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Is ‘benchmark beating’ by Australian firms evidence of earnings management?

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  • Jeff Coulton
  • Sarah Taylor
  • Stephen Taylor

Abstract

We investigate the extent to which Australian firms that report small profits and/or small increases in earnings (i.e. benchmark beaters) have done so by the upward manipulation of these earnings. Although evidence of an unusually large number of firms managing to just beat such earnings benchmarks has been interpreted as evidence of earnings management, this approach fails to identify those firms that are the manipulators from those where unbiased earnings fall naturally into the benchmark beating group. Our results suggest that caution is required in interpreting benchmark beating as an indicator of the extent of earnings management. Using several methods for estimating the unexpected accrual component of earnings, we show that although benchmark beaters have larger positive unexpected accruals than other firms, a similar result holds when firms with small losses or earnings declines (i.e. ‘just miss’ firms) are compared with other firms. Moreover, there is no statistically significant difference between unexpected accruals for the benchmark beating and just miss groups. At a minimum, we reject the joint hypothesis that unexpected accruals capture earnings management and that an unusual kink around zero in the distribution of earnings levels or earnings changes is caused by earnings management.

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  • Jeff Coulton & Sarah Taylor & Stephen Taylor, 2005. "Is ‘benchmark beating’ by Australian firms evidence of earnings management?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 45(4), pages 553-576, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:45:y:2005:i:4:p:553-576
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-629X.2005.00145.x
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    1. Habib, Ahsan & Hossain, Mahmud, 2008. "Do managers manage earnings to ‘just meet or beat’ analyst forecasts?," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 79-91.
    2. David R Gallagher & Peter A Gardner & Camille H Schmidt & Terry S Walter, 2014. "Quality investing in an Australian context," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 39(4), pages 615-643, November.
    3. Karen Benson & Peter M Clarkson & Tom Smith & Irene Tutticci, 2015. "A review of accounting research in the Asia Pacific region," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 40(1), pages 36-88, February.
    4. Bruce K. Bennett & Michael E. Bradbury, 2010. "An analysis of the reasons for the asymmetries surrounding earnings benchmarks," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 50(3), pages 529-554, September.
    5. Sarowar Hossain & Jeff Coulton & Jenny Jing Wang, 2023. "Client Importance and Audit Quality at the Individual Audit Partner, Office, and Firm Levels," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 59(2), pages 650-696, June.
    6. Mark Wilson, 2011. "Earnings Management in Australian Corporations," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 21(3), pages 205-221, September.
    7. Richard Kent & James Routledge & Karen McPherson, 2017. "Use of benchmarks in predicting earnings management?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(1), pages 239-260, March.
    8. Rosalyn Oei & Alan Ramsay & Paul Mather, 2008. "Earnings persistence, accruals and managerial share ownership," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 48(3), pages 475-502, September.
    9. Jeffrey J. Coulton & Caitlin M. S. Ruddock & Stephen L. Taylor, 2014. "The Informativeness of Dividends and Associated Tax Credits," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(9-10), pages 1309-1336, November.
    10. Wei Jiang & Meiting Lu & Yaowen Shan & Tingting Zhu, 2016. "Evidence of Avoiding Working Capital Deficits in Australia," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 26(1), pages 107-118, March.
    11. Kerrie Woodhouse & Paul Mather & Dinithi Ranasinghe & Tom Smith, 2017. "Externally reported performance measures and benchmarks in Australia," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(3), pages 879-905, September.
    12. Sarowar Hossain & Gary S. Monroe, 2015. "Chief Financial Officers’ Short- and Long-term Incentive-based Compensation and Earnings Management," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 25(3), pages 279-291, September.
    13. Hai Wu & Neil Fargher, 2007. "Components of Accruals, Losses and Future Profitability," Accounting Research Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(2), pages 96-110, December.
    14. Kathleen Herbohn & Vanitha Ragunathan, 2008. "Auditor reporting and earnings management: some additional evidence," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 48(4), pages 575-601, December.
    15. Mariela Carvajal & Jeffrey J. Coulton & Andrew B. Jackson & Tom Smith, 2017. "Earnings benchmark hierarchy," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(1), pages 87-111, March.
    16. Yim, Andrew, 2013. "Mixture and Continuous 'Discontinuity' Hypotheses: An Earnings Management Model with Auditor-Required Adjustment," MPRA Paper 44702, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Hardjo Koerniadi & Alireza Tourani‐Rad, 2007. "Accrual or Cash Flow Anomaly? Evidence from New Zealand," Accounting Research Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(1), pages 21-36, July.

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