IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/accoun/v47y2012i2p168-197.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do accounting standards matter to financial analysts? An empirical analysis of the effect of cross-listing from different accounting standards regimes on analyst following and forecast error

Author

Listed:
  • Abdallah, Abed AL-Nasser
  • Abdallah, Wissam
  • Ismail, Ahmad

Abstract

This paper explores whether the effects of cross-listing on analyst following and forecast error differ among firms with different accounting standards. The results reveal a higher increase in the number of analysts for cross-listed firms that follow their home country's GAAP prior to cross-listing and reconcile or switch to IAS/US GAAP or UK GAAP after cross-listing, compared to those that adopt IAS or US GAAP prior to cross-listing. We find that firms that switch to IAS/US GAAP have a higher increase in analyst following after cross-listing compared to firms that reconcile to IAS/US GAAP. In addition, we find a higher increase in analyst following after cross-listing for firms from low-level accounting standards environments compared to firms from high-level accounting standards environments. Our results show evidence of an increase in the magnitude of analysts’ forecast error after cross-listing for firms that follow their home country's GAAP pre-cross-listing but reconcile post-cross-listing to IAS/US GAAP or UK GAAP. On the other hand, we report a decrease in forecast error for firms that switch to IAS/US GAAP.

Suggested Citation

  • Abdallah, Abed AL-Nasser & Abdallah, Wissam & Ismail, Ahmad, 2012. "Do accounting standards matter to financial analysts? An empirical analysis of the effect of cross-listing from different accounting standards regimes on analyst following and forecast error," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 47(2), pages 168-197.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:accoun:v:47:y:2012:i:2:p:168-197
    DOI: 10.1016/j.intacc.2012.03.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020706312000374
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.intacc.2012.03.002?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. Yu, Minna, 2010. "Analyst forecast properties, analyst following and governance disclosures: A global perspective," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 19(1), pages 1-15.
    2. Christian Leuz, 2003. "IAS Versus U.S. GAAP: Information Asymmetry–Based Evidence from Germany's New Market," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 445-472, June.
    3. Ole‐Kristian Hope, 2003. "Disclosure Practices, Enforcement of Accounting Standards, and Analysts' Forecast Accuracy: An International Study," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(2), pages 235-272, May.
    4. Street, Donna L. & Nichols, Nancy B. & Gray, Sidney J., 2000. "Assessing the Acceptability of International Accounting Standards in the US: An Empirical Study of the Materiality of US GAAP Reconciliations by Non-US Companies Complying with IASC Standards," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 27-63, March.
    5. Gauri Bhat & Ole‐Kristian Hope & Tony Kang, 2006. "Does corporate governance transparency affect the accuracy of analyst forecasts?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 46(5), pages 715-732, December.
    6. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1998. "Law and Finance," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1113-1155, December.
    7. Acker, D. & Horton, J. & Tonks, I., 2002. "Accounting standards and analysts' forecasts: the impact of FRS3 on analysts' ability to forecast EPS," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 193-217.
    8. Leuz, C & Verrecchia, RE, 2000. "The economic consequences of increased disclosure," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38, pages 91-124.
    9. Merton, Robert C, 1987. "A Simple Model of Capital Market Equilibrium with Incomplete Information," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 42(3), pages 483-510, July.
    10. Mark H. Lang & Karl V. Lins & Darius P. Miller, 2003. "ADRs, Analysts, and Accuracy: Does Cross Listing in the United States Improve a Firm's Information Environment and Increase Market Value?," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(2), pages 317-345, May.
    11. Frankel, Richard & Kothari, S.P. & Weber, Joseph, 2006. "Determinants of the informativeness of analyst research," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1-2), pages 29-54, April.
    12. John Capstaff & Krishna Paudyal & William Rees, 1999. "The relative forecast accuracy of UK brokers," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(1), pages 3-16.
    13. 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.
    14. Christian Leuz, 2003. "IAS Versus U.S. GAAP: Information Asymmetry–Based Evidence from Germany's New Market," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 445-472, June.
    15. Mary E. Barth & Greg Clinch, 1996. "International Accounting Differences and Their Relation to Share Prices: Evidence from U.K., Australian, and Canadian Firms," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 13(1), pages 135-170, March.
    16. Harris, Mary S. & Muller III, Karl A., 1999. "The market valuation of IAS versus US-GAAP accounting measures using Form 20-F reconciliations1," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(1-3), pages 285-312, January.
    17. Bhushan, Ravi, 1989. "Firm characteristics and analyst following," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 11(2-3), pages 255-274, July.
    18. Duarte, Jefferson & Han, Xi & Harford, Jarrad & Young, Lance, 2008. "Information asymmetry, information dissemination and the effect of regulation FD on the cost of capital," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 24-44, January.
    19. Stuart C. Gilson & Paul M. Healy & Christopher F. Noe & Krishna G. Palepu, 2001. "Analyst Specialization and Conglomerate Stock Breakups," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(3), pages 565-582, December.
    20. Healy, Paul M. & Palepu, Krishna G., 2001. "Information asymmetry, corporate disclosure, and the capital markets: A review of the empirical disclosure literature," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(1-3), pages 405-440, September.
    21. Rajan, Raghuram & Servaes, Henri, 1997. "Analyst Following of Initial Public Offerings," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 507-529, 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. Iatridis, George Emmanuel, 2016. "Financial reporting language in financial statements: Does pessimism restrict the potential for managerial opportunism?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 1-17.
    2. Ghadhab, Imen, 2021. "Cross-listing and the alignment between short and long-run performance," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    3. Ghadhab, Imen & M’rad, Mouna, 2018. "Does US cross-listing come with incremental benefit for already UK cross-listed firms," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 188-204.
    4. Abdallah, Abed AL-Nasser & Abdallah, Wissam, 2017. "Does cross-listing increase managers' propensity to listen to the market in M&A deals?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 97-120.
    5. Ferhat D. Zengul & Nurettin Oner & James D. Byrd & Arline Savage, 2021. "Revealing Research Themes and Trends in 30 Top‐ranking Accounting Journals: A Text‐mining Approach," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 57(3), pages 468-501, September.
    6. Abdallah, Abed AL-Nasser & Abdallah, Wissam, 2019. "Does cross-listing in the US improve investment efficiency? Evidence from UK firms," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 215-231.
    7. Abed Al-Nasser Abdallah & Wissam Abdallah & Feras M. Salama, 2018. "The Market Reaction to the Adoption of IFRS in the European Insurance Industry," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 43(4), pages 653-703, October.
    8. Hassan, Omaima A.G. & Skinner, Frank S., 2016. "Analyst coverage: Does the listing location really matter?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 227-236.

    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. Bailey, Warren & Andrew Karolyi, G. & Salva, Carolina, 2006. "The economic consequences of increased disclosure: Evidence from international cross-listings," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(1), pages 175-213, July.
    2. Walter Aerts & Denis Cormier & Michel Magnan, 2007. "The Association Between Web‐Based Corporate Performance Disclosure and Financial Analyst Behaviour Under Different Governance Regimes," Corporate Governance: An International Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(6), pages 1301-1329, November.
    3. Yu, Minna, 2010. "Analyst forecast properties, analyst following and governance disclosures: A global perspective," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 19(1), pages 1-15.
    4. Eliwa, Yasser & Haslam, Jim & Abraham, Santhosh, 2021. "Earnings quality and analysts’ information environment: Evidence from the EU market," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 42(C).
    5. Leonardo Fernandez, 2012. "Price Discovery, Investor Distraction and Analyst Recommendations Under Continuous Disclosure Requirements in Australia," PhD Thesis, Finance Discipline Group, UTS Business School, University of Technology, Sydney, number 1-2012.
    6. Christian Leuz & Peter D. Wysocki, 2016. "The Economics of Disclosure and Financial Reporting Regulation: Evidence and Suggestions for Future Research," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(2), pages 525-622, May.
    7. Christopher Koch & Ola Nilsson & Katarina Eriksson, 2014. "Does shareholder protection affect the performance of analysts as a gatekeeper?," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 18(2), pages 315-345, May.
    8. John Ammer & Nathanael Clinton & Gregory P. Nini, 2005. "Accounting standards and information: inferences from cross-listed financial firms," International Finance Discussion Papers 843, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    9. Tim Eaton & John Nofsinger & Daniel Weaver, 2007. "Disclosure and the cost of equity in international cross-listing," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 29(1), pages 1-24, July.
    10. Van Geyt, Debby & Van Cauwenberge, Philippe & Vander Bauwhede, Heidi, 2014. "Does high-quality corporate communication reduce insider trading profitability?," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 1-14.
    11. Irene Karamanou & George P. Nishiotis, 2009. "Disclosure and the Cost of Capital: Evidence from the Market's Reaction to Firm Voluntary Adoption of IAS," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(7‐8), pages 793-821, September.
    12. Isidro, Helena & Raonic, Ivana, 2012. "Firm incentives, institutional complexity and the quality of “harmonized” accounting numbers," The International Journal of Accounting, Elsevier, vol. 47(4), pages 407-436.
    13. Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz, 2006. "International Differences in the Cost of Equity Capital: Do Legal Institutions and Securities Regulation Matter?," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(3), pages 485-531, June.
    14. Jan Diebecker & Friedrich Sommer, 2017. "The impact of corporate sustainability performance on information asymmetry: the role of institutional differences," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 11(2), pages 471-517, March.
    15. 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).
    16. Tsao, Shou-Min & Lu, Hsueh-Tien & Keung, Edmund C., 2016. "Voluntary monthly earnings disclosures and analyst behavior," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 37-49.
    17. Haiyan Zhou & Stephen Owusu-Ansah, 2014. "Cross listing, disclosure regimes, and trading volume sensitivity to stock returns," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 38(3), pages 383-406, July.
    18. Hail, Luzi & Leuz, Christian, 2005. "Cost of Capital and Cash Flow Effects of U.S. Cross Listings," Working Papers 05-2, University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School, Weiss Center.
    19. Holger Daske & Luzi Hail & Christian Leuz & Rodrigo Verdi, 2008. "Mandatory IFRS Reporting around the World: Early Evidence on the Economic Consequences," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 1085-1142, December.
    20. Syrine Sassi & Narjess Toumi, 2018. "Product market competition and analyst following," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 22(1), pages 55-88, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Cross-listing; Information disclosure; Accounting standards; Analyst following; Forecast error;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G15 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - International Financial Markets
    • G18 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance

    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:eee:accoun:v:47:y:2012:i:2:p:168-197. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/620179 .

    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.