Auditor changes roundup: Q1 2024

Sarah Keohane Date published: Jul 26, 24

KPMG was the leader for net SEC audit client gains in the first quarter of 2024. The Big Four firm added 17 new public company clients and lost five for a net gain of 12 clients during the quarter.

It was a busy quarter for auditor changes with a total of 210 new engagements signed. According to Accounting Today, this is "a significant jump from 157 in the previous quarter, and the highest number in the past four years.”

Global and national firms

Overall, the top 10 global and national audit firms gained 79 and lost 93 clients during Q1 2024.

The table below presents a complete view of the gains and losses of the major global and national firms. It shows the number of SEC audit clients that each auditor gained or lost. Additionally, it shows which firm the client was won from or lost to.

As previously stated, KPMG had the most net client gains during Q1. Deloitte followed with a net gain of nine clients, but had the most total engagements of any firm, adding 21 new clients during the quarter. KPMG and Deloitte were the only top firms to make significant client gains in Q1 2024. FORVIS added only one new client overall while Grant Thornton and Crowe broke even.

Ernst & Young (EY) saw the most client losses among the top firms losing 18 clients with only one new engagement for a net loss of 17 clients. RSM and Marcum followed with a net loss of seven clients each.

Market cap and audit fee gains

KPMG was the clear leader in terms of net market cap gains. Their client gains and losses during the quarter amounted to a net market cap of over $74 billion. The firm added multiple new clients with a market cap of over $10 billion, including real estate investment firm, Rexford Industrial Realty and leading global research firm, Everest Group. However, their largest new client in terms of market capitalization was Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which as of January 2, 2024, had a market cap of over $25 billion. The company engaged KPMG as an auditor in early March after having Marcum as their auditor since 2022.

KPMG also led in in terms of net audit fees gained from their new clients in Q1 2024. Notably, 13 of their 17 new engagements paid over $1 million in audit fees for fiscal year (FY) 2023. Tupperware Brands had the highest audit fees of KPMG’s new clients, paying $9.4 million for FY2023.

Filer status

KPMG gained the most large accelerated filer clients for the second consecutive quarter with a net gain of nine clients in Q1 2024. Deloitte led for accelerated filers, adding five new clients during the quarter. For non-accelerated filers, GreenGrowth and Grassi & Co each saw a net gain of five clients during the quarter.

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