IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/rqfnac/v28y2007i3p307-326.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Analysts’ forecast revisions and firms’ research and development expenses

Author

Listed:
  • Li-Chin Ho
  • Chao-Shin Liu
  • Thomas Schaefer

Abstract

This study examines whether reported values for firms’ research and development (R&D) affect analysts’ annual earnings forecast revisions following quarterly earnings announcements. Because R&D introduces uncertainty into earnings forecasts, analysts may benefit from additional information searches in an effort to increase forecast accuracy. Also, accounting standards mandate an immediate expensing of R&D, in essence projecting a zero value for the R&D. To the extent that R&D will produce future payoffs, the expense treatment reduces the informativeness of reported earnings for forecasting future earnings. Thus, the marginal benefit of analysts’ efforts to produce more information may increase with the magnitude of the R&D component of earnings announcements and trigger additional forecast revisions. Alternatively, if the cost of information searches exceeds the benefit, analysts’ forecast revisions may decrease. Our results show a positive relation between R&D expenses and analysts’ forecast revision activity. We also find a positive and significant association between the level of R&D expenses and the magnitude of analysts’ forecast revisions following quarterly announcements. These results point to a greater amount of analyst scrutiny when reported earnings are accompanied by high levels of R&D expenses. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2007

Suggested Citation

  • Li-Chin Ho & Chao-Shin Liu & Thomas Schaefer, 2007. "Analysts’ forecast revisions and firms’ research and development expenses," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 28(3), pages 307-326, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:rqfnac:v:28:y:2007:i:3:p:307-326
    DOI: 10.1007/s11156-006-0013-8
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s11156-006-0013-8
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11156-006-0013-8?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Atiase, Rk, 1985. "Predisclosure Information, Firm Capitalization, And Security Price Behavior Around Earnings Announcements," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(1), pages 21-36.
    2. Zoltan J. Acs & David B. Audretsch & Maryann P. Feldman, 2008. "R&D Spillovers and Recipient Firm Size," Chapters, in: Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy, chapter 8, pages 88-94, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. Mansfield, Edwin, 1991. "Academic research and industrial innovation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 1-12, February.
    4. Grossman, Sanford J & Stiglitz, Joseph E, 1976. "Information and Competitive Price Systems," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 66(2), pages 246-253, May.
    5. Francis, Jennifer & Douglas Hanna, J. & Philbrick, Donna R., 1997. "Management communications with securities analysts," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 363-394, December.
    6. Holden, Craig W & Subrahmanyam, Avanidhar, 1992. "Long-Lived Private Information and Imperfect Competition," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 47(1), pages 247-270, March.
    7. Barth, Mary E. & Kasznik, Ron, 1999. "Share repurchases and intangible assets," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(2), pages 211-241, December.
    8. David Aboody & Baruch Lev, 2000. "Information Asymmetry, R&D, and Insider Gains," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(6), pages 2747-2766, December.
    9. Bhushan, Ravi, 1989. "Firm characteristics and analyst following," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 11(2-3), pages 255-274, July.
    10. Baruch Lev, 1999. "R&D And Capital Markets," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 11(4), pages 21-35, January.
    11. Lev, B & Zarowin, P, 1999. "The boundaries of financial reporting and how to extend them," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(2), pages 353-385.
    12. Brennan, Michael J & Jegadeesh, Narasimhan & Swaminathan, Bhaskaran, 1993. "Investment Analysis and the Adjustment of Stock Prices to Common Information," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 6(4), pages 799-824.
    13. Mary E. Barth & Ron Kasznik & Maureen F. McNichols, 2001. "Analyst Coverage and Intangible Assets," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(1), pages 1-34, June.
    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. Tami Dinh Thi & Wolfgang Schultze, 2011. "Capitalizing research & development and ‘other information’: the incremental information content of accruals versus cash flows," Metrika: International Journal for Theoretical and Applied Statistics, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 241-278, November.
    2. Denise A. Jones, 2018. "Using real options theory to explain patterns in the valuation of research and development expenditures," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 51(3), pages 575-593, October.

    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. Chen-Lung Chin & Picheng Lee & Gary Kleinman & Pei-Yu Chen, 2006. "IPO anomalies and innovation capital," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 27(1), pages 67-91, August.
    2. Ryan, Paul, 2005. "The market impact of directors' trades: relationship to various measures of a firm's information environment," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 319-337.
    3. Gharbi, Sami & Sahut, Jean-Michel & Teulon, Frédéric, 2014. "R&D investments and high-tech firms' stock return volatility," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 306-312.
    4. Chen, Xia & Cheng, Qiang & Lo, Kin, 2010. "On the relationship between analyst reports and corporate disclosures: Exploring the roles of information discovery and interpretation," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 206-226, April.
    5. Chan, Konan & Guo, Re-Jin J. & Wang, Yanzhi A. & Yang, Hsiao-Lin, 2022. "Organization capital and analyst coverage," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 81-105.
    6. Anwer S. Ahmed & Minsup Song & Douglas E. Stevens, 2009. "Earnings characteristics and analysts’ differential interpretation of earnings announcements: An empirical analysis," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 49(2), pages 223-246, June.
    7. Frankel, Richard & Li, Xu, 2004. "Characteristics of a firm's information environment and the information asymmetry between insiders and outsiders," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 229-259, June.
    8. Yongtao Hong & Fariz Huseynov & Wei Zhang, 2014. "Earnings Management and Analyst Following: A Simultaneous Equations Analysis," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 43(2), pages 355-390, June.
    9. Eberhart, Allan C., 2001. "Comparable firms and the precision of equity valuations," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 25(7), pages 1367-1400, July.
    10. Pornsit Jiraporn & Yixin Liu & Young S. Kim, 2014. "How Do Powerful CEOs Affect Analyst Coverage?," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 20(3), pages 652-676, June.
    11. Miran Hossain & Benjamin A. Jansen & Jon Taylor, 2020. "Do Analysts Cater to Investor Information Demand?," Working Papers 202003, Middle Tennessee State University, Department of Economics and Finance.
    12. Brennan, Michael J. & Subrahmanyam, Avanidhar, 1995. "Investment analysis and price formation in securities markets," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 361-381, July.
    13. Mark Russell, 2017. "Management incentives to recognise intangible assets," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57, pages 211-234, April.
    14. Ran Lu-Andrews, 2017. "Tenant Quality and REIT Liquidity Management," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 54(3), pages 272-296, April.
    15. Kannan, Yezen & Khallaf, Ashraf & Gleason, Kimberly & Bostan, Ibrahim, 2023. "The relationship between R&D intensity, conservatism, and management earnings forecast issuance," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    16. YalçIn, Atakan, 2008. "Gradual information diffusion and contrarian strategies," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 579-604, August.
    17. Green, T. Clifton & Jame, Russell & Markov, Stanimir & Subasi, Musa, 2014. "Broker-hosted investor conferences," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 142-166.
    18. Asdemir, Ozer & Fernando, Guy D & Schneible, Richard A. & Tripathy, Arindam, 2017. "Impact of strategy on analyst information," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 103-110.
    19. Gaëlle Lenormand & Lionel Touchais, 2008. "La pertinence des actifs incorporels avec les IFRS," Revue Finance Contrôle Stratégie, revues.org, vol. 11(2), pages 173-201, June.
    20. Zhang, Ping & Wang, Yiru, 2023. "The bright side of analyst coverage on corporate innovation: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).

    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:kap:rqfnac:v:28:y:2007:i:3:p:307-326. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://springer.com .

    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.