Faster reporting could boost shareholder value.

• Position: Business Briefs

Investors tend to like companies that disclose financial information in a timely fashion. Indeed, a study by Parson Consulting, a financial management consultancy, finds companies that release their financial results earlier than their industry peers achieve an average 15.5 percent premium in their price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio.

"The market provides evidence that earlier release times are indicative of well-run financial operations, which is reflected in higher P/Es," said Dan Weinfurter, president and CEO of Parson Consulting.

Still, while they may release their earnings promptly to the public, many large U.S. companies are taking longer to file their complete financial reports -- 10-Ks and 10-Qs -- than the recently proposed Securities & Exchange Commission-mandated guidelines would permit. The study found that nearly 90 percent of U.S. companies listed in the S&P 500 roster don't meet the shorter 10-Q filing deadline of 35 days scheduled for 2005--it's currently 45 days--as set...