The Value-Relevance of Cash Flows and Accruals: The Role of Investment Opportunities
研究投资机会如何影响经营现金流和应计项目在估值中的相对重要性，发现低投资机会时现金流相关性随机会增加而上升，高投资机会时应计项目相关性下降，导致盈余价值相关性先升后降。
ABSTRACT: We examine the role of investment opportunities as a determinant of the relative importance of cash flows from operations (CFO) and accruals in firm valuation. We find that at low investment-opportunity levels, CFO value-relevance increases with investment opportunities. When investment opportunities are high, accrual value-relevance declines as investment opportunities increase. Consequently, earnings value-relevance first varies directly and then inversely with investment opportunities. We show that the increase in CFO value-relevance is consistent with cost differentials between internal and external financing causing CFO to be an increasingly important determinant of the realization of investment opportunities. The decline in accrual value-relevance at high investment-opportunity levels appears to be attributable to accounting measurement deficiencies.