Fundamental Analysis of Costs and Cost Sticky Behavior Emphasizing Scope Changes in Tehran Stock Exchange

 
Journal of Accounting Advances (J.A.A)
Vol. 4, No. 2, 2012, Ser. 63/3
 
 
Extended Abstract
 
Fundamental Analysis of Costs and Cost Sticky Behavior Emphasizing Scope Changes in Tehran Stock Exchange
 
Dr. M. Namazi        M. Javad Ghaffari           M. Fereyduni
University of Shiraz
 
Introduction
Cost stickiness occurs due to disproportionate increase and decrease in the level of operating assets in periods of increase and decrease of demand and sales. Despite small changes in an activity, large changes in the activity, forces management to make changes in the cost structure of companies, which in turn, will lead to a change in the total cost. In addition, managers are more willing to change the cost in the time activities will be increased compared to when they will be decreased.
This study considers and analyzes the sticky behavior of sales, general and administrative expenses (SG&A), cost of goods sold and total of SG&A expenses and cost of goods sold in Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) for the period of 2004-2010. Moreover, the sticky costs behavior is analyzed for different levels of changes in sales revenues.
 
Research hypothesis
First main hypothesis: a relative magnitude of increase in costs when sales revenues increase is more than a relative magnitude of reduction in costs when sales revenues decrease.
1-1) a relative magnitude of increase in SG&A expenses when sales revenues increase is more than a relative magnitude of reduction in SG&A expenses when sales revenues decrease.
1-2) a relative magnitude of increase in costs of goods sold when sales revenues increase is more than a relative magnitude of reduction in costs of goods sold when sales revenues decrease.
1-3) a relative magnitude of increase in the total of costs of goods sold and SG&A expenses when sales revenues increase is more than a relative magnitude of  reduction in the total of costs of goods sold and SG&A expenses when  sales revenues decrease.
Second main hypothesis: sticky behavior of costs is caused by large changes in volumes of sales revenues.
2-1) sticky behavior of SG&A expenses are caused by large changes in volumes of sales revenues.
2-2) sticky behavior of costs of goods sold is caused by large changes in volumes of sales revenues.
2-3) sticky behavior of the total of costs of goods sold and SG&A expenses is caused by large changes in volume of sales revenues.
 
Methods
Model 1
Log                          Log * Log
 
Where:
DV = SG&A, CGS, or TOTAL (CGS + SG&A)
 
For the second hypothesis, model 2 was exerted as follow:
Model 2
Log  log
 
Where:
DV = SG&A, CGS, or TOTAL (CGS + SG&A)
R1it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-0.1, 0.1]
R2it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-0.2, -0.1) or (0.1, 0.2]
R3it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-0.3, -0.2) or (0.2, 0.3]
R4it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-1, -0.3) or (0.3, 1]
D1it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-0.1, 0)
D2it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-0.2, -0.1)
D3it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-0.3, -0.2)
D4it = 1 if percent change in sales revenue is [-1, -0.3)
 
Conclusion and discussion
The findings of this research indicate that, there is a sticky behavior in SG&A expenses, cost of goods sold and their total.
Also, the costs show a sticky behavior only when the following situations occur:
1) SG&A expenses are more than 30% change in sales revenues, 2) cost of goods sold is less than 10% and more than 30% change in sales revenues and 3) total of them for variation less than 20% and more than 30% in sales revenues. This is why the increased sales revenues more than 30% would lead managers to increase companies’ capacity. On the other hand, when sales revenues decrease more than 30%, managers are not willing or able to equally decrease the costs in their company. Therefore, this issue has caused the sticky behavior of costs including SG&A expenses, cost of goods sold and total of SG&A expenses and cost of goods sold, and shows sticky behavior for changes for more than 30% of sales revenues in all cases.