Audit Fee Increases Show Signs of Abating

Increases in audit fees for public companies and nonprofits slowed down in 2016, according to a new report, although private companies saw an uptick in their fee increases during the 2016 audit season.

The annual Audit Fee Survey Report from Financial Executives International and its Financial Executives Research Foundation, sponsored by Workiva, found public companies reported a median increase of 1.3 percent in 2016, compared with 1.6 percent in 2015. In contrast, private companies reported a median increase of 3.7 percent in 2016, as opposed to 2.9 percent for 2015 audits. Nonprofits reported a median increase of 1.6 percent in 2016, compared with 2.3 percent in 2015.

Broader data from the Securities and Exchange Commission compiled by MyLogIQ found that median increases fell across all types of filers. Large accelerated filers had increases of 3.4 percent in 2016 compared to 4.2 percent in 2015, accelerated filers saw increases of 2.5 percent in 2016 vs. 3.97 percent in 2015, and non-accelerated filers had increases of 2.4 percent in 2016 versus 2.7 percent in 2015. Smaller filers had increases of 2.4 percent in 2016 as opposed to 2.7 percent in 2015.