The main objective of this study is to evaluate the relative and incremental information content of earnings and operating cash flows in the companies listed in Tehran Stock Exchange. Moreover, the present study investigates the loss effect on the information content of earnings and operating cash flows. For this purpose, we investigate and analyze a sample of 475 firm-years from the companies listed in Tehran Stock Exchange during the years 2006-2010.The results indicate that, the earnings have more information content than operating cash flows in explaining stock returns. In addition, earnings model is preferable in explaining stock returns than operating cash flows model. Also, results show that earnings have positive effect and loss has negative effect on earnings information content and operating cash flows.

Institutional investors play important role on formation of different changes on corporate governance systems. They can significantly influence on companies by monitoring the performance of management and limiting their opportunistic behaviors and manipulating their financial statements. Therefore, the main objective of the present study is to investigate the relationship between institutional investors and earnings management on some listed companies on Tehran Stock Exchange by examining a sample of 700 firm-years data over the period 2006-2010. In this study, the discretionary accruals are used as an indicator for earnings management. The results indicate that there is a positive and significant relationship between institutional investors and earnings management and suggest that increasing the ownership percentage of institutional shareholders increases earnings management. In addition, the results of the control variables have shown that firm size had no impact on earnings management, but financial leverage and return on sales, respectively had negative and positive effect on the earnings management of companies.

The primary objective of this study is to investigate the effect of growth and financial strength variables on the financial leverage for some listed companies in the Tehran Stock Exchange. For this purpose, a sample of 700 firm-years among listed companies in the Tehran Stock Exchange over the period 2006-2010 was examined. In the present study, the growth variables, including asset growth, profit growth and sales growth; and financial strength calculated by the Altman Z-bankruptcy model have been considered as independent variables. In addition, the ratios of long-term debt to total assets, long-term debt to fixed assets, total long-term debt and short-term receivable facilities to equity capital and total long-term debt and short-term receivable facilities to total assets are used as measures of financial leverage and dependent variables. The results indicate that there is a negative and significant relationship between assets growth and some indexes of financial leverage. There is also a positive and significant relationship between the variables of profit growth, sales growth and financial strength with financial leverage measures.