THE IMPACT OF A FIRM'S CONTRACTS AND SIZE ON THE ACCURACY, DISPERSION AND REVISIONS OF FINANCIAL ANALYSTS' FORECASTS: A THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION.

Abstract

The evidence presented in this study suggests that the dispersion, accuracy and transitory component in revisions of financial analysts' forecasts (FAF) are determined by production/investment/financing decisions, accounting choices as well as firm specific characteristics including the type of control, debt to equity ratio and size of the firm. Firms with managers control (owners control), high (low) debt to equity ratio and large (small) size are hypothesized to have higher (lower) dispersion, forecast error and transitory components in revisions of FAF. These hypotheses are motivated by the contracting cost and political visibility theories. The information availability theory is included as a contrast to the political visibility hypothesis. The information availability hypothesis predicts large (small) firms to have lower (higher) dispersion, forecast error and transitory component in revisions of FAF. The regression results are sensitive to deflated and undeflated measures of the dispersion and accuracy of FAF and size of the firm. The appropriateness of the two measures of firm's size, the book value of total assets and the market value of common stock plus long-term debt, as well as the deflated and undeflated measures of dispersion and accuracy of FAF are investigated. It is concluded that deflated measures of the dispersion and forecast errors and the market value as measure of firm size are misspecified in the present context. The current year forecast revisions are assumed to consist of the transitory and permanent components. The second year forecast revisions are used to represent the long-term forecast revisions and are used as a control for the permanent component of forecast revisions. The regression results are consistent with the contracting and political visibility hypotheses. The firm specific characteristics are hypothesized to influence forecast errors and dispersion directly and indirectly through business risk and accounting policy choices. The links between firm characteristics and business risk, accounting policy choices, dispersion and forecast errors are established and path analysis is used to test these relationships. These relationships are observed to be consistent with predictions and significant.