분기손익조정효과와 원가하방경직성

This study examines the relation between settling-up effect of quarterly earnings and cost stickiness. To the extent that the accrual basis of accounting allows estimates and allocation on revenues and expenses, certain expenses are associated with revenue noncontemporaneously in other quarters, resulting in the “settling-up effect.” Costs are sticky when the relation between costs and sales is weaker for sales decreases than for sales increases. In a given quarter, the noncontemporaneous component that results from the settling-up effect is less adjustable than the contemporaneous component. Thus, I expect that the noncontemporaneous expenses are stickier than the contemporaneous expenses. A primary finding shows that for sales decrease, expense changes are negatively (positively) associated with the noncontemporaneous (contemporaneous) component of sales changes. This suggests that the cost stickiness is driven mostly by the noncontemporaneous relation between sales changes and expense changes. However, I could not find any evidence of sticky behavior of the contemporaneous component. This study contributes to the literature by providing evidence that cost stickiness is to a certain extent related to the fundamental feature of the accrual basis which is primarily reflected in the noncontemporaneous component of expense changes. This study broadens information users’ understanding of the effect of contemporaneous and noncontemporaneous relations between revenues and expenses on cost stickiness.