes. As a result of the increased penalties for engaging in accrual activities, one would expect a relative shift from accrual activities to real activities to facilitate earnings management in the post-SOX period. As with most academic social disciplines, the test employed in my dissertation is a joint test of the sensitivity of the tools available to detect management activities, the research design, and the presence and strength of the effect for which I am searching. This dissertation is the first to test for changes in both accrual quality and real activity-based earnings management in the post-SOX period. The findings of the study empirically support a change in earnings management techniques in the post-SOX period compared to the pre-SOX period. Specifically, the quality of accruals incorporated into the accounting earnings figure have significantly increased in the post-SOX period. However, instances of earnings management using real activities have also significantly increased in the post-Sox period. These findings inform academics about the power of the tools used in academic accounting research and the overall quality of the argument. They inform users of financial statements about where to direct their attention in reading and evaluating the financials. Finally, they inform regulators, practitioners and policy makers of the effectiveness of the law at improving the quality of accruals, and bring to their attention a potential substitution in the techniques used to manage earnings.

Research in Accounting Regulation

Research in Accounting Regulation PDF Author: Gary Previts
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 0080462812
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 378

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Book Description
The scope of service provided by professional accountants is influenced by legislation and case law as well as the dictates of a variety of government and private sector agencies; including State Boards of Accountancy, Academic Accreditation Bodies, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, the Public Accounting Oversight Board, independent standard setting bodies such as the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board [US], the Financial Accounting Standards Board [US] and the International Accounting Standards Board. These entities and self-regulatory organizations such as U.S. State Societies of CPAs and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and equivalent and emerging national bodies that exist in most developed and developing countries, are among the emerging entities which attempt to coordinate the activities of professional accountants among sovereign nations. It is important for academics, students, practitioners, regulators and researchers to consider and study the role and relationship of such bodies with the practice and content of our discipline. Research in Accounting Regulation seeks high quality manuscripts which address accounting regulatory policy, broadly defined, including: 1. self regulatory activities 2. case law and litigation 3. legislation and government regulation 4. the economics of regulation of markets, and disclosure, including modeling 5. matters involving the structure of education, licensing, and accreditation The editors encourage submission of original empirical, behavioral or applied research manuscripts which consider strategic and policy implications for regulation, regulatory models and markets. It is intended for individual researchers, practitioners, regulators and students of accountancy who desire to increase their understanding of the regulation of accountancy.

Real and Accrual-Based Earnings Management in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes Oxley Periods

Real and Accrual-Based Earnings Management in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes Oxley Periods PDF Author: Daniel A. Cohen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 52

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Book Description
We document that accrual-based earnings management increased steadily from 1987 until the passage of the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) in 2002, followed by a significant decline after the passage of SOX. Conversely, the level of real earnings management activities declined prior to SOX and increased significantly after the passage of SOX, suggesting that firms switched from accrual-based to real earnings management methods after the passage of SOX. We also find evidence that the accrual-based earnings management activities were particularly high in the period immediately preceding SOX. Consistent with these results, we find that firms that just achieved important earnings benchmarks used less accruals and more real earnings management after SOX when compared to similar firms before SOX. Finally, our analysis provides evidence that the increases in accrual-based earnings management in the period preceding SOX were concurrent with increases in the fraction of equity based compensation.

Understanding Accounting Academic Research

Understanding Accounting Academic Research PDF Author: Stephen R. Moehrle
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN: 1781907641
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 298

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Book Description
Accounting scandals such as Enron and WorldCom ushered in several regulatory overhauls including Sarbanes-Oxley. This monograph summarizes and synthesize a decade of academic research to develop an evolving dominant explanation around these myriad changes.

Executive Compensation and Earnings Management Under Moral Hazard

Executive Compensation and Earnings Management Under Moral Hazard PDF Author: Bo Sun
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 1437930980
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 33

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Book Description
Analyzes executive compensation in a setting where managers may take a costly action to manipulate corporate performance, and whether managers do so is stochastic. Examines how the opportunity to manipulate affects the optimal pay contract, and establishes necessary and sufficient conditions under which earnings management occurs. The author¿s model provides a set of implications on the role earnings management plays in driving the time-series and cross-sectional variation of executive compensation. In addition, the model's predictions regarding the changes of earnings management and executive pay in response to corporate governance legislation are consistent with empirical observations. Charts and tables.

Mechanisms to Meet/Beat Analyst Earnings Expectations in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes-Oxley Eras

Mechanisms to Meet/Beat Analyst Earnings Expectations in the Pre- and Post-Sarbanes-Oxley Eras PDF Author: Eli Bartov
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 44

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Book Description
This paper asks two questions. First, has the prevalence of expectations management tomeet/beat analyst expectations changed in the aftermath of the 2001-2002 accountingscandals and the passage of the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX)? Second, has the mixamong the three mechanisms used for meeting earnings targets: accrual earningsmanagement, real earnings management, and earnings expectations management shiftedin the Post-SOX Period? We document that the propensity to meet/beat analystexpectations has declined significantly in the Post-SOX Period. Our primary findingsexplain this pattern. In particular, we find a decline in the use of expectationsmanagement and accrual management, and no change in real earnings management in thePost-SOX Period relative to the preceding seven-year period. Our results are robust tocontrolling for varying macro economic conditions. These findings contribute to theacademic literature, investors, and regulators.

Focus on Finance and Accounting Research

Focus on Finance and Accounting Research PDF Author: Michael H. Neelan
Publisher: Nova Publishers
ISBN: 9781600213809
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
Preface; The Role of Revenues and Costs in CEO Compensation; The Importance of Intellectual Capital Reporting: Perspectives from Finance Professionals; Has Regulation Changed the Market's Reward for Meeting or Beating Expectations?; Reaction of the Brazilian Stock Market to Positive and Negative Shocks; Earnings Management to Meet Earnings Benchmarks: Evidence from Japan; Audit in Ukraine; Auditor Reputation and Auditor Independence: Evidence from an Emerging Market; Trends of the Returns-Earnings Associations Over the Last Three Decades; Managers' Discretionary Behaviour, Earnings Management and Corporate Governance: An Empirical International Analysis; Index.

Earnings Management

Earnings Management PDF Author: Joshua Ronen
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0387257691
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 587

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Book Description
This book is a study of earnings management, aimed at scholars and professionals in accounting, finance, economics, and law. The authors address research questions including: Why are earnings so important that firms feel compelled to manipulate them? What set of circumstances will induce earnings management? How will the interaction among management, boards of directors, investors, employees, suppliers, customers and regulators affect earnings management? How to design empirical research addressing earnings management? What are the limitations and strengths of current empirical models?

Essays on IPO-firm Earnings Management

Essays on IPO-firm Earnings Management PDF Author: Scott N. Bronson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 136

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Book Description
PART 1 This paper provides evidence on the timing of earnings management behavior for initial public offering (IPO) firms in the annual periods surrounding the offering. It also examines whether this behavior is related to CEO and CFO trading after the offering. Using discretionary accruals as my proxy for earnings management, I find that, for firms that file a new 10-K before the trading restrictions provided in underwriter lockup agreements end, average IPO-firm discretionary accruals are significantly positive in the first 10-K filed after the offering, and that these discretionary accruals are significantly larger than those in the offering prospectus. I also find a positive relation between CEO and CFO trading activity and discretionary accruals for the same group of companies. Taken together, the results suggest that earnings management behavior is more prevalent in the first 10-K filed than in the offering prospectus, that it is concentrated in the firms that file this 10-K before their lockup period expires, and that it is positively related to CEO and CFO trading after the offering. PART 2 This paper examines whether earnings management behavior has decreased in the period following the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) for IPO firms. It also explores how any changes I observe for IPOs relate to any changes that have occurred for the broader set of public companies. I find that IPO firms have experienced a significant decrease in earnings management after the passage of SOX. The results also provide evidence that this decrease is driven by the smallest public companies. While pre-SOX discretionary accruals for IPO firms are larger than those for non-IPO firms, I find that the post-SOX decrease in discretionary accruals results in the level of IPO-firm discretionary accruals becoming indistinguishable from that of non-IPO firms. Finally, the evidence suggests that the characteristics of post-SOX offerings are different from those of pre-SOX offerings, and that the decrease in discretionary accruals in the post-SOX period remains after controlling for these changes.