Financial reports can be regarded as the primary means of communication between a company’s management and its shareholders. The reports also address all other kinds of stakeholders like employees, suppliers, customers, competitors, governments, potential investors, bond holders and, in a broad sense, the entire society.
One possible way of obscuring corporate information when results are negative, or of being forthcoming in disclosing information when results are good, is to adjust the reports’ readability which can influence understandability as a consequence. There is a broad set of readability formulas that allow defining a level of text difficulty based on linguistic factors like sentence length as well as word length and characteristics.
The underlying research question of this work shall be formulated as follows:
“What influences readability of letters to the shareholders of quarterly reports of publicly listed companies on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange?”
This thesis contributes to existing literature in various ways. On the one hand, it is among the very few works that consider the influence of performance on the readability of German reports and, in addition, sets the focus on quarterly reports. On the other hand, it takes into account the dependence or independence of managers of their shareholders measured by the company’s shareholder structure, industry, share price volatility and the size of firms. Moreover, it is examined whether there is a tendency that reports in different languages tend to have the same relative level of difficulty. In general, the thesis also examines and questions research methods of prior studies in the field of report readability.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Aim of this Work
1.2 Structure
2. Reporting on Financial Markets
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Purpose and Functions of Reports
2.3 Typical Content of Reports
2.3.1 Letter to the Shareholders
2.4 Specifics of Reports at Frankfurt Stock Exchange Prime Market
2.4.1 The Frankfurt Stock Exchange
2.4.2 Annual Reports at Frankfurt Stock Exchange Prime Market
2.4.3 Quarterly Reports at Frankfurt Stock Exchange Prime Market
2.5 Market Functioning
2.5.1 Introduction
2.5.2 Efficient Markets Hypothesis
2.5.3 Incomplete Revelation Hypothesis
3. Stakeholder Theory
3.1 Historical Origins
3.2 Stakeholder Definition
3.3 Stakeholder Groups
3.4 Stakeholder Concept
3.5 Relationship Between Shareholders and Managers
3.5.1 Agency Theory
3.5.2 Obfuscation Hypothesis
3.5.3 Shareholder Influence and Independence
4. Readability Research
4.1 Concept of Readability
4.2 Measures of Readability
4.2.1 Introduction
4.2.2 Historical Overview of Readability Research
4.2.3 Gray and Leary’s Readability Study (1935)
4.2.4 Dale-Chall Formula (1948)
4.2.5 Gunning-Fog Index (1952)
4.2.6 Flesch Index (1948)
4.3 Limitations of Readability Measures
4.3.1 Introduction
4.3.2 Bruce’s Categorization
4.3.3 Other Critics
4.3.4 Alternatives
4.3.4.1 Usability Testing
4.3.4.2 Cloze Procedure
4.3.4.3 Coh-Metrix
4.4 Readability of Corporate Reports
4.4.1 Introduction
4.4.2 Annual Report Readability
4.4.2.1 Pashalian and Crissy (1950)
4.4.2.2 Soper and Dolphin (1964)
4.4.2.3 Barnett and Leoffler (1979)
4.4.2.4 Still (1982)
4.4.3 Studies on Performance Influence on Readability
4.4.3.1 Introduction
4.4.3.2 Adelberg (1979)
4.4.3.3 Courtis (1986)
4.4.3.4 Jones (1988)
4.4.3.5 Baker and Kare (1992)
4.4.3.6 Smith and Taffler (1992)
4.4.3.7 Subramanian, Isley and Blackwell (1993)
4.4.3.8 Courtis (1995)
4.4.3.9 Rutherford (2003)
4.4.3.10 Smith, Jamil, Johari and Ahmad (2006)
4.4.3.11 Li (2008)
4.4.3.12 Hossain/Siddiquee (2008)
4.4.3.13 Conclusio
5. Research Design
5.1 Hypothesis Development
5.1.1 Introduction
5.1.2 Hypothesis 1 – Level of Difficulty
5.1.3 Hypothesis 2 – Bilingual Reports
5.1.4 Hypothesis 3 – Company Size
5.1.5 Hypothesis 4 – Shareholder Independence
5.1.6 Hypothesis 5 – Share Price Volatility
5.1.7 Hypothesis 6 – Financial Performance
5.2 Methodology
5.2.1 Research Objects
5.2.2 Sample
5.2.3 Statistical Methods
6. Results
6.1 Descriptive Statistics
6.1.1 Introduction
6.1.2 Main Variables
6.1.3 Readability Scores
6.1.3.1 Adjusted Flesch Score in German
6.1.3.2 Adjusted Flesch Score in English
6.1.3.3 Raw Flesch Score in German
6.1.3.4 Raw Flesch Score in English
6.2 Hypothesis Testing
6.2.1 Introduction
6.2.2 Testing Hypothesis 1 – Level of Difficulty
6.2.2.1 Testing Hypothesis 1.1
6.2.2.2 Testing Hypothesis 1.2
6.2.3 Testing Hypothesis 2 – Bilingual Reports
6.2.4 Testing Hypothesis 3 – Company Size
6.2.5 Testing Hypothesis 4 – Shareholder Independence
6.2.6 Testing Hypothesis 5 – Share Price Volatility
6.2.7 Testing Hypothesis 6 – Financial Performance
6.2.7.1 Testing Hypothesis 6.1
6.2.7.2 Testing Hypothesis 6.2
6.2.8 Summary Table of Hypotheses Testing
6.3 Discussion
6.4 Limitations
7. Conclusio
Research Objectives and Topics
This master's thesis examines the readability of letters to shareholders in the quarterly reports of publicly listed companies on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The core research question addresses which factors influence the complexity and understandability of these corporate narratives, specifically testing hypotheses related to performance, company size, and shareholder influence.
- Readability of corporate narrative reporting.
- Influence of firm performance on text complexity.
- Role of agency theory and the obfuscation hypothesis in financial reporting.
- Comparative analysis of German and English language quarterly reports.
- Empirical application of the Flesch readability formula.
Excerpt from the Book
1.1 Aim of this Work
Financial reports can be regarded as the primary means of communication between a company's management and its shareholders. The reports also address all other kinds of stakeholders like employees, suppliers, customers, competitors, governments, potential investors, bond holders and, in a broad sense, the entire society. Generally speaking, financial reports concern “any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organization’s objectives.”
The reports aim to keep stakeholders informed about the business history, financial status and future expectations. Typically, narrative information and quantitative data are provided in firms’ reports through the inclusion of financial statements, notes, discussion of operations and letters to the shareholders. Investors to a great extent base their risk assessment and investment decision on these published reports. Therefore, they rely on the usefulness, accuracy and understandability of the “intelligence” provided.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Defines the core research question and provides an overview of the thesis structure regarding readability of shareholder letters.
2. Reporting on Financial Markets: Provides background on reporting habits, the purpose of financial reports, and the specific regulatory environment at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
3. Stakeholder Theory: Reviews the theoretical foundations regarding why companies communicate with various stakeholder groups and the principal-agent relationship.
4. Readability Research: Explores existing literature and methods for measuring text readability, including historical formulas and critiques.
5. Research Design: Formulates the specific hypotheses and details the methodology, sample selection, and statistical tools used for the study.
6. Results: Presents the descriptive statistics, readability scores, and the empirical testing of the formulated hypotheses.
7. Conclusio: Summarizes the study's findings and provides a final assessment of the influence of performance and other factors on readability.
Keywords
Readability, Quarterly Reports, Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Flesch Index, Obfuscation Hypothesis, Shareholder Letters, Financial Performance, Agency Theory, Corporate Communication, Textual Analysis, Market Efficiency, Stakeholder Theory.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this thesis?
The thesis focuses on analyzing the readability of letters to shareholders found in the quarterly reports of companies listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
What are the central thematic areas covered?
The work covers financial reporting standards, stakeholder theory, agency theory, and the linguistic analysis of readability within corporate disclosures.
What is the main research question?
The research asks: "What influences readability of letters to the shareholders of quarterly reports of publicly listed companies on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange?"
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The study uses quantitative statistical methods, including descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis, based on Flesch readability scores.
What is addressed in the main chapters?
The main chapters review reporting theory, provide a literature review on readability, develop testable hypotheses, and empirically analyze a sample of 104 companies.
How is the thesis characterized by its keywords?
It is characterized by terms like readability, corporate communication, market efficiency, and the obfuscation hypothesis.
Is there a significant difference in readability between German and English reports?
The study notes a clear difference in average scores, indicating that language style significantly impacts readability levels.
Does company performance impact readability?
The findings are mixed; while some positive influence of profit margins on readability is observed in German letters, the impact is not consistent across all variables and languages.
- Quote paper
- BSc. Bernhard Stellner (Author), 2013, Readability of Quarterly Reports on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/215700
