Business Line Reporting Revamp Leaves Investors Wanting More

It’s billed as the most significant change to segment reporting in financial statements since 1997, but to the investors and analysts waiting years for improvements to the way companies report their major business lines, it falls far short.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board’s proposal calls on companies to break out new details about significant expenses in their operating segments—but it tinkers with existing rules rather than overhauling them. It also injects extra flexibility into an already judgment-laden set of rules, analysts and investors are telling the US accounting rulemaker.

“It’s not something that I think is a game changer or ...