During 2005 to 2007, the SEC ordered a pilot program in which one-third of the Russell 3000 index were arbitrarily chosen as pilot stocks and exempted from short-sale price tests. Pilot firms' discretionary accruals and likelihood of marginally beating earnings targets decrease during this...

This paper constructs a signal-based composite index, namely ESCORE, which captures the context of earnings management. Specifically, ESCORE aggregates 15 individual signals related to earnings management based on prior relevant literature. Empirical results using UK data shows that when ESCORE...

In the 21st century, already witness to unparalleled rates of globalization, discernible economic success can hardly be achieved without developed stock markets. In case of Georgia, the stock exchange remains in nascent stage of development and positions as one of the smallest and most illiquid...

Prior research suggests that the fear of litigation precludes most managers from manipulating earnings in the initial public offering (“IPO”) setting. Yet, managers' restraint is perhaps unwarranted: research has not yet linked instances of aggressive pre-IPO reporting to increased...

The recent financial crisis has stimulated a renewed interest in understanding the determinants of stock price crash risk (i.e., left tail risk). Recent research shows that opaque financial reports enable managers to hide and accumulate bad news for extended periods. When the accumulated bad...

The paper examines earnings management detection using the Beneish M-score benchmark model on a sample of 468 non-financial Vietnamese companies listed on the Hochiminh Stock Exchange (HOSE) and Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) during 2013-2014. The results show that 40 % of non-financial...

This paper explores the puzzle of inconsistent findings in regard to bank lending decisions and the negative response to bank loan announcements in China. Using firm performance before and after the lending decisions, adjusted for the effects of earnings management, we are able to examine not...

We examine whether media news reflect the extent to which issuing firms manage their earnings prior to their equity carve-outs (ECOs). We posit that managers will strategically respond to media requests prior to their equity offerings in order to signal their type and differentiate themselves...

The literature provides mixed evidence on whether investors find audit reports modified for going concern reasons to be useful. Using a substantially larger sample than previous studies, we observe negative excess returns when the going concern audit report (GCAR) is disclosed. We find that the...

While prior literature examines the role of auditors in the pricing of initial public offerings, little is known about the effect of auditor changes on the pricing of seasoned offers. Our examination of seasoned equity offerings shows that companies switching auditors prior to the offerings...