THE EFFECT OF OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE ON AUDIT REPORT LAG OF LISTED CONSUMER GOODS FIRMS IN NIGERIA

This study investigates the effect of ownership structure on audit report lag (ARL) among listed consumer goods firms in Nigeria. Specifically, it examines how managerial, institutional, and foreign ownership influence the timeliness of audited financial statements. The study utilized secondary data from ten purposively selected firms over a five-year period (2019–2023). Analytical techniques such as descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and Poisson regression were employed to evaluate the relationships between the ownership variables and audit report lag. The findings reveal that managerial ownership has a significant negative effect on audit report lag, indicating that firms with higher levels of managerial ownership tend to release their audited reports more promptly. In contrast, both institutional and foreign ownership showed negative but statistically insignificant effects, suggesting minimal influence on audit timeliness in the Nigerian context. The study concludes that internal ownership mechanisms, particularly managerial ownership, play a key role in reducing audit delays. It recommends that firms encourage greater managerial shareholding and adopt complementary governance mechanisms such as effective audit committees and stronger regulatory enforcement to improve the timeliness of financial reporting.