Restatements and material weaknesses took a sharp dive in 2009, but it’s not entirely clear whether that means companies are making fewer mistakes or just catching and reporting fewer mistakes.
In 2009, only 75 companies with markets capitalizations of at least $250 million restated their financial statements, according to data from Glass Lewis & Co. That’s fewer than half the 172 companies that restated in 2008—and even that was a steep drop from the 334 that restated in 2007. Glass Lewis said the 2009 figure represents the lowest restatement rate since 2001, when massive corporate frauds at Enron, WorldCom and others began a whirlwind of accounting clampdown and restatements.
