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Agency problems and audit fees: further tests of the free cash flow hypothesis

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  • Paul A. Griffin
  • David H. Lont
  • Yuan Sun

Abstract

This study finds that the agency problems of companies with high free cash flow (FCF) and low growth opportunities induce auditors of companies in the US to raise audit fees to compensate for the additional effort. We also find that high FCF companies with high growth prospects have higher audit fees. In both cases, higher debt levels moderate the increased fees, consistent with the role of debt as a monitoring mechanism. Other mechanisms to mitigate the agency costs of FCF such as dividend payout and share repurchase (not studied earlier) do not moderate the higher audit fees.

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  • Paul A. Griffin & David H. Lont & Yuan Sun, 2010. "Agency problems and audit fees: further tests of the free cash flow hypothesis," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 50(2), pages 321-350, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:50:y:2010:i:2:p:321-350
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-629X.2009.00327.x
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    Cited by:

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    3. Izaias Martins & Felipe Uribe & Diana Mesa, 2012. "Contribución de la orientación emprendedora a la rentabilidad de las pymes: un análisis contingente considerando la función del entorno," Revista Ecos de Economía, Universidad EAFIT, April.
    4. Smith, Deborah Drummond & Gleason, Kimberly C. & Kannan, Yezen H., 2021. "Auditor liability and excess cash holdings: Evidence from audit fees of foreign incorporated firms," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    5. Wang, Yolanda Yulong, 2023. "Corporate diversification, investment efficiency and the business cycle11This work is supported by Shenzhen Humanities & Social Sciences Key Research Bases," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    6. Liu, Xinghe & Xu, Huifeng & Lu, Meiting, 2021. "Do auditors respond to stringent environmental regulation? Evidence from China’s new environmental protection law," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 54-67.
    7. Kuo, Nan-Ting & Li, Shu & Du, Ya-Guang & Lee, Cheng-Few, 2022. "Does individual auditor quality contribute to firm value? Evidence from the market valuation on corporate cash holdings," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 135-153.
    8. S. Martono & Arief Yulianto & Rini Setyo Witiastuti & Angga Pandu Wijaya, 2020. "The Role of Institutional Ownership and Industry Characteristics on the Propensity to Pay Dividend: An Insight from Company Open Innovation," JOItmC, MDPI, vol. 6(3), pages 1-16, September.
    9. Baban Eulaiwi & Ahmed Al‐Hadi & Lien Duong & Keira Clark & Grantley Taylor & Brian Perrin, 2022. "Audit pricing and corporate whistleblower governance: evidence from Australian financial firms," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(2), pages 2339-2384, June.
    10. Du, Shuili & Xu, Xiaolu & Yu, Kun, 2020. "Does corporate social responsibility affect auditor-client contracting? Evidence from auditor selection and audit fees," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    11. Maroun, Warren & Atkins, Jill, 2014. "Section 45 of the Auditing Profession Act: Blowing the whistle for audit quality?," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 248-263.
    12. Zahra Mohammad Azadi & Esfandyar Mohammadi, 2014. "Investigating the Relationship between Institutional Ownership and Audit Fees," International Journal of Empirical Finance, Research Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 2(1), pages 27-33.
    13. Nan‐Ting Kuo & Shu Li & Shiyun Zhai, 2022. "Institutional features and audit pricing of excess cash holdings: Do auditor liabilities beyond financial statement assurance matter?," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(9-10), pages 1581-1604, October.
    14. Husam Aldamen & Keith Duncan & Simone Kelly & Ray McNamara & Stephan Nagel, 2012. "Audit committee characteristics and firm performance during the global financial crisis," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 52(4), pages 971-1000, December.
    15. Samuel Jebaraj Benjamin, 2019. "The Effect of Financial Constraints on Audit Fees," Capital Markets Review, Malaysian Finance Association, vol. 27(2), pages 59-87.
    16. 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.
    17. Aboud, Ahmed & Roberts, Clare, 2018. "Managers’ segment disclosure choices under IFRS 8: EU evidence," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 293-308.
    18. Belghitar, Yacine & Clark, Ephraim, 2015. "Managerial risk incentives and investment related agency costs," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 191-197.
    19. Martins, Izaias & Rialp, Alex, 2013. "Orientación emprendedora, hostilidad del entorno y la rentabilidad de la Pyme: una propuesta de contingencias," Cuadernos de Gestión, Universidad del País Vasco - Instituto de Economía Aplicada a la Empresa (IEAE).
    20. Pattarin Adithipyangkul & H. Y. Hung & T. Y. Leung, 2021. "An Auditor's Perspective of Executive Incentive Pay and Dividend Payouts in Family Firms," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 42(4), pages 697-714, December.
    21. Dongshan Ma & Shengqiang Zhang & Jiayu Zhao, 2022. "The High-Speed Railway Opening and Audit Fees: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-19, October.
    22. Yolanda Yulong Wang, 2023. "Corporate diversification, investment efficiency and the business cycle," Post-Print hal-04005692, HAL.

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