Anthony joined the University of Exeter Business School in 2005 as an undergraduate student, achieving a first class Bachelor’s degree with honours in Accounting and Finance in 2008. During this period he was awarded the Hiles Scholarship which promotes and assists mature students of academic merit, allowing recipients to concentrate their efforts on academia.
Given his outstanding undergraduate achievement, he was invited to return for the MSc in Accounting and Finance as an Accounting Scholar, and, over 2008-2009, obtained his Master’s degree with distinction, as well as providing extensive tutorial support to undergraduates.
Anthony was rewarded for his academic achievements in 2009 when he accepted an offer of a PhD studentship. During the course of his PhD studies, Anthony has managed and delivered two modules in Aberystwyth University, and delivered seminars at the University of Exeter. Anthony completed his PhD entitled: “The performance of insolvency and credit risk models in the UK: a comparative study, development, and wider application”, in September 2012 and has recently joined the Business School in an official capacity as a Lecturer in Accounting.
Qualifications
BA, MSc, PhD (Exon)
Research clusters
Research interests
- Insolvency Prediction
- Credit Risk Modeling
- Social Network Effects on Capital Markets
- Databases
Anthony is currently working on several existing research papers alongside his former supervisor Professor Richard Jackson (Aber), and several new research areas with Professor Joanne Horton (Exeter). Anthony’s most recent published research provides the following abstract:
Contingent claims models have recently been applied to the field of corporate insolvency prediction in an attempt to provide the art with a theoretical methodology that has been lacking in the past. Limited studies have been carried out in order directly to compare the performance of these “market” models with that of their accounting number-based counterparts. I use receiver operating characteristic curves and tests of economic value to assess the efficacy of multiple models, carefully selected to represent key moments in the evolution of the art, and tested upon, for the first time, post-IFRS UK data. The variability of efficacy is also measured for the first time using Monte Carlo simulation using 10,000 randomly generated training and validation samples from a dataset consisting of over 12,000 firm-year observations. I find that the efficacy of the models is generally less than that reported in the prior literature; but that the theoretically driven, market-based models outperform models which use accounting numbers; the latter showing a relatively larger efficacy distribution. I also obtain the counter-intuitive finding that predictions based on a single ratio can be as efficient as those which are based on models which are far more complicated – in terms of variable variety and mathematical construction. Finally, I develop and test a naïve version of the down-and-out-call barrier option model for insolvency prediction and find that, despite its simple formulation, it performs favourably compared alongside other market-based models.
Key publications | Publications by category | Publications by year
Publications by category
Journal articles
Horton J, Krishna Kumar D, Wood A (2020). Detecting academic fraud using Benford law: the case of Professor James Hunton.
Research Policy,
49(8), 104084-104084.
Full text.
DOI.
Horton J, Tsipouridou M, Wood A (2018). European Market Reaction to Audit Reforms.
European Accounting Review,
27(5), 991-1023.
Abstract:
European Market Reaction to Audit Reforms
This paper investigates European stock market reaction to events associated with the proposed EU audit reforms that were ultimately implemented in 2016. These include, inter alia, mandatory audit firm rotation, prohibition of non-audit services, and fee caps. We find that investors react positively to the proposals, lifting aggregate market value by approximately €108,630 million. In cross-sectional analysis at both country and firm level, we find that these net benefits arise from the prohibition of non-audit services and the placing of a cap on total fees charged by the auditor. Furthermore, we find investors in firms with low earnings quality appear to perceive the greatest benefits from the proposed reforms.
Abstract.
Full text.
DOI.
Wood AP, Jackson RHG (2013). The performance of insolvency prediction and credit risk models in the UK: a comparative study.
British Accounting Review,
45(3).
Abstract:
The performance of insolvency prediction and credit risk models in the UK: a comparative study
Theoretically driven, market-based contingent claims models have recently been applied to the field of corporate insolvency prediction in an attempt to provide the art with a theoretical methodology that has been lacking in the past. Limited studies have been carried out in order directly to compare the performance of these models with that of their accounting number-based counterparts. We use receiver operating characteristic curves to assess the efficacy of thirteen selected models using, for the first time, post-IFRS UK data; and investigate the distributional properties of model efficacy. We find that the efficacy of the models is generally less than that reported in the prior literature; but that the contingent claims models outperform models which use accounting numbers. We also obtain the counter-intuitive finding that predictions based on a single variable can be as efficient as those which are based on models which are far more complicated – in terms of variable variety and mathematical construction. Finally, we develop and test a naïve version of the down-and-out-call barrier option model for insolvency prediction and find that, despite its simple formulation, it performs favourably compared alongside other contingent claims models.
Abstract.
Full text.
Publications by year
2020
Horton J, Krishna Kumar D, Wood A (2020). Detecting academic fraud using Benford law: the case of Professor James Hunton.
Research Policy,
49(8), 104084-104084.
Full text.
DOI.
2018
Horton J, Tsipouridou M, Wood A (2018). European Market Reaction to Audit Reforms.
European Accounting Review,
27(5), 991-1023.
Abstract:
European Market Reaction to Audit Reforms
This paper investigates European stock market reaction to events associated with the proposed EU audit reforms that were ultimately implemented in 2016. These include, inter alia, mandatory audit firm rotation, prohibition of non-audit services, and fee caps. We find that investors react positively to the proposals, lifting aggregate market value by approximately €108,630 million. In cross-sectional analysis at both country and firm level, we find that these net benefits arise from the prohibition of non-audit services and the placing of a cap on total fees charged by the auditor. Furthermore, we find investors in firms with low earnings quality appear to perceive the greatest benefits from the proposed reforms.
Abstract.
Full text.
DOI.
2013
Wood AP, Jackson RHG (2013). The performance of insolvency prediction and credit risk models in the UK: a comparative study.
British Accounting Review,
45(3).
Abstract:
The performance of insolvency prediction and credit risk models in the UK: a comparative study
Theoretically driven, market-based contingent claims models have recently been applied to the field of corporate insolvency prediction in an attempt to provide the art with a theoretical methodology that has been lacking in the past. Limited studies have been carried out in order directly to compare the performance of these models with that of their accounting number-based counterparts. We use receiver operating characteristic curves to assess the efficacy of thirteen selected models using, for the first time, post-IFRS UK data; and investigate the distributional properties of model efficacy. We find that the efficacy of the models is generally less than that reported in the prior literature; but that the contingent claims models outperform models which use accounting numbers. We also obtain the counter-intuitive finding that predictions based on a single variable can be as efficient as those which are based on models which are far more complicated – in terms of variable variety and mathematical construction. Finally, we develop and test a naïve version of the down-and-out-call barrier option model for insolvency prediction and find that, despite its simple formulation, it performs favourably compared alongside other contingent claims models.
Abstract.
Full text.
Awards and Honours
- Hiles Scholarship (2007)
- Accounting Scholarship (2008)
- PhD Studentship (2009)
