O efeito moderador do ciclo de vida empresarial na relação entre gerenciamento de resultados e financial distress

Abstract

This study analyzed the moderating effect of the corporate life cycle on the relationship between earnings management and financial distress. To this end, an empirical, descriptive, and quantitative approach was adopted, conducted with Brazilian non-financial companies listed on the Brasil Bolsa Balcão (B3) stock exchange between 2010 and 2024, using multiple linear regression models with robust standard error correction. The results reveal that the business life cycle, in general, does not exert a significant moderating effect on the relationship between financial distress and earnings management, with the exception of the introductory stage. In this phase, a negative moderating effect was observed, indicating that companies at the beginning of their trajectory and in a distress situation tend to reduce accounting manipulation practices, possibly due to a greater need for transparency to raise capital and signal viability. These findings suggest that the incentives associated with financial distress tend to override the structural characteristics of firms, limiting the role of the life cycle as a conditioning factor in earnings management. Thus, although the life cycle influences the behavior of companies under certain circumstances, its ability to alter the relationship between financial distress and earnings management is limited. This study contributes to the literature by showing that, in the Brazilian context, the effect of financial distress on earnings management is not very sensitive to the stage of the life cycle. From a practical point of view, the results reinforce the need for caution in analyzing the financial statements of companies under financial stress, regardless of their stage in the life cycle.