Fatores motivadores e limitadores do alisamento de resultados (income smoothing) pelas empresas listadas na Bovespa

Abstract

One form of earnings management that is constantly addressed in the literature is Income Smoothing, which constitutes a reduction in the variability of reported results, making them more stable over time. The aim of this study is to identify factors such as market-related, contractual, political and regulatory motivations which influence this practice, as well as any factors that may limit it. To this end, was investigated the occurrence of income smoothing in a sample of 141 companies listed on the São Paulo Stock Exchange (BOVESPA), over an eight-year analysis period (2000 to 2007). The method used to identify companies that practiced income smoothing was proposed by Eckel (1981), based on the comparison between the coefficient of variability of gross revenue and net profit of the company. Following identification, univariate analysis in the form of the ANOVA test was employed to verify the existence of significant differences in variables between groups of smoothers and non-smoothers firms. The test result