Finance and Financial Management Commons^™

Is Direct Method Cash Flow Reporting Better At Predicting Future Performance?, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

“Cash is king” goes the saying. Even companies enjoying brisk business have been known to fail because of unhealthy cash flows. The accounting profession is split over the benefits of the direct method (DM) versus the indirect method (IM) of preparing cash flow reports. In a study of over 100 US-based companies which used direct cash flow statements, Singapore Management University accounting professor Yoonseok Zang shows conclusively that the direct method does better at predicting future performance and earnings. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Information Opacity, Credit Risk, And The Design Of Loan Contracts For Private Firms, Lucy Ackert, Rongbing Huang, Gabriel G. Ramirez

Faculty and Research Publications

This paper examines the structure and cost of a large sample of bank loans to private firms. Compared to public firms, private firms are more informationally opaque and riskier. The results suggest that the design of a loan to a private firm is significantly different from that to a public firm. Bank loans to private firms are more likely to be by a sole lender, collateralized, and have sweep covenants than loans to public firms. The cost of borrowing is higher for a private firm than for a public firm, even after holding constant firm and loan characteristics.

The Association Between Corporate Governance And Audit Fees, Cindy K. Harris

Business and Economics Faculty Publications

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (“SOX”) established not only corporate governance reform but also legislated significant changes to the practice of auditing publicly held corporations. Rules implemented by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) further reinforced stronger corporate governance standards. The effect of these reforms on the cost of public audits is indisputable: the initial rise in audit fees was dramatic as corporations complied with the new provisions. This paper examines the relationship between corporate governance characteristics and audit fees for a random sample of 100 publicly traded corporations drawn from the 2005 Fortune 500 list. The data is obtained …

Minimum Profitability Ruling A Boon Or Bane? Some Lessons From China, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

China’s Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) stands out in its approach to tighten restrictions for listed companies wanting to initiate rights issues or seasoned equity offerings (SEOs). The country’s experience, relevant to other emerging markets, is the subject of a research paper published recently in the International Journal of Accounting, co-authored by Kevin C.W. Chen, accounting professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Singapore Management University accounting professor Jiwei Wang. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Top Performing Hedge Funds: Does Geography Make A Difference?, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Do hedge funds earn above-average returns? Is there a way to identify these top performers? Where hedge funds are located makes the difference, according to Singapore Management University finance professor Melvyn Teo, who is also director of the university’s BNP Paribas Hedge Fund Centre. Teo puts forward evidence for the hypothesis that locally-managed hedge funds are better able to monitor their investments and, therefore, generate superior returns.

Should China Keep Its Dollar Peg? Some Parallels From Japan, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

At a recent Singapore Management University School of Economics Distinguished Lecture, Stanford University international economics professor Ronald I. McKinnon warned of a possible ‘lost decade’ of falling price levels and undesirably low interest rates in China, similar to those experienced by Japan in the 1990s. McKinnon draws parallels between Japan in the late 1980s and present day China in his paper entitled “Why China Should Keep its Exchange Rate Pegged to the Dollar: A Historical Perspective from Japan”. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

An International Comparison Of Student Perceptions Of Earnings Management: Evidence Of Effects Of National Origin Between Mexico And The United States, Marshall A. Geiger, Carmen Quirvan, Alejandro Hazera

Accounting Faculty Publications

Manipulating reported earnings is a temptation faced by accountants and financial professionals around the world. Manipulating, or “managing,” one’s accounting earnings takes a variety of forms and includes not only the avoidance of prescribed accounting rules but also the practice of selectively choosing accounting estimates or timing operating decisions to move reported earnings toward a desired goal. Prior research reveals wide disagreement regarding the perceived ethical acceptability of this practice. This study investigates whether national origin influences perceptions of earnings management. Participants from the United States and Mexico evaluated thirteen vignettes describing various earnings management practices (Merchant and Rockness 1994). …

Exploring The Role That Forecast Surprise And Forecast Error Play In Determining Management Forecast Precision, Jong-Hag Choi, Linda Myers, Yoonseok Zang, David Ziebart

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

No abstract provided.

Segundo Congreso Nacional De Organismos Públicos Autónomos, Bruno L. Costantini García

Bruno L. Costantini García

Memorias del Segundo Congreso Nacional de Organismos Públicos Autónomos. "Autonomía, Profesionalización, Control y Transparencia"

Exploring Steps To Create A Regional Monetary Unit For Asean+3, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

As part of an initiative to move towards greater financial stability in the Asian region, a Regional Monetary Unit is being proposed for the ASEAN+3 nations. These include China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Other countries can be added in the future. Professors Hwee Kwan Chow, Peter N. Kriz, Roberto S. Mariano and Augustine H. H. Tan, from the School of Economics at Singapore Management University, offer their views on the need for a RMU, what its benefits are and how it would work.

Pay And Performance: Among 100 Best U.S. Companies To Work For, Omair Mahmood Faisal

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

In the 21st century, world is becoming a global village and with increased competition businesses are always looking for regions with the lowest possible production costs. Appropriate compensation of U.S. employees working for major U.S. corporations is a hotly debated topic in political circles. This research focuses on the top 100 companies designated as “the best companies to work for” by Fortune Magazine for the year 2006. Performance of these companies, as measured by their return on equity, return on assets, revenue growth and earnings growth along with their profit margin is used to determine the impact on them as …

China Forges Ahead On Financial Reform – At Its Own Pace, With Its Own Rules, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

China’s fast-evolving financial industry, like the country itself, defies the type of easy, sound bite-friendly synopses that foreign investors might like. It’s often unclear exactly what factors are stoking China’s remarkable economic growth engine. Or, as Winston Wenyan Ma, an investment banker who most recently worked for J.P. Morgan in New York and is the author of Investing in China – New Opportunities in a Transforming Stock Market, puts it: “The Chinese financial industry is a very complex story.” Speaking at the recent Wharton China Business Forum in Philadelphia, Ma moderated a panel on financial reform – a key ingredient …

Costly Arbitrage And The Lead-Lag Structure Between Value And Glamour Stocks, Meng Li

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

Motivated by the findings of Lo and Mackinlay (1990) that size premium can be partially attributed to the lead-lag relation between the returns of large stocks and those of small stocks, in this thesis we hypothesize that a possible lead-lag structure between value and glamour returns can partially explain the value premium anomaly.

The thesis consists of three chapters. Chapter I documents a pronounced lead-lag structure between value and glamour stocks: the glamour stocks lead value stocks in terms of both mean returns and residual volatilities, suggesting that value stocks delay in price adjustment to new information. To further explore …

Comprehensive Income, Future Earnings, And Market Mispricing, Jong-Hag Choi, Somnath Das, Yoonseok Zang

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

No abstract provided.

Foreign Funds Spy Hidden Bounties In Indian Distressed Assets, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Foreign funds are garnering a sizable presence in India's nascent market for distressed assets, which is currently estimated between $45 billion and $55 billion. India's economic boom offers pockets of opportunity for investors to buy underperforming assets such as cement and sugar plants, revive them with fresh capital or liquidate them to profit handsomely. A big driver for this growing market is the government's move to purge the financial system of sick assets accumulated over decades, but obstacles include the absence of a developed corporate debt market, limits on foreign investments and procedural bottlenecks. India Knowledge@Wharton spoke to key participants …

Why Hedge Funds Are Looking To India For Greater Upside Potential, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

A few years ago, hedge funds were barely on the radar screen in the Indian marketplace, and they were highly secretive investment vehicles even in the U.S. Today, it's a different story. As big returns are no longer easy to come by in domestic markets, international hedge funds are increasingly looking to countries like India and evaluating investment opportunities and the potential gains to be made. To understand what factors affect their success, India Knowledge@Wharton talked to experts from Wharton and elsewhere about the attractiveness -- as well as the risks -- of the Indian marketplace for hedge funds.

Valuation And Classification Of Company Issued Cash And Share-Puts, William D. Terando, Wayne Shaw, David Smith

Scholarship and Professional Work - Business

This paper examines whether investors’ valuations of cash and share-put warrants are influenced by their potential differential effect on firm solvency. It is motivated by the enactment of SFAS 150, which requires that all contingent put warrant obligations be classified as balance sheet liabilities regardless of put type. Consistent with the critics of SFAS150, we show that market participants differentially value cash and share-puts based on their solvency characteristics beyond the firm’s recorded assets and liabilities. Our results add to existing capital structure literature by suggesting that complex financial instruments (such as cash and share-puts) be reported separately from each …

2006-2007 Financial Summary, Morehead State University. Budget & Financial Planning Office.

Morehead State University Financial Summaries Archive

2006-2007 Financial Summary of Morehead State University.

Five Ways Computer Forensics Can Aid Discovery, Robert L. Kardell

Robert L Kardell

No abstract provided.

The Lessons Of Fraud, Robert L. Kardell

Robert L Kardell

No abstract provided.

Why Global Banks Are Banking On India, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Foreign banks are aggressively expanding in India, both organically and through acquisitions. After playing along the sidelines in the country for more than 100 years, they have galvanized themselves to secure their share -- and more -- of the new action in the rapidly growing economy and a boom in high-profit consumer lending. India's central bank has outlined the roadmap for foreign players to grow, while the banking industry's robust fundamentals and crisis-free track record are other draws. To be sure, the entrenched public sector banks don't relish the charge of foreign banks. But the real rivals on the competing …

Was The Accounting Profession Really That Bad?, Elizabeth K. Jenkins, W. Donnelly, T. Black

Faculty Publications

To gain insight into the extent of malpractice in the State of California prior to the Passage of Sarbanes-Oxley, we examined the nature and magnitude of complains filed with the California Board of Accountancy (CBA) against both licensed and unlicensed accountants during the fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002. The CBA currently licenses and regulates over 73,000 licenses, with 1,431 complaints filed during the period reviewed. Disciplinary actions were taken against 283 different licensees for the three fiscal years reviewed. SEC issues were involved in 19 cases, theft or embezzlement 46 cases, public accounting malpractice 146 cases, improper retention of …

Do Bulls And Bears Listen To Whispers?, Janis K. Zaima, M. A. Harjoto

Faculty Publications

A post-earnings announcement drift associated with the market reaction to analyst forecasts errors remains a puzzle. This study suggests that whispers help to explain part of the puzzle. The study examines the market reaction to whispers and analysts in bull and bear markets, and finds that investors listen to whispers in the bull market and whispers help explain the post-announcement drift. In a bear market, reaction to whispers is significantly positive prior to announcement despite a down market, indicating optimism by investors who follow whispers. However, in the bear market, both whispers and analysts contribute to the post-announcement drift.

Do Bulls And Bears Listen To Whispers?, Janis K. Zaima, M. A. Harjoto

Janis K. Zaima

A post-earnings announcement drift associated with the market reaction to analyst forecasts errors remains a puzzle. This study suggests that whispers help to explain part of the puzzle. The study examines the market reaction to whispers and analysts in bull and bear markets, and finds that investors listen to whispers in the bull market and whispers help explain the post-announcement drift. In a bear market, reaction to whispers is significantly positive prior to announcement despite a down market, indicating optimism by investors who follow whispers. However, in the bear market, both whispers and analysts contribute to the post-announcement drift.

Was The Accounting Profession Really That Bad?, Elizabeth K. Jenkins, W. Donnelly, T. Black

Elizabeth K. Jenkins

To gain insight into the extent of malpractice in the State of California prior to the Passage of Sarbanes-Oxley, we examined the nature and magnitude of complains filed with the California Board of Accountancy (CBA) against both licensed and unlicensed accountants during the fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002. The CBA currently licenses and regulates over 73,000 licenses, with 1,431 complaints filed during the period reviewed. Disciplinary actions were taken against 283 different licensees for the three fiscal years reviewed. SEC issues were involved in 19 cases, theft or embezzlement 46 cases, public accounting malpractice 146 cases, improper retention of …