Detecting Financial Misreporting with Real Production Activity: Evidence from an Electricity Consumption Analysis

53 Pages Posted: 22 Oct 2016 Last revised: 6 Feb 2021

See all articles by Kristian D. Allee

Kristian D. Allee

University of Arkansas - Department of Accounting

Bok Baik

Seoul National University

Yongoh Roh

McGill University - Desautels Faculty of Management

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: February 5, 2021

Abstract

This study examines whether a real production activity measure, firm-level electricity consumption growth, is useful in detecting firm financial misreporting. We hypothesize that the difference between revenue growth and electricity consumption growth (i.e., growth wedge) is a useful signal of financial misreporting. Using electricity consumption data for Korean firms from 2006 to 2014, we find that the growth wedge is positively associated with discretionary revenues and accruals and the likelihood of financial misreporting as proxied by accounting restatements, qualified audit opinions, and regulatory enforcement actions. The growth wedge provides incremental information over firm characteristics and earnings management signals proposed by prior research. Our findings are robust to a battery of additional tests including within-firm and industry comparisons that do not require access to cross-sectional firm-level electricity data. Overall, our study documents new evidence on the role of a real production activity measure from an independent reporting entity in detecting financial misreporting.

Keywords: Financial misreporting; Fraud; Nonfinancial information; Forensic economics; Accrual accounting; Real production

JEL Classification: M41, M43, M49, G30, G38, K42

Suggested Citation

Allee, Kristian D. and Baik, Bok and Roh, Yongoh, Detecting Financial Misreporting with Real Production Activity: Evidence from an Electricity Consumption Analysis (February 5, 2021). Contemporary Accounting Research, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2856472 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2856472

Kristian D. Allee (Contact Author)

University of Arkansas - Department of Accounting ( email )

University of Arkansas
Business Building 458
Fayetteville, AR 72701
United States
479-575-5227 (Phone)

Bok Baik

Seoul National University ( email )

Seoul
Kwanak-gu
Seoul, 151-742
Korea, Republic of (South Korea)

Yongoh Roh

McGill University - Desautels Faculty of Management ( email )

1001 Sherbrooke St W
Montreal, Quebec h3A 1G5

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