O poder da reputação: evidências do efeito big four sobre a opinião do auditor

Abstract

The present study analyzed the effect of the Big Four audit firms on the type of auditor’s opinion. The research was descriptive, documental and quantitative, based on descriptive statistics and regression with panel data. It consisted in an analysis of the annual reports of 504 companies listed in the Brazilian stock exchange during the period from 2002 to 2012. It was possible to conclude that there is a concentration in the Brazilian audit market, since the Big Four audit firms managed to work with 75% of the companies, which could hamper the auditor's independence. On average, the probability of a listed company receiving a qualified report is 6.20%. It was also found that being audited by a Big Four and having differentiated Levels of Governance reducesthe probability of receiving a qualified auditor’s opinion. In turn, companies that incur losses and the adoption of Partial IFRS are associated to a higher likelihood of receiving a qualified opinion. These results may contribute to regulators, investorsand auditors in signaling out the factors that affect the auditor's type of opinion.