IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v58y2018i3p751-786.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Corporate diversification, institutional investors and internal control quality

Author

Listed:
  • Guang‐Zheng Chen
  • Edmund C. Keung

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between corporate diversification, institutional investors and internal control quality. Using a sample of firms disclosing internal control information from 1999 to 2011, the results show that corporate diversification is positively associated with the likelihood of internal control weakness. Moreover, this relationship is stronger (weaker) when firms have higher transient (dedicated) institutional ownership, indicating that transient (dedicated) institutional investors increase (mitigates) the internal control problems arising from diversification. This study contributes to the literature by providing evidence on the role of corporate diversification in the quality of internal control.

Suggested Citation

  • Guang‐Zheng Chen & Edmund C. Keung, 2018. "Corporate diversification, institutional investors and internal control quality," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 58(3), pages 751-786, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:58:y:2018:i:3:p:751-786
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.12228
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.12228
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.12228?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael E. Porter, 1992. "Capital Choices: Changing The Way America Invests In Industry," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 5(2), pages 4-16, June.
    2. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W., 1989. "Management entrenchment : The case of manager-specific investments," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 123-139, November.
    3. Michael C. Jensen, 2010. "The Modern Industrial Revolution, Exit, and the Failure of Internal Control Systems," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 22(1), pages 43-58, January.
    4. Morck, Randall & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1990. "Do Managerial Objectives Drive Bad Acquisitions?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 45(1), pages 31-48, March.
    5. Jacquemin, Alexis P & Berry, Charles H, 1979. "Entropy Measure of Diversification and Corporate Growth," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(4), pages 359-369, June.
    6. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    7. Koh, Ping-Sheng, 2007. "Institutional investor type, earnings management and benchmark beaters," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 267-299.
    8. Nanda, Vikram & Narayanan, M. P., 1999. "Disentangling Value: Financing Needs, Firm Scope, and Divestitures," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 174-204, July.
    9. David J. Denis & Diane K. Denis & Keven Yost, 2002. "Global Diversification, Industrial Diversification, and Firm Value," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(5), pages 1951-1979, October.
    10. Aoki, Masahiko, 2010. "Corporations in Evolving Diversity: Cognition, Governance, and Institutions," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199218530.
    11. Stulz, ReneM., 1990. "Managerial discretion and optimal financing policies," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 3-27, July.
    12. Laeven, Luc & Levine, Ross, 2007. "Is there a diversification discount in financial conglomerates?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(2), pages 331-367, August.
    13. Jensen, Michael C, 1986. "Agency Costs of Free Cash Flow, Corporate Finance, and Takeovers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(2), pages 323-329, May.
    14. Bushman, Robert & Chen, Qi & Engel, Ellen & Smith, Abbie, 2004. "Financial accounting information, organizational complexity and corporate governance systems," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 167-201, June.
    15. Hadlock, Charles J & Ryngaert, Michael & Thomas, Shawn, 2001. "Corporate Structure and Equity Offerings: Are There Benefits to Diversification?," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 74(4), pages 613-635, October.
    16. Edward C. Norton & Hua Wang & Chunrong Ai, 2004. "Computing interaction effects and standard errors in logit and probit models," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 4(2), pages 154-167, June.
    17. Schmid, Markus M. & Walter, Ingo, 2009. "Do financial conglomerates create or destroy economic value?," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 193-216, April.
    18. Ronald W. Best & Charles W. Hodges & Bing‐Xuan Lin, 2004. "Does Information Asymmetry Explain The Diversification Discount?," Journal of Financial Research, Southern Finance Association;Southwestern Finance Association, vol. 27(2), pages 235-249, June.
    19. Doukas, John A. & Pantzalis, Christos, 2003. "Geographic diversification and agency costs of debt of multinational firms," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 59-92, January.
    20. Doyle, Jeffrey & Ge, Weili & McVay, Sarah, 2007. "Determinants of weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(1-2), pages 193-223, September.
    21. James Jiambalvo & Shivaram Rajgopal & Mohan Venkatachalam, 2002. "Institutional Ownership and the Extent to which Stock Prices Reflect Future Earnings," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 19(1), pages 117-145, March.
    22. Ashbaugh-Skaife, Hollis & Collins, Daniel W. & Kinney Jr., William R., 2007. "The discovery and reporting of internal control deficiencies prior to SOX-mandated audits," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(1-2), pages 166-192, September.
    23. Claessens, Stijn & Djankov, Simeon & Fan, Joseph P. H. & Lang, Larry H. P., 2003. "When does corporate diversification matter to productivity and performance? Evidence from East Asia," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 365-392, July.
    24. Zhang, Yan & Zhou, Jian & Zhou, Nan, 2007. "Audit committee quality, auditor independence, and internal control weaknesses," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 300-327.
    25. Brian J. Bushee, 2001. "Do Institutional Investors Prefer Near†Term Earnings over Long†Run Value?," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(2), pages 207-246, June.
    26. Chongwoo Choe & Tania Dey & Vinod Mishra, 2014. "Corporate diversification, executive compensation and firm value: Evidence from Australia," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 39(3), pages 395-414, August.
    27. Meyer, Margaret & Milgrom, Paul & Roberts, John, 1992. "Organizational Prospects, Influence Costs, and Ownership Changes," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 1(1), pages 9-35, Spring.
    28. Burns, Natasha & Kedia, Simi & Lipson, Marc, 2010. "Institutional ownership and monitoring: Evidence from financial misreporting," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 443-455, September.
    29. Ai, Chunrong & Norton, Edward C., 2003. "Interaction terms in logit and probit models," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 80(1), pages 123-129, July.
    30. Yeh, Yin-Hua & Woidtke, Tracie, 2005. "Commitment or entrenchment?: Controlling shareholders and board composition," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(7), pages 1857-1885, July.
    31. Daines, Robert M. & Gow, Ian D. & Larcker, David F., 2010. "Rating the ratings: How good are commercial governance ratings?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(3), pages 439-461, December.
    32. Chen, Chiung-Jung & Yu, Chwo-Ming Joseph, 2012. "Managerial ownership, diversification, and firm performance: Evidence from an emerging market," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 518-534.
    33. Marianne Bertrand & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2001. "Are CEOs Rewarded for Luck? The Ones Without Principals Are," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 116(3), pages 901-932.
    34. Dong, Min & Ozkan, Aydin, 2008. "Institutional investors and director pay: An empirical study of UK companies," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 16-29, February.
    35. Krishna Palepu, 1985. "Diversification strategy, profit performance and the entropy measure," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(3), pages 239-255, July.
    36. Karl Lins & Henri Servaes, 1999. "International Evidence on the Value of Corporate Diversification," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(6), pages 2215-2239, December.
    37. Edel Barnes & Gael Hardie-Brown, 2006. "The Diversification Puzzle: Revisiting the Value Impact of Diversification for UK Firms," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(9-10), pages 1508-1534.
    38. Edel Barnes & Gael Hardie‐Brown, 2006. "The Diversification Puzzle: Revisiting the Value Impact of Diversification for UK Firms," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(9‐10), pages 1508-1534, November.
    39. Yakov Amihud & Baruch Lev, 1981. "Risk Reduction as a Managerial Motive for Conglomerate Mergers," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 12(2), pages 605-617, Autumn.
    40. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1986. "Large Shareholders and Corporate Control," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 94(3), pages 461-488, June.
    41. Wahal, Sunil & McConnell, John J., 2000. "Do institutional investors exacerbate managerial myopia?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 307-329, September.
    42. Lewellen, Wilbur G, 1971. "A Pure Financial Rationale for the Conglomerate Merger," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 26(2), pages 521-537, May.
    43. Chung, Richard & Firth, Michael & Kim, Jeong-Bon, 2005. "Earnings management, surplus free cash flow, and external monitoring," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(6), pages 766-776, June.
    44. Grant Fleming & Barry Oliver & Steven Skourakis, 2003. "The valuation discount of multi‐segment firms in Australia," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 43(2), pages 167-185, July.
    45. Daphne Yiu & Garry D. Bruton & Yuan Lu, 2005. "Understanding Business Group Performance in an Emerging Economy: Acquiring Resources and Capabilities in Order to Prosper," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(1), pages 183-206, January.
    46. Constantinos C. Markides & Peter J. Williamson, 1994. "Related diversification, core competences and corporate performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(S2), pages 149-165, June.
    47. Gunnar Grass, 2012. "Does conglomeration really reduce credit risk?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 52(3), pages 831-848, September.
    48. Steven Balsam & Wei Jiang & Bo Lu, 2014. "Equity Incentives and Internal Control Weaknesses," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 178-201, March.
    49. Jensen, Michael C & Murphy, Kevin J, 1990. "Performance Pay and Top-Management Incentives," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 98(2), pages 225-264, April.
    50. Nawaf Al-Maskati & André J. Bate & Gurmeet S. Bhabra & Robert Faff, 2015. "Diversification, corporate governance and firm value in small markets: evidence from New Zealand," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 55(3), pages 627-657, September.
    51. Walther, BR, 1997. "Investor sophistication and market earnings expectations," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(2), pages 157-179.
    52. Denis, David J & Denis, Diane K & Sarin, Atulya, 1997. "Agency Problems, Equity Ownership, and Corporate Diversification," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(1), pages 135-160, March.
    53. DeAngelo, Linda Elizabeth, 1981. "Auditor size and audit quality," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(3), pages 183-199, December.
    54. Warfield, Terry D. & Wild, John J. & Wild, Kenneth L., 1995. "Managerial ownership, accounting choices, and informativeness of earnings," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 61-91, July.
    55. Rajesh K. Aggarwal & Andrew A. Samwick, 2003. "Why Do Managers Diversify Their Firms? Agency Reconsidered," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(1), pages 71-118, February.
    56. Palepu, Krishna G., 1986. "Predicting takeover targets : A methodological and empirical analysis," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 8(1), pages 3-35, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jing Lu & Guohua Cao & Chuan Lin & Stavros Sindakis & Saloome Showkat, 2024. "Corporate Site Visits and Stock Price Crash Risk: The Role of Institutional Investors’ Knowledge Acquisitions," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(2), pages 9082-9114, June.
    2. Mushtaq Hussain Khan & Hina Yaqub Bhatti & Arshad Hassan & Ahmad Fraz, 2021. "The diversification–performance nexus: mediating role of information asymmetry," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 25(3), pages 787-810, September.
    3. Karami, Gholamreza & Mehrani, Sasan & Beik Boshrouyeh, Salman & Ezadpour, Mostafa & Mohebbi, Masoud & Samavat, Milad, 2024. "Political connections and labor investment efficiency," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 89(PB), pages 568-580.
    4. Feng, Yumei & Yao, Shouyu & Wang, Chunfeng & Liao, Jing & Cheng, Feiyang, 2022. "Diversification and financialization of non-financial corporations: Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    5. Imran Abbas Jadoon & Umara Noreen & Usman Ayub & Muhammad Tahir & Naima Shahzadi, 2021. "The Impact of Family Ownership on Quality and Disclosure of Internal Control in Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-16, August.
    6. Xing Li & Xia Chen & Baolei Qi & Gaoliang Tian, 2020. "Employee quality and audit fee: evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 60(5), pages 4533-4566, December.
    7. Chen, Yu & Wang, Yuandi & Hu, Die & Zhou, Zhao, 2020. "Government R&D subsidies, information asymmetry, and the role of foreign investors: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment on the shanghai-hong kong stock connect," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    8. Abdul Waheed & Qaisar Ali Malik, 2021. "Institutional Ownership Board Characteristics and Firm Performance: A Contingent Theoretical Approach," International Journal of Asian Business and Information Management (IJABIM), IGI Global, vol. 12(2), pages 1-15, April.
    9. Feng, Yuan & Mao, Yihuan & Cai, Jing & Xu, Nan, 2024. "Can board IT expertise improve corporate internal control?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 62(PA).
    10. Li, Zhe & Wang, Bo & Wu, Tianlong & Zhou, Dan, 2021. "The influence of qualified foreign institutional investors on internal control quality: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    11. Dan Zhang & Shiguang Ma & Xiaofei Pan, 2021. "Institutional investors, controlling shareholders and CEO pay‐performance relationship: evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(1), pages 467-498, March.
    12. Dunli Zhang & Ting Zhang & Guanghua Ma, 2020. "Can non‐executive equity incentives reduce internal control ineffectiveness? Evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 60(5), pages 4467-4496, December.
    13. Peter Nderitu GITHAIGA, 2019. "Income Diversification, Market Power and Performance," Journal of Economics and Financial Analysis, Tripal Publishing House, vol. 3(2), pages 1-21.
    14. Daoju Peng & Jianfu Shen & Simon Yu Kit Fung & Eddie C. M. Hui & Kwokyuen Fan, 2024. "The Valuation Effect and Consequences of Clawback Adoption in Real Estate Investment Trusts," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 68(2), pages 274-317, February.
    15. Hui-Wen Hsu, 2023. "Does Managerial Ability Affect Corporate Diversification Strategies and Corporate Diversification Performance? Evidence from the US," Journal of Applied Finance & Banking, SCIENPRESS Ltd, vol. 13(1), pages 1-4.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Stefan Erdorf & Thomas Hartmann-Wendels & Nicolas Heinrichs & Michael Matz, 2013. "Corporate diversification and firm value: a survey of recent literature," Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, Springer;Swiss Society for Financial Market Research, vol. 27(2), pages 187-215, June.
    2. Zinnia Mitra Bose & Indrani Chakraborty, 2022. "Effects of diversification on firm performance: an analysis of Indian firms," Indian Economic Review, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 469-511, December.
    3. Mushtaq Hussain Khan & Hina Yaqub Bhatti & Arshad Hassan & Ahmad Fraz, 2021. "The diversification–performance nexus: mediating role of information asymmetry," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 25(3), pages 787-810, September.
    4. Liu-Ching Tsai & Chaur-Shiuh Young & Hui-Wen Hsu, 2011. "Entrenched controlling shareholders and the performance consequences of corporate diversification in Taiwan," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 37(1), pages 105-126, July.
    5. Christian Espinosa & Carlos Maquieira, 2010. "Diversificación y Desempeño en Sud América: Evidencia para Chile," Working Papers 10, Facultad de Economía y Empresa, Universidad Diego Portales.
    6. Elif AKBEN SELCUK, 2014. "Corporate Diversification, Group Affiliation and Firm Value: Evidence From Turkey," Journal of BRSA Banking and Financial Markets, Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency, vol. 8(2), pages 151-174.
    7. Ma. Belén Lozano García & Alberto de Miguel Hidalgo & Diana Monserrat Ríos Rodríguez, 2013. "Responsible Diversification: Knowing Enough About Diversification To Do It Responsibly: Motives, Measures And Consequences," Annales Universitatis Apulensis Series Oeconomica, Faculty of Sciences, "1 Decembrie 1918" University, Alba Iulia, vol. 1(15), pages 1-19.
    8. Oesterle, Michael-Jörg & Richta, Hannah Noriko & Fisch, Jan Hendrik, 2013. "The influence of ownership structure on internationalization," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 187-201.
    9. Chen, Chiung-Jung & Yu, Chwo-Ming Joseph, 2012. "Managerial ownership, diversification, and firm performance: Evidence from an emerging market," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 518-534.
    10. Stefan Erdorf & Thomas Hartmann-Wendels & Nicolas Heinrichs & Michael Matz, 2012. "Corporate Diversification and Firm Value: A Survey of Recent Literature," Cologne Graduate School Working Paper Series 03-01, Cologne Graduate School in Management, Economics and Social Sciences.
    11. Nilakshi Borah & Liu Pan & Jung Chul Park & Nan Shao, 2018. "Does corporate diversification reduce value in high technology firms?," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 51(3), pages 683-718, October.
    12. Westman, Hanna, 2011. "The impact of management and board ownership on profitability in banks with different strategies," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(12), pages 3300-3318.
    13. Christian Espinosa & Carlos Maquieira & Joao Paulo Vieito, 2012. "Does corporate diversication create value in south america? The chilean case," Working Papers 38, Facultad de Economía y Empresa, Universidad Diego Portales.
    14. Marc Rustige & Michael H. Grote, 2009. "Der Einfluss von Diversifikationsstrategien auf den Aktienkurs deutscher Unternehmen," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 61(5), pages 470-498, August.
    15. Martin, John D. & Sayrak, Akin, 2003. "Corporate diversification and shareholder value: a survey of recent literature," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 37-57, January.
    16. Kim, Young Sang & Mathur, Ike, 2008. "The impact of geographic diversification on firm performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 17(4), pages 747-766, September.
    17. Stein, Jeremy C., 2003. "Agency, information and corporate investment," Handbook of the Economics of Finance, in: G.M. Constantinides & M. Harris & R. M. Stulz (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Finance, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 2, pages 111-165, Elsevier.
    18. Manohar Singh & Ike Mathur & Kimberly C. Gleason, 2004. "Governance and Performance Implications of Diversification Strategies: Evidence from Large U.S. Firms," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 39(4), pages 489-526, November.
    19. Andreou, Panayiotis C. & Doukas, John A. & Koursaros, Demetris & Louca, Christodoulos, 2019. "Valuation effects of overconfident CEOs on corporate diversification and refocusing decisions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 182-204.
    20. Farooqi, Javeria & Harris, Oneil & Ngo, Thanh, 2014. "Corporate diversification, real activities manipulation, and firm value," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 130-151.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:58:y:2018:i:3:p:751-786. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.