감사보고시차와 자기자본비용과의 관련성: 정보환경을 중심으로

[Purpose]This study analyzes the relationship between audit report lag and cost of equity capital, and investigates the differential influence of the information environment on the relationship. And, the study also investigates how the timeliness of financial reporting affects equity investors' perception of the reliability of financial statements. [Methodology]The study use a sample of 1,204 firm－year listed companies from 2011 to 2019 after the adoption of the Korean International Financial Reporting Standards. The independent variable is measured by the audit report lag, which is the period from fiscal year－end date to the audit report date. And the dependent variable is the arithmetic mean value of cost of equity capital according to Ohlson and Juettner (2005) and the PEG and MPEG models by Easton (2004). [Findings]As a result of the analysis, audit report lag showed a significant positive(＋) relationship with the next year's cost of equity capital. This result can be interpreted that as the timeliness of financial reporting is delayed, investors' doubts about the reliability of financial statements increase, and a greater risk premium is imposed on investments. Additionally, the positive relationship between audit report lag and cost of equity capital was more pronounced in samples with a low proportion of foreign investors, a high level of discretionary accruals, and a small number of financial analysts. This result suggests that investors' suspicions about delays in financial reporting are perceived to be higher in situations where the information environment is poor. [Implications]This study suggests that audit report lag is related to the determination of a company's cost of equity capital, suggesting that audit－related information shown in the audit report can serve as useful information for capital market participants and policy authorities.