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Poretti Cédric

Assistant Professor

Compétences principales

Assistant Professor

EHL Hospitality Business School
Route de Berne 301, 1000 Lausanne 25, Switzerland, CH

BSc HES-SO in Hôtellerie et professions de l'accueil - EHL Hospitality Business School

Comptabilité de gestion
Comptabilité financière (CO; RPC; IFRS)
Analyse financière

En cours

Gender diversity all over the firm: the consequences of financial reporting feminization on financial reporting outcomes

Rôle: Requérant(e) principal(e)

Financement: HES-SO

Description du projet :

Switzerland has a low but increasing proportion of women in leadership positions (OFS, 2015), and the importance of gender diversity is becoming always more important, especially for large Swiss companies evolving in a global market. In such a context, it is of utmost importance to understand the consequences of having more women in high-skilled positions all over the firm.

Using a unique hand-collected corporate governance database of Swiss traded firms from 2010 to 2017, we aim to study the impact of gender diversity in high-skilled financial positions on financial reporting outcomes. Prior work analyses the impact of gender looking at one financial reporting stakeholder within the firm (executives or audit committee members) or outside the firm (auditors). In all cases, these studies are fragmented as they only study each of the stakeholders individually. In this research proposal, we consider stakeholders individually but also together, that is to say we investigate their interaction(s).

Equipe de recherche au sein de la HES-SO: Poretti Cédric

Durée du projet: 01.01.2020 - 01.07.2021

Montant global du projet: 99'700 CHF

Statut: En cours

2023

In family we trust :

Article scientifique ArODES

in good and bad times

Philippe Masset, Cédric Poretti, Jean-Philippe Weisskopf

International review of finance, 24, 1, pp. 128-138

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Résumé:

This short report investigates the stock market behavior of Swiss companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results suggest that family firms performed better during the outbreak and post-lockdown periods than widely-held firms. Family firms also displayed a larger abnormal trading volume drop than widely-held companies. In size-sorted subsamples, the volume difference appears more pronounced for smaller firms. We explain these findings by family firms, especially smaller ones, predominantly attracting investors with a long-term horizon. Such investors are less likely to sell during market turmoil, making family firms not only less liquid but also less sensitive to market fluctuations.

Family identification and earnings management in listed firms

Article scientifique ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Tiphaine Jérôme, Carl Brousseau

Accounting in Europe, 20, 3, 339-369

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Résumé:

In this paper, we investigate the earnings management behavior of listed family firms holding the name of the family (eponymous FF). Specifically, we use a Swiss sample of 1,544 firm-year observations from 2006 to 2018 to examine the association of eponymous FF with accrual-based earnings management in general, and identify circumstances where this association does not hold. First, we find that, on average, eponymous FF exhibit less earnings management than non-FF. Second, we exploit a Swiss-specific option to voluntarily turn away from IFRS to local GAAP. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we find that eponymous FF exhibit higher levels of earnings management immediately after the switch. Finally, we show that eponymous FF exhibit higher earnings management when the family is directly involved in the board of directors or the managing board. Our findings provide a more nuanced understanding of the effects of family identification on earnings management incentives in listed firms.

Solidarity actions with Ukraine and hospitality firm value

Article scientifique ArODES

Juan Luis Nicolau, Cédric Poretti, Cindy Yoonjoung Heo

Tourism Management, 100, article n°104813

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Résumé:

The objective of this research note is to analyze the effect of solidarity actions following the invasion of Ukraine on hotel and restaurant firms’ market value. Press releases and corporate websites of 117 companies were investigated to determine the actions taken in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Then, using an event study methodology, cumulative abnormal returns were calculated following the actions taken. The results indicate that first movers benefited the most from solidarity actions, while middle-point intensity actions (versus strong or light actions) brought about the highest effects on market value.

Fee-oriented strategies, ownership structure and analyst forecast accuracy in the hospitality industry

Article scientifique ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Adam Aoun, Manisha Singal

Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, To be published

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Résumé:

This study analyzed the impact of the interplay between fee-oriented strategies and ownership structure on analyst forecast accuracy using a sample of international publicly-listed hospitality firms. Based on 29,019 earnings forecasts made by financial analysts, using Ordinary Least Squares regression (OLS), entropy balancing, and Heckman two-stage models, we documented that, on average, forecasts were more accurate for firms pursuing a fee-oriented strategy. Moreover, the positive effect of fee-oriented strategies on forecast accuracy was stronger for companies with concentrated ownership. We explain our results by the fact that fee-oriented firms enjoyed more stable cash flows and revenue, reducing information asymmetries between a firm’s outsiders and insiders, thus enabling analysts to make more accurate forecasts. This effect was more important for firms with concentrated ownership in particular, as they generally disclosed less information to the capital markets. Our findings should be of great interest to hospitality firms’ owners, managers, and boards of directors.

Business strategies and financial reporting complexity in hospitality firms

Article scientifique ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Tiphaine Jérôme, Cindy Yoonjoung Heo

International Journal of Hospitality Management, 110, article n°103429

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Résumé:

This study investigates the impact of the asset-light and fee-oriented (ALFO) strategy on the auditors’ assessment of financial reporting complexity. To do so, we adopt an integrated mixed method design. First, from semi-structured interviews with audit experts active in the hospitality industry, we identify the proposition that the ALFO strategy induces incremental financial reporting complexity leading external auditors to set higher audit fees. Then, the association between the extent of asset-lightness and audit fees is empirically tested on a sample of global hospitality companies over the 2010–2019 period. The results confirm an inverted U-shaped association. Study findings are of interest to hospitality firms’ investors, board members, and executives as they provide fresh insight into an under-investigated consequence of the ALFO strategy and reveal the conditions preserving accounting information quality in an increasingly complex environment.

2022

COVID-19 and firm value drivers in the tourism industry

Article scientifique ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Cindy Yoonjoung Heo

Annals of tourism research, 2022, vol. 95, article no. 103433, pp. 1-14

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Résumé:

Using an international sample of 1315 observations for 194 listed tourism firms from 2012 to 2019, we investigate the impact on firm value of DuPont components, namely asset turnover and profit margin. Next, using an event study methodology, we analyze how these components are associated with the stock market reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic announcement. The results indicate that over 2012–2019, the association of performance with firm value is mostly driven by tourism companies' ability to become more efficient with their asset base, while both profitability and productivity levels are significant predictors of firm value one year ahead. Abnormal returns surrounding the pandemic announcement appear to be more negative for more productive firms, while the latter enjoyed a stronger recovery.

An empirical examination of relative valuation of publicly listed firms using French GAAP after IFRS adoption

Article scientifique ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt, Michel Magnan

Accounting auditing control, 2022, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 55-81

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Résumé:

Nous étudions comment l’adoption des normes IFRS par l’Union Européenne, en 2005, affecte la mise en oeuvre de la méthode des multiples des entreprises comparables pour l’évaluation des sociétés qui continuent d’appliquer les normes comptables nationales. L’adoption des normes IFRS réduit fortement l’ensemble des entreprises comparables appliquant des normes nationales. Notre analyse de 94 cibles d’offres publiques d’achat annoncées entre 1999 et 2016 met en évidence que le nombre d’entreprises comparables sélectionnées est réduit après 2005, mais leur sélection est basée sur un nombre plus élevé de critères. Globalement, la comparabilité économique des entreprises comparables augmente mais la comparabilité comptable diminue. Les professionnels de l’évaluation tentent de limiter ce problème par : 1) un recours à des multiples moins sensibles aux différences comptables ; et 2) une réduction du poids accordé aux valeurs obtenues à l’aide de la méthode des entreprises comparables dans la fixation du prix d’offre de l’OPA. Notre article contribue à la maigre littérature sur les conséquences économiques de l’adoption des normes IFRS pour les sociétés n’ayant pas adopté ces normes.

Three anchoring managerial mechanisms to embed sustainability in service organizations

Article scientifique ArODES

Carlos Martin-Rios, Cédric Poretti, Giovanni-Battista Derchi

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, no. 1, article no. 265, pp. 1-16

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Résumé:

The aim of this discussion paper is to address three major concerns in establishing sustainability in service organizations regarding the intersections among external reporting, internal governance, and business management and innovation. External reporting addresses issues related to sustainability information specificities and determinants, the pros and cons of mandating CSR disclosures, and the need for assurance. The internal management of sustainability refers to the opportunities and challenges for services to introduce sustainable business models and sustainability innovation. Finally, internal governance prioritizes the control process and systems employed by managers to make informed decisions and implement sustainability strategies. By means of an extensive and sophisticated literature review, the article contributes to untangling the opportunities and challenges that services face when adopting external and internal practices to commit to sustainability. Specifically, the paper addresses how company-level mechanisms of transparency, accountability, and innovation are linked to system-level mechanisms of implementation that lead to the adoption of sustainability in service organizations.

2021

Asset-light strategies and stock market reactions to COVID-19’s pandemic announcement :

Article scientifique ArODES

the case of hospitality firms

Cédric Poretti, Cindy Yoonjoung Heo

Tourism economics, To be published

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Résumé:

This research note investigates the stock market reactions of international hospitality firms to COVID-19’s pandemic announcement by the World Health Organization. In line with the behavioral finance literature, the findings indicate that, in the short term, investors overestimated the risks underlying asset-heavy firms because of information uncertainty. Firms pursuing an asset-light (AL) strategy are associated to significantly less negative cumulative abnormal returns in the 4 days following the announcement, especially firms following an AL strategy that reduces significantly the operating leverage. However, this difference vanishes after 5 trading days, meaning that investors revised their expectations. This research note suggests that the cost structure of AL firms matters in reducing information uncertainty and sheds light on the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis on the hospitality industry. It also provides useful information to board members, financial analysts, and companies’ top managers when evaluating whether and how to pursue an AL strategy, and the potential consequences of it.

Asset-light strategies and stock market reactions to COVID-19’s pandemic announcement: the case of hospitality firms

Article scientifique

Poretti Cédric, Heo Cindy

Tourism Economics, 2021

Résumé:

This research note investigates the stock market reactions of international hospitality firms to COVID-19’s pandemic announcement by the WHO. In line with the behavioral finance literature, the findings indicate that, in the short term, investors overestimated the risks underlying asset-heavy firms because of information uncertainty. Firms pursuing an asset-light (AL) strategy are associated to significantly less negative cumulative abnormal returns in the four days following the announcement, especially firms following an AL strategy that reduces significantly the operating leverage. However, this difference vanishes after five trading days, meaning that investors revised their expectations. This research note suggests that the cost structure of AL firms matters in reducing information uncertainty, and sheds light on the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis on the hospitality industry. It also provides useful information to board members, financial analysts, and companies’ top managers when evaluating whether and how to pursue an AL strategy, and the potential consequences of it.

2020

The asset-light strategies and the dividend puzzle

Article scientifique ArODES

international evidence from the hospitality industry

Cédric Poretti, Inès Blal

International journal of hospitality management, 2020, vol. 91, article 102639, pp. 1-10

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Résumé:

This study investigates the impact of the asset-light strategy on dividend policy using a sample of large international publicly-listed companies (399 firm-year observations) operating in the hotel and restaurant industry over the 2006–2018 period. Taking the perspective of agency theory, we posit that the asset-light strategy in conjunction with significant growth is a context in which high agency conflicts arise. Using Tobit and OLS models, our results indicate that adopting an asset-light strategy only impacts dividend policy for firms with high growth. More interestingly, the positive impact of the asset-light strategy on dividend payouts occurs for firms with substantial growth if institutional ownership is low. In such situations, significant potential agency conflicts (due to high free cash flows) coupled with the lack of monitoring from institutional investors lead firms to use dividends as a monitoring tool. Finally, a change analysis supports our main findings.

What explains differing holding periods across hotel investments? :

Article scientifique ArODES

a hazard rate framework

Cédric Poretti, Prashant Das

International journal of hospitality management, 2020, vol. 89, article 102564, pp. 1-12

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Résumé:

We explain the variation in hotel holding periods (HP) based on liquidity needs, owner type, acquisition conditions and timing of hotel renovation. Contrary to popular belief, properties owned by listed companies tend to have longer HPs due to lower liquidity constraints. REITs sell heterogeneous hotels sooner to strengthen their focus whereas REOCs keep such assets longer for diversification benefits. Moreover, we document that higher quality hotels tend to have longer HPs, and that capital expenditure employed in renovating an acquired asset prolongs the HP whereas assets renovated before acquisition experience shorter HPs. Finally, we show how our model can be used in practice to predict the median HP based on a given hotel characteristics, and present a method to adjust the DCF discount rate according to the selected holding period.

What Explains Differing Holding Periods Across Hotel Investments? A Hazard Rate Framework

Article scientifique

Poretti Cédric, Das Prashant

International Journal of Hospitality Management, 2020

Résumé:

Predictability of how long the current owners will hold a hotel (i.e. the “holding period”, HP hereafter) has strategic implications for owners, lenders, and consultants. An arbitrarily chosen HP may lead to valuation errors. We explain the variation in HP based on liquidity needs, owner type, acquisition conditions and timing of hotel renovation. Contrary to popular belief, properties owned by listed companies tend to have longer HPs due to lower liquidity constraints. REITs sell heterogeneous hotels sooner to strengthen their focus whereas REOCs keep such assets longer for diversification benefits. Moreover, we document that higher quality hotels tend to have longer HPs, and that capital expenditure employed in renovating an acquired asset prolongs the HP whereas assets renovated before acquisition experience shorter HPs. Finally, we show how our model can be used in practice to predict the median HP based on a given hotel characteristics, and present a method to adjust the DCF discount rate according to the selected holding period.

Impact of Leverage on Financial Information Quality: International Evidence from the Hospitality Industry

Article scientifique

Poretti Cédric, Alain Schatt, Tiphaine Jérôme

Journal of Hospitality Financial Management, 2020

Résumé:

Earnings are a key firm-performance yardstick for investors, but are not always reliable as they may be manipulated by managers. In this study, we analyze the relationship between earnings quality and debt levels of firms in the hospitality sector, using a sample of 642 firms from 26 countries for the 2002-2016 period. Results show that hospitality firms with higher financial leverage manage less their earnings. However, this finding holds only for companies in countries with strong investor protection. As such, some interesting implications of the leverage-earnings quality relationship are revealed for investors, lenders, and professionals in the hospitality industry.

The asset-light strategies and the dividend puzzle: International evidence from the hospitality industry

Article scientifique

Poretti Cédric

International Journal of Hospitality Management, 2020 , vol. 91, no 102639

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Résumé:

2019

Le plafond de verre dans les cabinets d’audit suisses :

Article professionnel ArODES

bilan et perspectives

Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Expert Focus, 2019, no 8, pp. 566-569

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Résumé:

La profession comptable en Suisse, comme toute autre profession, doit faire face au problème du plafond de verre (glass ceiling), c’est-à-dire à la présence limitée de femmes à des niveaux hiérarchiques élevés. Cet article dresse un bilan sur ce thème.

2018

La gestion des résultats par les nouveaux dirigeants :

Article scientifique ArODES

quels enjeux pour les conseils d’administration ?

Corinne Bessieux-Ollier, Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Revue française de gouvernance d’entreprise, 2018, no. 19, pp. 69-89

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Résumé:

En se fondant sur les résultats de la recherche académique en comptabilité-finance, cet article insiste sur le risque de gestion des résultats par de nouveaux dirigeants. Il rappelle que les membres du conseil d’administration doivent notamment être particulièrement attentifs aux dépréciations du goodwill et aux provisions pour restructurations. Nous formulons plusieurs recommandations pour les conseils d’administration, susceptibles de limiter la gestion des résultats par les nouveaux dirigeants et, par conséquent, d’améliorer la qualité des informations financières divulguées par les entreprises.

Audit committees’ independence and the information content of earnings announcements in Western Europe

Article scientifique ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt, Liesbeth Bruynseels

Journal of accounting literature, 2018, vol. 40, pp. 29-53

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Résumé:

We examine whether the percentage of independent members sitting on the audit committee, in different institutional settings, impacts the market reaction (measured by the abnormal stock returns variance and the abnormal trading volume) to earnings announcements. For our sample composed of more than 7′600 earnings announcements made by European firms from 15 countries between 2006 and 2014, we find that the market reactions to earnings announcements are significantly larger when the audit committee is more independent in countries with weak institutional setting. Our results generally hold after controlling for numerous methodological issues. We conclude that more independent audit committees are substitutes for weak institutions to increase the credibility of earnings announcements. Our results should be of great interest for European regulators who recently introduced new requirements for public firms regarding audit committees’ independence.

2017

Comment sont évaluées les cibles d’OPA en Suisse et en France ? :

Article professionnel ArODES

similitudes et différences

Alain Schatt, Cédric Poretti

Expert Focus, 2017, vol. 1-2, pp. 31-37

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Résumé:

L’article se focalise sur les pratiques actuelles d’évaluation, en Suisse et en France, dans le contexte des offres publiques d’achat. Les auteurs exposent successivement leur méthodologie, leurs principaux résultats et quelques enjeux pratiques et académiques.

2023

Earnings management by new powerful CEOs across ownership structures

Conférence ArODES

Corinne Bessieux-Ollier, Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Actes de la 22ème Conférence internationale de gouvernance (CIG), 2023

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Résumé:

We investigate earnings management by new powerful CEOs across firms’ ownership structure. Powerful CEOs are defined as those holding concomitantly the positions of CEO and Chairperson of the board. The results of our difference-in-differences analyses show that the arrival of new powerful CEOs leads to more earnings management in family firms without a majority blockholder. No significant result is found for firms with dispersed ownership and for family firms with a majority blockholder. This finding supports the idea of less effective CEO monitoring in family firms without a majority blockholder. Furthermore, we document that earnings are managed upward in these firms, and inflating earnings ultimately increases accounting performance. Overall, our results suggest that new CEOs’ influence on earnings management depends simultaneously on their power and on firms’ ownership structure.

Does gender in the audit relationship matter? :

Conférence ArODES

an analysis of audit fees under the prism of gender stereotype threats

Cédric Poretti, Tiphaine Jérôme

Actes du 44e Congrès de l'Association francophone de comptabilité (AFC), 2023

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Résumé:

Purpose – Drawing on the gender stereotype threat theory, and more precisely on the ‘mere effort model’, this study examines whether and how the presence of women on both sides of the auditor-auditee relationship is associated with audit fees. Design/methodology/approach – We carry out this research on a sample of Swiss listed firms over 2010-2017. Quantitative data is analyzed using entropy balancing and difference-in-differences estimations. Findings – Our results show that the interplay of female auditors and female audit committee members is associated with higher audit fees. We interpret this result in light of the gender stereotype threat theory, suggesting that the female dyadic combination induces increased effort. Originality − Borrowing on the socio-psychological literature, we envisage the audit relationship under the prism of gender stereotype threats. We offer an outside laboratory attempt to better comprehend the implications of gender stereotype threats in terms of audit fees and contribute to the emerging literature on influences of inter-organizational gender interactions.

2022

Hospitality firms’ business strategies and analyst forecast accuracy

Conférence ArODES

Adam Aoun, Cédric Poretti, Manisha Singal

Proceedings of the 6th Hospitality Finance & Economics Conference, 2022

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Résumé:

This study analyzes the impact of asset-light strategies on analyst forecast accuracy using a sample of international publicly-listed hospitality firms. Based on 32,136 earnings forecasts, the findings are threefold. First, using an OLS model, we document that asset-light strategiesare positively related to analyst forecast accuracy, meaning that the more a company relies on an asset-light fee-oriented strategy, the more precise analysts’ forecasts are. Second, using a probit model, the results indicate a lower probability of overestimating or underestimating analyst forecasts when firms pursue an asset-light strategy. Third, when firms change their business strategy and implement an asset-light approach, analysts tend to make fewer forecast errors when compared to firms that are not asset-light. Overall, our results provide useful information to board members, financial analysts, and companies’ top managers regarding the evaluation of the consequences of pursuing an asset-light strategy.

In family we trust - in good and bad times

Conférence ArODES

Philippe Masset, Cédric Poretti, Jean-Philippe Weisskopf

Actes de la 21ème Conférence internationale de gouvernance (CIG), 2022

Lien vers la conférence

Résumé:

This short report investigates the stock market behaviour of Swiss companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results suggest that family firms performed better during the outbreak and post-lockdown periods than their widely-held counterparts. Moreover, we document a smaller increase in trading volume during the crisis for family firms compared to widely-held companies. In size-sorted subsamples, the volume difference appears more marked for smaller firms. We explain these findings by family firms, especially smaller ones, predominantly attracting investors with a long-term horizon. Such investors are less likely to sell amid market turmoil, making family firms less liquid and sensitive to market fluctuations.

CEO turnover and earnings management in eponymous firms

Conférence ArODES

Corinne Bessieux-Ollier, Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Actes de la 21ème Conférence internationale de gouvernance (CIG), 2022

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Résumé:

This paper examines earnings management by new CEOs in eponymous firms, i.e., firms named after the founding family. Since bad press for the firm may have detrimental consequences for the family as well, eponymous firms face greater reputational risk and costs. We hypothesize that new CEOs consider this issue in their decisions, which notably leads them to manage earnings less in eponymous firms than in non-eponymous firms. Our empirical analysis, based on a sample of CEO changes in French publicly listed firms, supports our hypothesis of less earnings management by new CEOs in eponymous firms. These results are driven by a lower propensity to manage earnings upward. The findings hold when addressing endogeneity concerns, using an alternative earnings management measure, and focusing on a subsample of firms with family blockholders only. Finally, we document similar results on a sample of CFO changes. Overall, we conclude that reputational concerns influence new CEOs’ decisions in eponymous firms.

2021

Business strategies and the use of tax consulting services :

Conférence ArODES

international evidence from the hotel and restaurant industry

Cédric Poretti, Tiphaine Jérôme, Carla Cisneros

Proceedings of the 5th Hospitality Finance & Economics Conference

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Résumé:

This study analyses the impact of asset-light fee-oriented business models on the amount of tax fees paid to external auditors by hospitality firms. Using OLS and Tobit models on a sample composed of 293 firm-year observations over 2005-2018, results indicate a positive association between asset-light strategies and tax fees. This finding holds specifically for firms with high international presence and/or substantial growth. Additional analyses document that the positive association between asset-light strategies and tax fees is conditional on an improving financial performance measured with cash flows and earnings per share. A change analysis supports the main findings. Our results are relevant for managers and board members as they enhance our understanding of the consequences of asset-light strategies and international expansion in terms of business complexity and tax planning.

Family firms and earnings management :

Conférence ArODES

the role(s) of socioemotional wealth dimensions

Cédric Poretti, Tiphaine Jérôme, Carl Brousseau

Actes de la 20e conférence internationale de gouvernance

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Résumé:

Taking the perspective of the socioemotional wealth theory, we investigate the earnings management (EM) behavior of different types of family firms. Specifically, we use a Swiss sample of 1,544 firm-year observations from 2006 to 2018 to examine how Identity (i.e., the family name included in the firm name), indirect Control (i.e., the family holding over 50% of the firm’s voting rights), and direct Control (i.e., the appointment of a family member as Chairperson or CEO) dimensions are separately and jointly associated with EM. First, we find that family firms with more salient Identity and indirect Control dimensions exhibit less EM than non-family firms. Then, we show that these two dimensions are only associated with EM when there is also direct family involvement in the board of directors or the managing board and that, in those cases, indirect Control is positively associated with EM. Finally, we exploit a Swiss-specific option to voluntarily turn away from IFRS to local GAAP. Using a difference-in-differences approach, we find that family firms where both Identity and indirect Control dimensions are present exhibit higher levels of EM after the switch. Our findings contribute to the literature on the effect of ownership structures and family involvement on EM incentives.

2020

Homophily in audit quality :

Conférence ArODES

interplay between auditor and auditee gender diversity

Cédric Poretti, Tiphaine Jérôme

Actes de la 19e conférence internationale de gouvernance

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Résumé:

This study examines whether and how the presence of women on both sides of the auditor-auditee relationship influences audit fees (AF). Using the specific context of Switzerland where audit reports are signed by two partners, we build a sample of 694 firm-year observations from listed firms over 2010-2017. First, we show that the presence of an audit committee chairwoman has a negative impact on AF. Second, we document a female audit premium that is enhanced by audit partner specialization. Finally, we find that the presence of women on both sides of the audit relationship has an overall positive effect on AF conditional on the audit partner specialization. This study shows how a female audit partner and an internal female audit committee member interplay to influence audit quality. These results are of interest to investors and regulators willing to promote gender diversity in finance functions.

2019

Do financial reporting standards affect peers’ selection?

Conférence ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Michel Magnan, Alain Schatt

Actes du 40e Congrès de l'Association Francophone de Comptabilité (AFC), 2019

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Résumé:

This paper investigates how the financial reporting standards of takeover bids’ targets affect peers’ selection by practitioners implementing comparable valuation methods (i.e. multiples of similar companies or similar transactions). We take advantage of the coexistence of local GAAP and IFRS in France, and of the disclosure of targets’ valuation in takeover bids prospectuses, to analyze publicly available valuations performed by acquirers and independent experts between 1999 and 2016. We show that practitioners do not differentiate between local GAAP and IFRS when selecting foreign peers for targets’ valuation, even after the mandatory adoption of IFRS in 2005. In addition, the analysis of the criteria mentioned in the valuation reports shows that practitioners care about the “business model” of the firm (industry, size, geographical segment) for peers’ selection, but not about financial reporting standards. Finally, foreign peers are generally selected in three countries with large stock markets (US, UK and Germany), without considering the different financial reporting standards of those peers. Overall, our paper supports the idea that accounting numbers are important for practitioners when evaluating a company, because they usually implement comparable valuation methods, but they often make errors when implementing such methods by selecting peers using different accounting standards. In addition, our paper highlights a new benefit of IFRS adoption: it has lowered this peers’ selection bias.

Does the origin of the new CEO and the presence of the former CEO on the board impact firm performance and earnings management ?

Conférence ArODES

Corinne Bessieux-Ollier, Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Actes de la 18e conférence Internationale de Gouvernance

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Résumé:

In this paper, we examine firm performance and earnings management in the context of CEO turnover. We posit that a newly appointed external CEO has more latitude when the former CEO is not sitting on the board of directors. On the contrary, a new internally recruited CEO may have limited latitude when the former CEO is sitting on the board. To test our hypotheses, we analyze a non-contaminated sample of 136 CEO changes in France, over the period 2006-2016. We find no impact on firm performance in the short-run. However, in line with our predictions, we find significantly higher earnings management when a new external CEO is appointed and the former CEO is not sitting on the board. Overall, our results should be of interest for boards of directors having to make decisions in the context of new CEO appointment and former CEO nomination.

2018

CEO turnover, CFO turnover and earnings quality

Conférence ArODES

Corinne Bessieux-Ollier, Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Proceedings of the 17th CIG, 2018

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Résumé:

We analyze the impact of 71 CEO changes and 120 CFO changes on earnings management in France, over the period 2007-2015. For the year of the CEO change, we find that CEO change is positively and significantly associated with earnings management, whereas no significant association is found for CFO changes. However, CEO change is only positively and significantly associated with earnings management when the incoming CEO is sitting on the board and the outgoing CEO is not sitting on the board. Thus, our findings allow us to better understand in which context management turnover is associated with lower earnings quality. Overall, our results should be interesting for investors who care about the quality of financial information.

Does leverage impair earnings quality in the hospitality industry? :

Conférence ArODES

international evidence

Tiphaine Jérôme, Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Proceedings of the 2nd Wine & Hospitality Management Workshop, 2018

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Résumé:

We investigate the determinants of leverage and the impact of leverage on earnings quality using a large sample of public firms incorporated in 24 countries, from five hospitality sub-industries (bars and restaurants, gambling, hotels, recreational services, and travel and tourism), over the 2000-2016 period. First, we show that firm-specific characteristics (size, tangibility, and growth opportunities) as well as the institutional context are associated with leverage. Second, we find that leverage is positively related to abnormal accruals, our proxy for earnings quality. We thus confirm the detrimental effect leverage has on the reliability of accounting information. Our results are robust to using alternative earnings management measures, to excluding some countries, and to splitting leverage between its short- and long-term components. Overall, our findings contribute to the empirical literature on the determinants and the consequences of leverage in the global hospitality industry.

2017

Audit committees’ independence and the information content of earnings announcements in Western Europe

Conférence ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt, Liesbeth Bruynseels

Proceedings of the 40th European Accounting Association Annual Congress 2017

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Résumé:

We examine whether the percentage of independent members sitting on the audit committee, in different institutional settings, impacts the market reaction (measured by the abnormal stock returns variance and the abnormal trading volume) to earnings announcements. For our sample composed of more than 7’500 earnings announcements made by European firms from 15 countries between 2006 and 2014, we find that the market reactions to earnings announcements are significantly larger when the audit committee is more independent, but only in countries with weak institutional setting. Our results generally hold after controlling for numerous methodological issues. We conclude that more independent audit committees are substitutes for weak institutions to increase the credibility of earnings announcements. Our results should be of great interest for European regulators who recently introduced new requirements for public firms regarding audit committees’ independence.

Overlap and busy members sitting on the audit committee

Conférence ArODES

Cédric Poretti, Alain Schatt

Actes de la 16ème Conférence Internationale de Gouvernance

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Résumé:

This paper investigates the impact of the presence of “over-boarded” directors on the audit committee on earnings management in Europe. Our study is based on a sample of 1420 firms from 15 European countries for the period 2006-2014. For the full sample, we find that the presence of “overlap” directors decreases earnings management, but the presence of “over-boarded” directors (i.e. “busy” directors and “overlap” directors at the same time) increases earnings management. However, “overlap” directors have favorable consequences on earnings management for small firms only, while earnings management is reduced in large firms when “busy” directors are sitting on the audit committee. Finally, “busy” directors and “overlap” directors reduce earnings management in weak institutional contexts, especially for small firms. In contrary, there is no significant effect for large firms in strong institutional context. Our results confirm that the composition of the audit committee has different economic consequences in different institutional and economic contexts and should, therefore, be interesting for European regulators who propose various requirements for listed companies to improve the efficiency of corporate governance.

Réalisations

PEOPLE@HES-SO
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Poretti Cédric

Assistant Professor

Compétences principales

Finance et comptabilité

Analyse financière

Gouvernance d'entreprise

Audit

Enseignement supérieur

Assistant Professor

PEOPLE@HES-SO Annuaire et Répertoire des compétences

Poretti Cédric

Assistant Professor

Compétences principales

Finance et comptabilité

Analyse financière

Gouvernance d'entreprise

Audit

Enseignement supérieur

Assistant Professor

PEOPLE@HES-SO
Annuaire et Répertoire des compétences