超級(jí)利潤(rùn)率謊言或引爆違規(guī)亂象
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????指鹿為馬的行為：相比得不償失的削減費(fèi)用，更惡劣的是把會(huì)計(jì)準(zhǔn)則當(dāng)兒戲，因?yàn)楹笳吒y察覺。想想安然（Enron）設(shè)立的特殊目的實(shí)體（SPE）吧。盡管安然只持有這些實(shí)體3%的股份，卻靠著它們完成了利潤(rùn)注水。 ????違法亂紀(jì)的行為：形形色色的不法行為都可以顯著地推高利潤(rùn)。南方保健公司（HealthSouth）就曾經(jīng)造假，欺騙性地調(diào)高了預(yù)計(jì)能從客戶處獲得的收入數(shù)額，結(jié)果導(dǎo)致5位首席財(cái)務(wù)官鋃鐺入獄。而費(fèi)用資本化則可以使成本神奇消失，世界通信公司（WorldCom）正是將這種做法發(fā)揮到了極致。 ????企業(yè)管理者們采取這些行動(dòng)，目的都是為了達(dá)到無法通過正常途徑來實(shí)現(xiàn)的利潤(rùn)預(yù)期。要減少這些行為，公司方面至少可以拒絕給出一廂情愿的預(yù)期，但對(duì)于大多數(shù)公司來說，要公開調(diào)低預(yù)期實(shí)在是太痛苦了。因此，這樣的超額預(yù)期仍將繼續(xù)存在，而管理者們?nèi)詫⒗^續(xù)為此使勁渾身解數(shù)。但最糟的是，很多投資者也相信這些預(yù)期——即使這些預(yù)期顯然不靠譜。眼下就是這種情況。 |
????Misleading: Worse than misguided slashing, because it's harder to detect, is playing the accounting rules like a fiddle. Think of Enron's special purpose entities, which enabled it to increase profits through outfits in which it owned only a 3% stake. ????Illegal: Various federal crimes can boost earnings impressively. HealthSouth (HLS) fraudulently adjusted its estimates of how much it would collect from customers; five CFOs went to prison. Capitalizing expenses makes costs magically disappear; that's what WorldCom did in a bigger way than any company before or since. ????All those moves were committed by managers trying to meet profit expectations that couldn't be reached responsibly. Companies can at least reduce the temptation by refusing to make forecasts of their own, but for most the prospect of publicly dialing down expectations is just too painful. So the expectations live on, and managers keep trying to meet them. Most harmfully, many investors believe them -- even when, as now, they're clearly in fantasyland. |
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