Baker Tilly tops the charts in 2020 SEC audit clients

A major merger catapulted Top 15 Firm Baker Tilly US to the top of the ranks of auditors bringing on new Securities and Exchange Commission clients in 2020, even as the number of new audit engagements overall continued a long-term decline.

Baker Tilly brought on 33 new clients in 2020, 31 of which were thanks to its November merger with California-based Top 100 Firm Squar Milner; it netted 26 for the whole year.

Lakewood, Colorado-based BF Borgers CPA came in second overall, with 27 new engagements, netting 19. (See “Net Engagement Leaders.”)

Big Four firm Ernst & Young actually signed more engagements than Baker Tilly — 37 — over the year, but only netted 10; Deloitte & Touche brought on 26 new clients, but netted six. (See “2020 Clients Gains & Losses.”)

The high counts are all the more impressive considering that 2020 saw the lowest number of new SEC audit engagements in four years. The relatively smaller decline in the number of auditor departures suggest that the main cause of the drop may have to with the smaller numbers of new public companies being formed.

New engagements by type of filer were mixed; Baker Tilly had the lead among smaller reporting companies, while Deloitte and Ernst & Young were the only two to come out ahead among large accelerated filers. EY and Grant Thornton were tops among accelerated filers. (See “Audit Leaders.”)

Deloitte also topped the league table of new clients by assets audited fees. Insurer American National Insurance Co. accounted for the biggest chunk with $28.6 billion, while uniform and catering giant Aramark contributed $15.7 billion in assets. (See “New Client Leaders.”)

PwC came second in assets audited, but first in market capitalization audited, thanks in large part to makeup giant Estee Lauder, which brought $43 billion, or almost half the firm’s $99.5 billion; computational software company Cadence Design Systems added a further $19.6 billion, and consumer credit reporting agency TransUnion added $16.5 billion.

EY, meanwhile, came second in market cap, but first in audit fees. Industrial flow-control products manufacturer Circor International accounted for $7.4 million in fees, movie theater chain AMC Entertainment Holdings added $5.4 million, and the post-bankruptcy Eastman Kodak a further $4.7 million, with the rest spread across a large number of clients. Deloitte and PwC took second and third, respectively, in terms of new audit fees added.

Data for the rankings are provided by Audit Analytics, a premium online intelligence service delivering audit, regulatory and disclosure analysis. Reach them at (508) 476-7007, info@auditanalytics.com or www.auditanalytics.com.