Does the interaction between the accounting method choice and disclosure affect financial analysts' information environment? The case of joint ventures under IAS 31

IAS 31 allowed firms to choose between proportionate consolidation and the equity method to record joint ventures in the consolidated accounts of the venturer. Moreover, this election implied a decision about including information in the primary financial statements or in the notes. This paper investigates if financial analysts perceive accounting information differently depending on the method chosen conditioned to the disclosure of the required information in the notes. We analysed a sample of Spanish firms during 2005-2010. We not only considered earnings forecasts, but also examined target prices and stock recommendations. Furthemore, we look at how this accounting choice affects analysts' information environment. Our results suggest that the choice of accounting regime does not affect the bias and accuracy of earnings forecasts, nor target prices nor stock recommendations, no matter if firms provide or not information in the notes. While the proportionate method implies lower dispersion in analysts' forecasts than the equity method, our tests do not allow us to confirm that the information environment depends on the accounting method. These results support the decision adopted in IFRS 11 to impose a unique method for the accounting of joint ventures.