Dennis M. López

Auditor Size and Internal Control Reporting Differences in Nonprofit Healthcare Organizations

We investigate whether auditor size is associated with the disclosure of internal control exceptions among Circular A-133 audits of nonprofit healthcare organizations. Our analysis is motivated by recent growth and transparency concerns within the sector. Using a sample of 1,180 audit reports from 2004 to 2008, we find evidence that audits performed by Big 4 firms are less likely to disclose internal control weaknesses than those performed by smaller firms. Additional analyses indicate this relation only remains statistically significant for a subsample of small organizations, possibly due to greater selectivity or lower efforts by the Big 4 auditors. We discuss the implications of these findings from an audit quality, market dominance, and client size perspective. The results are relevant to hospital financial managers seeking high quality audits at low cost.

Auditor workload compression and busy season portfolio changes: US evidence

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of auditor workload compression on the likelihood of changes to the busy season client portfolio of an audit firm. We find evidence of a positive association between workload compression and the likelihood of changes to the constituents of the busy season client portfolio of a local office. We also find evidence of a positive association between auditor-client misalignment and the likelihood of such changes. The results for our auditor risk proxies are consistent with prior studies, in support that auditors with greater levels of risk in their portfolios are more likely to engage in busy season client turnover. By using alternative research methods and considering previously overlooked variables, this study sheds new light on the factors influencing the portfolio management decisions of auditors.

AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION OF AUDIT FEES IN THE US FOR-PROFIT HEALTHCARE SECTOR

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the market for audit services for publicly traded companies operating in the US for-profit (FP) healthcare sector. Complex national and local healthcare laws and regulations suggest the importance of assessing fee effects of joint nationallevel and city-specific expertise among auditors. Using cross-sectional OLS regression analysis, we find that joint expertise significantly affects audit pricing in the healthcare sector. We find a fee premium of 33.6 percent on engagements where auditors are both national and city-specific specialists. We also find that Big-4 auditor reputation is significantly priced over and above the effects of joint auditor expertise, and a significant positive association exists between audit and non-audit service fees-indicating the presence of knowledge spillover effects among healthcare company auditors.