Accounting Board Skeptical It Should Rein in Unofficial Metrics

The board that sets US accounting rules is unconvinced whether to create formal standards for earnings and cash flow metrics that corporate managers frequently hype to investors.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board is weighing whether it should write rules for ubiquitous financial data points such as adjusted net income and free cash flow. The board took no formal action Wednesday but is considering a laundry list of accounting updates as it sets its next slate of priority projects.

“What is the problem we’re trying to fix?” said board member Marsha Hunt. “Is this really something we need to address when ...