The Determinants of Forward-Looking Information Disclosure in Tehran Stock Exchange

Abstract

Today's disclosure of information is not limited to financial information in the context of financial reports, but they often reveal a bunch of non-financial information to influence the decisions of users. In the accounting culture, disclosure is a generic term and is classified as one of the accounting principles that incorporates all financially important processes and affects all aspects of the financial information. The information published in the annual report can be derived from past information and future information. The classification of past (historical) information refers to past financial outcomes and future disclosure is a class of information that includes current and future projections.Methodology:For this purpose, the present study investigates the factors affecting the disclosure of information that predicts the future status of accepted companies in the Tehran Stock Exchange during the period of 2008-2014 For this research, 86 companies were surveyed during this period. In this regard, variables such as company size, financial leverage, profitability and type of audit were considered as factors influencing the disclosure of information that predicted future status. Multiple regression analysis was used for testing, and their significance was determined using t and F statistics.Results:Finally, it was found that corporate size, profitability, and type of audit had a positive impact on the disclosure of predictive future information, while financial leverage did not.Conclusion:Finally, it is suggested to balance the extent to which financial information is disclosed in terms of quality, to be balanced between the level of disclosure that would attract investors and restraining commercial rivals.