Meeting Earnings Benchmarks Via Real Activities Manipulation: Debt Market Effects

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Hinkel ◽  
Benjamin W. Hoffman
Keyword(s):  
Market Effects ◽  
Earnings Benchmarks ◽  
Debt Market ◽  
Real Activities Manipulation

Do sin firms engage in real activities manipulation to meet earnings benchmarks?

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 535-551
Author(s):  
Suzanne M. Ogilby ◽  
Xinmei Xie ◽  
Yan Xiong ◽  
Jin Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Abnormal Returns ◽  
Reporting Quality ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Financial Statement ◽  
Financial Reporting Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Earnings Benchmarks ◽  
Real Activities Manipulation

Purpose Recent literature suggests that sin firms (firms in tobacco, gambling and alcohol industries) have lower institutional ownership, fewer analysts following, higher abnormal returns and higher financial reporting quality. This study aims to investigate empirically how sin firms engage in real activities manipulation (RAM) to meet earnings benchmarks in comparison to non-sin firms. Design/methodology/approach The authors examine two types of RAM, namely, Cutting discretionary expenditures including research and development (R&D), SG&A and advertising to boost earnings. Extending deep discount or lenient credit terms to boost sales and/or overproducing to decrease COGS to increase gross profit. Consistent with Roychowdhury (2006), the authors use abnormal discretionary expenditures as the proxy for expenditure reduction manipulation and abnormal production costs as the proxy for COGS manipulation. Findings The results for the abnormal discretionary expense model suggest that sin firms do not engage in RAM of advertising, R&D, SG&A expense to just meet earnings benchmarks. The results for the production costs model suggest that sin firms do not engage in COGS manipulation to just meet earnings benchmarks. The results are robust after controlling accrual-based earnings management (AEM). Overall, in this setting, these results suggest that managers of sin firms engage less in RAM to meet earnings benchmarks. Originality/value The findings are of interest to investors, auditors, regulators and academics with respect to financial statement analysis and earnings quality.

Beating Earnings Benchmarks and the Cost of Debt

2008 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. 377-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
John (Xuefeng) Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Default Risk ◽  
Lower Cost ◽  
Cost Of Debt ◽  
Bond Markets ◽  
Yield Spread ◽  
Bond Yield ◽  
Earnings Benchmarks ◽  
Debt Market ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Firm Default

Prior research documents that firms tend to beat three earnings benchmarks—zero earnings, last year's earnings, and analyst's forecasted earnings—and that there are both equity market and compensation-related benefits associated with beating these benchmarks. This study investigates whether and under what conditions beating these three earnings benchmarks reduces a firm's cost of debt. I use two proxies for a firm's cost of debt: credit ratings and initial bond yield spread. Results suggest that firms beating earnings benchmarks have a higher probability of rating upgrades and a smaller initial bond yield spread. Additional analyses indicate that (1) the benefits of beating earnings benchmarks are more pronounced for firms with high default risk; (2) beating the zero earnings benchmark generally provides the biggest reward in terms of a lower cost of debt; and (3) the reduction in the cost of debt is attenuated but does not disappear for firms beating benchmarks through earnings management. In sum, results suggest that there are benefits associated with beating earnings benchmarks in the debt market. These benefits vary by benchmark, firm default risk, and method utilized to beat the benchmark. Among other implications, this evidence suggests that the relative importance of specific benchmarks differs across the equity and bond markets.

Meeting Earnings Benchmarks via Real Activities Manipulation: Debt Market Effects

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 349-378 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy P. Hinkel ◽  
Benjamin W. Hoffman
Keyword(s):  
Cash Flows ◽  
Cost Of Debt ◽  
Share Repurchase ◽  
Market Effects ◽  
Accruals Management ◽  
Managerial Decisions ◽  
Earnings Benchmarks ◽  
Prior Literature ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

We investigate the cost of debt effects for firms that manage earnings per share (EPS) through abnormal share repurchases. Although prior research finds a significant cost of debt decrease for firms that meet earnings benchmarks, our results suggest that firms using the abnormal share repurchase strategy realize no cost of debt decrease associated with meeting earnings benchmarks. We find some evidence of a smaller decrease in cost of debt associated with measures of abnormal decreases in cash flows but weak evidence for measures that are cash flow increasing. We also find that the effect of using abnormal stock repurchases to meet earnings benchmarks leads to smaller reductions in the cost of debt when compared with the cost reduction when earnings benchmarks are met through accruals management. This study extends prior literature regarding the effects on the cost of debt through alternative strategies to meet earnings benchmarks and will be of interest to managers as they consider the impact of their managerial decisions.

Real Activities Manipulation and Auditors' Client-Retention Decisions

2013 ◽  
Vol 89 (1) ◽  
pp. 367-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongtae Kim ◽  
Myung Seok Park
Keyword(s):  
Data Availability ◽  
Additional Analysis ◽  
Litigation Risk ◽  
Client Retention ◽  
Earnings Benchmarks ◽  
Real Activities Manipulation ◽  
Operating Decisions ◽  
Retention Decisions ◽  
Excessive Risk

ABSTRACT In this study, we examine the effect of clients' real activities manipulation (RAM) on auditors' client-retention decisions. We find that, with the exception of RAM through overproduction, clients' opportunistic operating decisions are positively associated with the likelihood of auditor resignations. We also provide evidence that auditors are especially sensitive to clients' RAM to just meet or beat earnings benchmarks in their client-retention decisions. In addition, we find that clients whose auditors resign from engagements tend to hire smaller auditors and these clients engage in RAM more aggressively. Our additional analysis shows that, with the exception of RAM through overproduction, clients' abnormal operating decisions are significantly associated with litigation risk against auditors. Overall, our evidence suggests that auditors drop clients with aggressive RAM to avoid excessive risk. Data Availability: Data used in this study are available from public sources identified in the study.

Financial Systems and economic Development in the Russian Regions: A Comparative Analysis

2015 ◽  
pp. 94-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Krinichansky
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Financial Development ◽  
Public Debt ◽  
Fixed Capital ◽  
Russian Regions ◽  
Growth Mechanisms ◽  
Financial Systems ◽  
Debt Market ◽  
Regions Of Russia

The paper identifies and assesses the closeness of the connection between incremental indicators of the financial development in the regions of Russia with the incremental regional GDP and the investment in fixed capital. It is shown that the positioning of the region as an independent participant of public debt market matters: the regional GDP and investment in fixed capital grow more rapidly in the regions which are regularly borrowing on the sub-federal bonds market. The paper also demonstrates that the poorly developed financial system in some regions have caused the imperfection of the growth mechanisms since the economy is not able to use the financial system’s functions.

The Risks of Russia's Debt Policy against the Background of the Global Debt Crisis

2012 ◽  
pp. 80-97
Author(s):  
B. Kheifets
Keyword(s):  
Debt Crisis ◽  
Strong Dependence ◽  
Domestic Debt ◽  
Debt Market ◽  
State Paternalism ◽  
High Level ◽  
External Borrowing ◽  
Pension Liabilities ◽  
Policy Problems ◽  
Debt Policy

The paper discusses the debt component of the current global crisis, which becomes stronger in 2011—2012. The Russian economy is analyzed in terms of its debt stability: a thorough analysis shows that it is not quite adequate. This paper presents the main problems that could be exacerbated by the global debt crisis (strong dependence of the budget on the volatility of oil prices, deterioration of conditions for external borrowing and overheat of the domestic debt market, too high public pension liabilities, substantial corporate debt and high level of state paternalism in regard to big business). Some measures to address Russian debt policy problems are proposed.

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