We examine the relationship between analyst research and corporate earnings announcements to explore the relative importance of information discovery versus interpretation of previously released information. Using equity market reaction to capture information content, we find that information...

This study proposes and tests an alternative to the extant earnings management explanation for zero and small positive earnings surprises (i.e., analyst forecast errors). We argue that analysts' ability to strategically induce slight pessimism in earnings forecasts varies with the precision of...

Using an international sample, I investigate whether the extent of firms' disclosure of their accounting policies in the annual report is associated with properties of analysts' earnings forecasts. Controlling for firm - and country - level variables, I find that the level of accounting policy...

Using a sample from 22 countries, I investigate the relations between the accuracy of analysts' earnings forecasts and the level of annual report disclosure; and between forecast accuracy and the degree of enforcement of accounting standards. I document that firm-level disclosures are positively...

This study examines the impact of SFAS 141 on earnings predictability of merging firms. I expect a relative improvement in analysts' earnings forecast accuracy for merging firms versus non-merging peers after SFAS 141 adoption. I restrict the post-SFAS 141 sample to the initial year of SFAS 141...

We use a variance decomposition approach to examine why aggregate valuation ratios differ across countries. In a cross section of 22 developed countries from 1980 to 2009, we find that 50% of all cross-country differences in the aggregate price-to-book ratio (P/B) can be explained by...

This study investigates changes in foreign analyst behavior before and after Chinese New Accounting Standards was implemented during 2007. The empirical results show that after the new accounting standards were implemented, forecast error among foreign analysts decreased in both absolute and...

We examine analysts' GAAP earnings forecasts and illustrate their usefulness in two prominent research settings. First, we find that the availability of GAAP forecasts has increased dramatically since 2003, and they are now available for most I/B/E/S-covered firms. Next, we utilize GAAP...