فصلنامه پژوهش های حسابداری مالی
سال سیزدهم شماره 4 (پیاپی 50، زمستان 1400)

This research analytically investigated the impact of takeover strategy on the distortion of reported earnings through accrual and real activities based on earnings management in target firms. The hypotheses were analyzed through multivariate regression models using panel data with a fixed effect and via the generalized least squares method. The research population included 166 firms listed in Tehran Securities Exchange over the period of 2014 to 2018. The results showed that the managers in the target firms faced with a takeover and inflated earnings through discretionary accruals and real activities. The research findings indicated that takeover had a significant and positive impact on both accrual and real earnings management in the target firms. Also, it had a significant and positive impact on the abnormal products as the criteria of real earnings management; however, abnormal operating cash flows and abnormal discretionary expenditure as the proxies of real earnings management were not affected by takeover in the mentioned firms.

A firm’s tendency to supply and demand an optimal amount of trade credit stems from the fact that deviation from this level can negatively affect the firm value. Firms are constantly looking for an optimal level of trade credit; however, the associated costs slow down the adjustment process. Nevertheless, there are some factors that can speed up the achievement of an optimal trade credit. This study investigated the effect of operational risk and firm’s market power on the speed of achieving the optimal trade credit ratio in 128 listed companies in Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) for the period of 2005-2020. Panel data and system GMM estimators were used for this purpose. The results showed that the sample firms reduced around 65% (39%) of the gap between the supply (demand) of the actual trade credit and the optimal level every year. In other words, they could correct half of the deviation of the supply (demand) of trade credit within about 8 months (17 months). In addition, the research findings indicated that an increase in the operational risk and firm’s market power enhanced the speed of achieving the optimal level of trade credit. The supplementary analyses confirmed the main research findings and were consistent with the trade-off theory.

Prior empirical research, unlike the researchers’ expectation about the relationship between tax avoidance and tax risk, has generally failed to find a relationship between measures of tax risk and measures of tax avoidance and the results have been different and sometimes contradictory. Accordingly, the main purpose of the present study is to investigate the effects of diversification of tax strategies used by a public company on the relationship between measures of tax avoidance and measures of risk. To define the construct of diversification of tax strategies, two diversification measures are based on broad categories of sources of tax benefits. Then, the relationship between the diversification of tax planning strategies and tax risk and the effect of diversification on the relationship between tax avoidance and tax risk is examined by relevant regressions. In empirical tests, the annual data of 160 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange during the period 2008 to 2015 were analyzed. The findings of the study showed using tax risk measures based on the variance of ETRs and tax risk measures based on the spike of a tax rate, more resources of tax avoidance result in less tax risk at a 90% confidence level. Also, using the overall firm risk measure, there is a positive relationship between tax risk and increasing resources of tax avoidance. The results of the study showed that despite the negative effect of diversification of tax planning strategies on tax risk, this variable increases the overall company risk. This might arise from increasing earnings management opportunities and failing financial reporting because of the effect of a multiplicity of tax strategies on the complexity of tax applications and financial reporting and increasing management abuse risk.

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of shareholders’ structure on stock liquidity with an emphasis on the role of financial constraints in companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. The research hypotheses were tested based on a statistical sample consisting of 125 companies during a 7-year period from 1393 to 1399 (2014-2021) using multivariate regression models. In order to measure the structure of the shareholders, the percentage of real ownership, institutional ownership, and the percentage of free-floating shares were used. To calculate liquidity, the relative gap between stock buying and selling prices, and to calculate the financial constraint, the financial constraint model based on operational cash flow presented by Pour Alireza et al. (2017) for measuring financial constraint in Iran has been used. The results of the study show that there is a non-linear relationship between shareholders’ structure and liquidity. Thus, there is a significant non-linear (inverse U) relationship between real and institutional ownership and the difference between the bid and ask prices of corporate stocks. Also, there is a significant non-linear (U-shaped) relationship between free-float stocks and the difference between the bid and ask prices of corporate stocks. The results also show that constraints on corporate financing have a nonlinear (U-shaped) effect on the relationship between real ownership and the difference between the bid and ask prices of corporate stocks, and a significant nonlinear (inverse U) effect on the relationship between free float and the difference between the bid and ask prices of corporate stocks. However, constraints do not have a significant moderating effect on the relationship between institutional ownership and the difference between the bid and ask prices of corporate stocks.

Recent empirical findings show that product market conditions are important factors that can influence company decisions and the path to value creation. Competing in the product market as an external mechanism for corporate governance can reduce the likelihood that management use its position to engage in opportunistic behaviors and affect the company’s performance. Therefore, the main purpose of the present study is to investigate the effect of competition in the product market on the relationship between social responsibility and financial leverage in companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. In order to investigate this issue, research hypotheses for 99 companies during an 8-year period from 2013 to 2020 were tested using multivariate regression models. The results of the study show that there is a negative and significant relationship between social responsibility and financial leverage of companies. Also, high competition in the product market reinforces the negative relationship between the social responsibility and financial leverage.

The readability of financial reporting as a factor influencing the credibility of financial statements and investment decisions of companies has been one of the topics of interest in financial literature in recent years.  In this regard, the present study was carried out with the aim of developing a readability model of financial reporting based on the disclosure of social responsibility, professional ethics, and tone management (reporting tone). The statistical population of this research is made up of members of the Public Accountants’ Society of Tehran and Shiraz. Among them, 260 participants were selected as the statistical sample using the available sampling method. In order to present the model, among the 34 primary indicators of ‘disclosure of social responsibility, professional ethics and tone management’, 9 indicators for each of the variables were selected using the binomial distribution technique (SPSS software) based on the exploratory factor analysis technique (SPSS software). They were classified into three general classification categories, which were confirmed by using the confirmatory factor analysis technique (Lisrel software). Also, the results of the structural equation modeling technique (Smart PLS software) showed that social responsibility and professional ethics had a positive and significant effect and tone management had an inverse and significant effect on the readability of financial reporting.  Providing a comprehensive model for measuring the readability of financial reporting can increase the understanding and knowledge of investors and researchers in the field of capital market.