Eco-Innovation and Earnings Management: Unveiling the Moderating Effects of Financial Constraints and Opacity in FTSE All-Share Firms

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Hauptverfasser: Sastroredjo, Probowo Erawan, Ausloos, Marcel, Khrennikova, Polina
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Sastroredjo, Probowo Erawan
Ausloos, Marcel
Khrennikova, Polina
author_facet Sastroredjo, Probowo Erawan
Ausloos, Marcel
Khrennikova, Polina
contents Our research investigates the relationship between eco-innovation and earnings management among 567 firms listed on the FTSE All-Share Index from 2014 to 2022. By examining how sustainability-driven innovation influences financial reporting practices, we explore the strategic motivations behind income smoothing in firms engaged in environmental initiatives. The findings reveal a positive association between eco-innovation and earnings management, suggesting that firms may leverage ecoinnovation not only for environmental signalling but also to project financial stability and meet stakeholder expectations. The analysis further uncovers that the propensity for earnings management is amplified in firms facing financial constraints, proxied by low Whited-Wu (WW) scores and weak sales performance, and in those characterised by high financial opacity. We employ a robust multi-method approach to address potential endogeneity and selection bias, including entropy balancing, propensity score matching (PSM), and the Heckman Test correction. Our research contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on the dual strategic role of ecoinnovation -balancing sustainability signalling with earnings management, under varying financial conditions. The findings offer actionable insights for regulators, investors, and policymakers navigating the intersection of corporate transparency, financial health, and environmental responsibility.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2508_14935
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Eco-Innovation and Earnings Management: Unveiling the Moderating Effects of Financial Constraints and Opacity in FTSE All-Share Firms
Sastroredjo, Probowo Erawan
Ausloos, Marcel
Khrennikova, Polina
General Economics
Economics
Risk Management
Our research investigates the relationship between eco-innovation and earnings management among 567 firms listed on the FTSE All-Share Index from 2014 to 2022. By examining how sustainability-driven innovation influences financial reporting practices, we explore the strategic motivations behind income smoothing in firms engaged in environmental initiatives. The findings reveal a positive association between eco-innovation and earnings management, suggesting that firms may leverage ecoinnovation not only for environmental signalling but also to project financial stability and meet stakeholder expectations. The analysis further uncovers that the propensity for earnings management is amplified in firms facing financial constraints, proxied by low Whited-Wu (WW) scores and weak sales performance, and in those characterised by high financial opacity. We employ a robust multi-method approach to address potential endogeneity and selection bias, including entropy balancing, propensity score matching (PSM), and the Heckman Test correction. Our research contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on the dual strategic role of ecoinnovation -balancing sustainability signalling with earnings management, under varying financial conditions. The findings offer actionable insights for regulators, investors, and policymakers navigating the intersection of corporate transparency, financial health, and environmental responsibility.
title Eco-Innovation and Earnings Management: Unveiling the Moderating Effects of Financial Constraints and Opacity in FTSE All-Share Firms
topic General Economics
Economics
Risk Management
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.14935