Goodwill valuations certified by independent experts: Bigger and cleaner impairments?
研究披露使用独立估值专家的公司是否报告更高的商誉减值额，以及这种披露是否减少未来进一步减值的可能性，帮助投资者理解减值的时间序列特征。
Abstract If firms disclose the use of independent valuation experts to assess the magnitude of goodwill impairments, should investors rationally condition their values on that disclosure? This research shows that firms that disclose the use of an independent valuation expert are more likely to report a higher impairment charge in an impairment year but, critically, after controlling for other determinants, the disclosing firms are less likely to have impairments in following years. Thus, when the use of an independent expert is disclosed, while it is rational for investors to downgrade firm value on the basis of the disclosed (higher) impairment charge in that year, there is simultaneously a reduced need to add an additional discount to anticipate further (strategically) delayed impairment charges. The investors need to consider the likely multi‐period time series properties of impairments, and firms may benefit from using an expert if in anticipation of future related impairments, investors significantly reduce the discount applied.