The association between corporate governance mechanisms and stock investment risk through accruals quality : empirical evidence from Thailand

Abstract

This study investigates the association between corporate governance mechanisms and stock investment risk through accruals quality during the period of 2007 to 2009 of listed non-financial firms in Thailand by using multiple regression analysis. The corporate governance mechanisms consist of corporate governance index, family ownership, institutional ownership, the Herfindahl index, industry-adjusted price-cost margin and media coverage. The stock investment risk defines as idiosyncratic risk and total risk. Besides, this study uses the measure quality of accounting information, i.e. accruals quality as a mediating variable. The results show that firms with higher accruals quality have lower idiosyncratic risk and total risk, and that accruals quality is a mediating variable between corporate governance mechanisms and stock investment risks. Firms with increased corporate governance index and family ownership concentration have higher accruals quality and lower stock investment risk. This study also indicates firm with higher proportion of institutional investors have lower stock investment risk. Besides, the results show that firms enjoying higher market power have higher accruals quality than firms in competitive product market. Firms with higher marker power have lower stock investment risk. Finally, firms with more media coverage have lower accruals quality and higher stock investment risk. Overall, these results show that corporate governance mechanisms directly decrease the stock investment risk and indirectly decrease stock investment risk through the higher quality of accounting information, i.e. accruals quality.