Factors Associated with Audit Reports in Saudi Arabia
Considering audit reports as the results of any audit task and their importance in communicating an auditor’s opinion about the credibility of financial statements, this study aims to investigate the effect of firm-related factors and auditor-related factors on the kinds of audit reports in Saudi Arabia, which is considered one of the biggest markets in the MENA region. Data for 153 listed companies are employed in the analysis, collected as at the end of 2013. A multiple regression model is developed taking audit reports as the dependent variable. The results indicate that the auditor’s size, firm size, and leverage significantly affect audit reports, with large auditors tending to issue modified audit reports more than smaller auditors, and small companies and leveraged companies being more likely to receive modified audit reports. Neither profitability nor the age of the company (as a listed company) affects audit reports. These results are consisted with the literature and the nature of the Saudi stock market formally established in 2003.
