Yanhua Sunny Yang

Education/Professional Certification

• PhD in Accounting, University of Colorado at Boulder, 2006
• Master of Accounting, Tsinghua University, China, 1999
• Bachelor of Finance, Tsinghua University, China, 1997

Expertise

• Empirical research in financial accounting
• Specialties:
  • impact of credit ratings on capital markets
  • information in equity financial analyst forecasts
  • influence of earnings quality on market participants

Publications

• The debt-equity choice when regulatory thresholds are based on equity values: Evidence from SOX 404. Dave Weber and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2020. The Accounting Review 95 (2), 339–364.
• On the Nonlinear Relation between Product Market Competition and Earnings Quality, Boochun Jung, Ying Guo, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2019. Accounting and Business Research 49(7): 818-846.
• The Impact of Dividend Covenants on Investment and Operating Performance. Boochun Jung, Woo-Jong Lee, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2016. Journal of Business, Finance, and Accounting 43 (3) & (4), 414-447.
• Issuer Operating Performance and IPO Price Formation. Michael Willenborg, Biyu Wu, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2015. Journal of Accounting Research 53 (5): 1109-1149.
• Earnings Smoothing Activities of Firms to Manage Credit Ratings. Boochun Jung, Naomi Soderstrom, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2013. Contemporary Accounting Research 30 (2): 645-676.
• Do Financial Analysts’ Long-term Growth Forecasts Matter? Evidence from Stock Recommendations and Career Outcomes. Boochun Jung, Philip Shane, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2012. Journal of Accounting and Economics 53 (1-2): 55–76.
• Do Financial Analysts Add Value by Facilitating More Effective Monitoring of Firms’ Activities? Boochun Jung, Kevin Sun, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2012. Journal of Accounting, Auditing, and Finance 27 (1): 61-99.
• Horizon-Dependent Underreaction in Financial Analysts’ Earnings Forecasts. Philip Shane, Jana Smith Raedy, and Yanhua Sunny Yang, 2006. Contemporary Accounting Research 23 (1): 291-322.

Working Papers

• Do Connections with Buy-Side Analysts Inform Sell-Side Analyst Research? With Gjergji Cici and Phil Shane.
• IPO Price Formation and the Origin of Analyst Coverage. With Joseph Weber and Michael Willenborg.
• Labor Skill and Dividend Policy. With Boochun Jung and Tilda Nguyen.
• Do Analysts Distribute Negative Opinions Earlier? With Chris Yung.
• The Interpretive Information Content of Credit Rating Changes for Stock Investors. With Michael Clement and Boochun Jung.
• Do Dividend Increases Convey Information about Future Earnings Changes? Evidence for Firms with Weak Credit Ratings. With Boochun Jung and Ross Jennings.

Current & Prior Positions

• Associate Professor in Accounting, University of Connecticut, 2016 – present
• Assistant Professor in Accounting, University of Connecticut, 2012 – 2016
• Assistant Professor in Accounting, University of Texas at Austin, 2006 -2012
• Financial Analyst and Accountant, IBM China Company Limited, Accounting Dept., Finance & Planning Dept., 1999–2001