The Value-Relevance of Financial Statement Recognition versus Note Disclosure: Evidence from Goodwill Accounting

The relative significance of financial statement recognition and note disclosure is an important issue for accounting regulators, preparers and auditors. While standard-setters prioritise financial recognition over disclosure, the empirical evidence on the value-relevance of note disclosures is mixed. This is partly due to the severe methodological problems inherent in comparing the two modes of presentation. This paper examines this issue in a new context by exploiting the UK regulatory environment where old pre-FRS 10 goodwill continues to be disclosed in the notes to the accounts at the same time as new post-FRS 10 goodwill is capitalised. It thus uses a within-firm research method to examine the relative significance of the two goodwill amounts. The analysis is based on a sample of 243 non-financial firms containing amounts of both recognised and disclosed goodwill in their 2002 financial statements. Both variables are significantly associated with share price. In addition, for firms engaging in RD, there is no significant difference between the contributions of disclosed and recognised goodwill in explaining market value, a result consistent with the markets efficiently incorporating goodwill information irrespective of where it appears in the annual report.