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Disclosure strategies among S&P 500 firms: Evidence on the disclosure of non-GAAP financial measures and financial statements in earnings press releases

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  • Marques, Ana

Abstract

This paper examines the prominence of non-GAAP financial measures in press releases, testing whether managers emphasize these adjusted performance measures relative to GAAP numbers in four different settings where their disclosure helps managers reach strategic earnings benchmarks on a pro forma basis when they would otherwise fall short using GAAP numbers. Moreover, this research investigates the information content of disclosures reconciling non-GAAP to GAAP earnings (and other financial statements). The data is hand collected from quarterly earnings press releases of a sample of S&P 500 firms during the 2001–2003 period. In this particular sample, the disclosure of non-GAAP financial measures is frequent. The results suggest that managers strategically give more prominence to non-GAAP measures than to GAAP figures when the GAAP earnings number falls short of a benchmark but the non-GAAP earnings number does not. This disclosure strategy may influence the perception of the firm's financial results. Furthermore, the results suggest that both the reconciliation and the non-GAAP income statement contain information useful for users.

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  • Marques, Ana, 2010. "Disclosure strategies among S&P 500 firms: Evidence on the disclosure of non-GAAP financial measures and financial statements in earnings press releases," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 119-131.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:bracre:v:42:y:2010:i:2:p:119-131
    DOI: 10.1016/j.bar.2010.02.004
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    Cited by:

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    3. Corinne Bessieux-Ollier & Grégoire Davrinche & Guillaume Dumas, 2022. "L'adaptation de la communication financière face à la crise COVID : le cas des résultats non-GAAP," Post-Print hal-03948560, HAL.
    4. Visani, Franco & Di Lascio, F. Marta L. & Gardini, Silvia, 2020. "The impact of institutional and cultural factors on the use of non-GAAP financial measures. International evidence from the oil and gas industry," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 40(C).
    5. Aubert, François & Grudnitski, Gary, 2014. "The role of reconciliation quality in limiting mispricing of non-GAAP earnings announcements by EURO STOXX firms," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 154-167.
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    13. Corinne Bessieux-Ollier & Grégoire Davrinche & Guillaume Dumas, 2022. "L'adaptation de la communication financière face à la crise COVID : le cas des résultats non-GAAP," Post-Print hal-03948567, HAL.
    14. Silvia Gardini & F. Marta L. Di Lascio & Franco Visani, 2017. "Opportunism in disclosing pro-forma indicators: rationale and contextual drivers," BEMPS - Bozen Economics & Management Paper Series BEMPS42, Faculty of Economics and Management at the Free University of Bozen.
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    19. Chen, Han-Chung & Lee, Yen-Jung & Lo, Sheng-Yi & Yu, Yong, 2021. "Qualitative characteristics of non-GAAP disclosures and non-GAAP earnings quality," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(1).

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