We analyzed two debt ratios, in the form defined by Assaf Neto (2010), using the
following terminology:
1) Debt = [(Current Liabilities + Long-term Liabilities) /Net Equity];
2) Financial Dependency = [(Current Liabilities + Long-term Liabilities)/ Total
Assets].
We highlight that the financial liabilities were estimated using the methodology as
proposed by Fleuriet, Kehdy and Blanc (2003).
Since the accounting standard change event lead to alterations in the economic and
financial representation of the firm’s debt, the empirical analysis is based on the comparison
of historical values (before the change of the accounting method) estimated for the period
subsequent to the implementation with the observed values, which were already impacted by
the new accounting standard.