Pengaruh Free Cash Flow, Good Corporate Governance, Audit Quality, dan Leverage Terhadap Earning Management

Pinem, Dian Sari Islamy
Lubis, Henny Zurika

Balance : Jurnal Akuntansi dan Manajemen
Vol. 4 No. 3 (2025): Desember 2025

Penelitian ini bertujuan menganalisis pengaruh Free Cash Flow, Good Corporate Governance, Audit Quality, dan Leverage terhadap Earning Management pada perusahaan manufaktur sektor industri dasar dan kimia yang terdaftar di Bursa Efek Indonesia. Penelitian menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif dengan desain asosiatif. Sampel ditentukan melalui teknik purposive sampling, sehingga diperoleh 9 perusahaan sub sektor otomotif dan komponennya dengan total 27 data observasi selama periode 2018–2020. Data sekunder berasal dari laporan keuangan perusahaan dan dianalisis menggunakan regresi linier berganda dengan bantuan SPSS 25. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa secara parsial Free Cash Flow, Good Corporate Governance, dan Audit Quality tidak berpengaruh signifikan terhadap Earning Management, sedangkan Leverage berpengaruh positif dan signifikan. Secara simultan, keempat variabel independen tidak berpengaruh signifikan, yang menunjukkan bahwa praktik manajemen laba lebih dipengaruhi oleh karakteristik internal perusahaan. Penelitian ini menegaskan peran dominan leverage dalam mendorong earning management serta memberikan implikasi bagi manajemen dan regulator untuk memperkuat pengawasan struktur pendanaan dan efektivitas tata kelola perusahaan.   This study aims to analyze the effects of Free Cash Flow, Good Corporate Governance, Audit Quality, and Leverage on Earnings Management in manufacturing companies in the basic and chemical industry sectors listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. The study employs a quantitative approach with an associative research design. The sample was selected using a purposive sampling technique, resulting in nine automotive and component sub-sector companies with a total of 27 observations for the 2018–2020 period. Secondary data were obtained from companies’ financial statements and analyzed using multiple linear regression with SPSS 25. The results show that, partially, Free Cash Flow, Good Corporate Governance, and Audit Quality have no significant effect on Earnings Management, while Leverage has a positive and significant effect. Simultaneously, all independent variables have no significant effect, indicating that earnings management practices are more strongly influenced by firm-specific characteristics. This study highlights the dominant role of leverage in driving earnings management and provides implications for management and regulators to strengthen oversight of capital structure and corporate governance effectiveness.