DETERMINANTS OF FINANCIAL REPORT LAG ON LISTED CONGLOMERATE FIRMS IN NIGERIA

This study examined the determinants of financial reporting lag among listed conglomerate firms in Nigeria over a ten-year period from 2014 to 2023. The study adopted an ex post facto research design and utilized secondary data obtained from the annual reports of 20 sampled conglomerate firms. Firm size, ownership concentration, firm leverage, and asset tangibility were employed as the independent variables, while financial reporting lag served as the dependent variable. Data analysis was conducted using STATA version 14 and Microsoft Excel, while fixed effect robust regression analysis was employed to test the hypotheses. The findings revealed that firm size (P = 0.233), ownership concentration (P = 0.360), and asset tangibility (P = 0.513) do not significantly affect financial reporting lag. However, firm leverage was found to have a significant effect on financial reporting lag. The study concluded that financial leverage is a significant factor in enhancing the timeliness of financial reporting among listed conglomerate firms in Nigeria. Consequently, the study recommended that firms should adopt prudent leverage strategies to improve transparency, accountability, and timely financial reporting, while stakeholders should place less emphasis on firm size as a determinant of reporting timeliness.