Since 2010 a number of firms have voluntarily adopted mark-to-market (MTM) accounting for the actuarial gains and losses associated with their defined benefit pension plans. While pension accounting rules have allowed such a choice since 1986, only recently have firms begun to exercise that...

Prior studies identify several motives for why firms release management earnings forecasts (MFs). A common feature of such studies is they pool MFs when drawing inferences about a specific motive. By ignoring the heterogeneous rationales managers have to issue MFs, pooling could lead to biased...

We exploit a novel feature of management cash flow forecasts (MCFFs) to investigate how managers' discretion over forecast precision, clarity, and verifiability affects the bias, quality, and stock price effects of such forecasts. Many MCFFs are issued with an equivocal definition of the cash...