DOES AUDIT QUALITY AFFECT COMPANIES' PERFORMANCE? EVIDENCE FROM AN EMERGING MARKET

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to look into the impact of audit quality on company performance. It offers empirical evidence from the Jordanian market, which is considered an emerging market. In this study, audit quality is proxied by auditor tenure, auditor industry specialization, and auditor firm size, while company performance is proxied by ROA, ROE, and EPS. A panel data analysis of all Jordanian industrial public shareholding companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange during the timeframe (2012 to 2017) is used in this study. The primary findings are that auditor tenure has a negative influence on ROA, but auditor industry specialization and auditor firm size have no influence on ROA. Auditor firm size has a positive influence on both ROE and EPS, but auditor tenure and auditor industry specialization have a non-significant negative influence on both ROE and EPS. According to these results, companies in emerging markets should be encouraged to overcome the barriers that limit the link between audit quality and company performance. The study also suggests more research on the impact of audit quality on information asymmetry and earnings management. Future study might potentially identify characteristics that influence audit quality, particularly in emerging countries (such as MENA countries), where there has been little effort to explore the level of audit quality and its relationship with otherfactors.