Financial Accounting the Contribution Margin

4)1. The NPV of the project is $36,438,244 and the IRR is 312%. Depreciation is not included in the calculation because it is not a cash flow. It impacts flows at the tax level, but the tax rate is not known so this impact could not be calculated.

2. During the sensitivity analysis, the discount rate proves to be irrelevant. Dramatic changes in the hurdle rate are barely reflected in the NPV. Changes in sales volumes have a greater impact, but ultimately sales volumes would need to fall dramatically short in order to impact the project's viability. Selling price is the most important variable. The project's high NPV derives primarily from its contribution margin, which is a gaudy 79%. If the company is not able to charge such a high markup on the new balls, the project's viability decreases dramatically. At $19, the project loses money. So therefore, the most…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Lease Report

Australian Accounting

The complicated world of finance, business and accounting in today's world justifies the firm's customer base's inquiry into some proposed changes in accounting standards for leases. The purpose of this report is to inform clients on current and proposed accounting standards that are affecting their means to do business. This report will first give a brief history of these standards before describing the current practices that are used by this firm. The report will conclude by highlighting some proposed changes to these standards and give a glimpse to the future of this firm and the way it conducts business and how it will affect reporting of financial information.

History

The application of accounting standards assists in the production of financial information that is used as the basis for decision making by a wide variety of stakeholders Cortese (2009). Accounting standards in Australia were initially developed by the professional…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Standards Board FASB

The statement also outlines its scope. For example, it outlines that the rules governing the valuation of financial instruments are to be used, even with investment companies. Though investment companies are subject to other rules and guidelines, they must still use Statement No. 157 guidelines when preparing their financial statements, for the ease of comparability.

The fair value methods should be used quarterly, as per this statement. This is especially true for those items whose value is determined on the market by observable inputs. Even for unobservable inputs, however, it should be disclosed the impact that the assumptions used will have on the firm's earnings or assets. This is important because the assumptions, particularly for unobservable inputs, can have a significant influence on earnings or asset levels. These disclosures regarding the assumptions allow anybody examining the statements to understand the sensitivity of the results to changes in the assumptions.

Statement…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting for Management

Financial Accounting for Management)

Dell Inc. is considered to be a multinational technology business that is in the process of developing, manufacturing, sells, and supporting personal computers and other computer- associated products. Founded in Round Rock, Texas, Dell services somewhere around 76,500 people all over the world as of 2012.

Dell had gone through their growth process during the 1980s and 1990s to turn into (for a time) the major seller of servers and PCs. As of 2008 it detained the second overall spot in computer-sales that were within the business slightly behind Hewlett-Packard. The business at present sells personal computers, data storage devices, network switches, servers, software, and computer peripherals. Dell furthermore do have a booming sells in HDTVs, cameras, printers, MP3 players and other microelectronics constructed by other constructors.

In 2008, Fortune magazine classified Dell as the 25th-largest business in the Fortune 500 list, 6th on its yearly…… [Read More]

FASB Impacts the Financial Accounting Standards Board

FAS Impacts

The Financial Accounting Standards oard (FAS) was established with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 1933 (SOX) to establish accounting standards for protection of investors and other users of financial statements. Standards implemented by FAS have the full effect of law and holds public accounting firms accountable for assurance that financial statements are accurate and fairly presented to the investing public. It is vital to the accounting profession that public accounting firms stay abreast on changes in the standards as they become available.

The purpose of this research paper is to show how FAS standards affect the public CPA firm. SEC requires registration of corporations to contain a public accountant opinion of the accuracy, transparency, and visibility of financial statements in efforts to protect the investment community by providing appropriate amounts of disclosure as to the risks involved with investments in publicly traded corporations (Arens, 2006). The public accountant's opinion…… [Read More]

FASB and IASB The Financial Accounting Standards

FASB and IASB:

The Financial Accounting Standards Board is an organization in the private sector that establishes financial accounting and reporting standards in the United States since 1973. The standards established by this organization govern the preparation of financial reports by various companies. The mission of the Financial Accounting Standards Board is to set up and enhance financial accounting and reporting standards to provide information and direct the public. On the other hand, the International Accounting Standard Board is an organization mandated with the responsibility of establishing accounting standards to deal with subjectivity. Moreover, accounting standards established by this body help in achieving comparability between organizations. Since its inception in 1973, IASB works toward the improvement and coordination of financial reporting.

Aspects of FASB and IASB:

Since the Financial Accounting Standards Board and International Accounting Standard Board play a critical role in the establishment of financial accounting and reporting standards,…… [Read More]

Ethics in Accounting Issues in Financial Accounting

Ethics in Accounting

Issues in Financial Accounting for Businesses

The most important purpose of financial accounting for businesses is to represent the company and its assets as accurately as possible. This is important for the businesses to be able to have better control of their finances, for forecasting, and for many other purposes. Financial accounting is important for stakeholders so that they can understand the risks and possible future returns of their investment. Customers also demand to have accurate information about the company so that they can decide if there are a company with whom they wish to do business. Many different entities depend on the accuracy of financial accounting to make decisions about the business. This research will discuss key ethical, legal, and technological concerns that have arisen regarding financial accounting for businesses.

Business Ethics Today

Providing an accurate and honest representation of the company is the only concern…… [Read More]

Benchmarking Managerial Accounting and Financial Accounting Are

Benchmarking

Managerial accounting and financial accounting are based on different principles. Financial accounting is a formal system that is based on reporting to both internal and external stakeholders. As a result, financial accounting is based on a set of rules that is common to all public companies. Within these rules, the methods of accounting and reporting must be similar at these companies, so that people viewing the financial information can compare across companies. In contrast, the target audience for managerial accounting consists of internal stakeholders. The company defines the measures used in managerial accounting and is free to develop its figures in any way it likes. The use for managerial accounting output is primarily to aid in internal decision-making, so the accounting conducted will be skewed towards getting managers the information they need to make better decisions.

Technology utilization can have a wide range of effects on business. Most technology…… [Read More]

Profit Analysis Is a Financial Accounting Methodology

Profit analysis is a financial accounting methodology that has myriad uses in the manufacturing industry and other sectors like the restaurant, energy, and banking industry (Brugger, 2013). It helps in business management. Some of the specific uses of cost volume profit analysis include goal setting, pricing strategy, operational efficiency, and marketing strategies (Brugger, 2013).

Cost profit volume (CVP) analysis is principally used to position management to se more informed, data driven, and realistic business goals (Brugger, 2013). Setting realistic business goals calls for integration of short and mid term objectives with annual objectives. By using CVP the goals are deemed tangible as opposed to being treated as wish-lists (Brugger, 2013). This is because the goals can be tied to specific data.

Companies engage in marketing with a view to attaining profitability. Companies must therefore know the costs that are associated with production of goods and the volume necessary to make…… [Read More]

International Financial Accounting Imports and

" (Scott, 2007) the problem in China is addressed in the work of Cui (2007) entitled: "China's Growing External Dependence" published by the International Monetary Fund Journal of Finance and Development (IMF) relates that the key to the remarkable economic performance of China over the past three decades has been its.." rapidly growing foreign trade..." (Cui, 2007) Cui states that the conventional view is that the growth for China is "largely domestically driven...China uses its abundant labor to assemble imported inputs into low-tech consumer goods and capital goods exports, making it the world's workshop.' (Cui, 2007) Cui states in analysis that: "The contribution of net exports to China's growth has increased significantly in recent years, as reflected in the surging trade surplus as a share of GDP. The analysis suggests that a significant part of the increase reflects structural changes in the Chinese economy, particularly the rising domestic content of…… [Read More]

Overview of the Accounting Cycle

The Accounting Cycle

The accounting cycle is a step-by-step procedure of recording and grouping business transactions in order to create financial statements. It involves gathering, processing, and communicating business transactions based on the different categories of business transactions. The accounting cycle shows the primary goal of financial accounting i.e. to develop meaningful financial information in the form of financial statements for general purpose and use. Therefore, the accounting cycle is important to a business in terms of the role it plays in developing general-purpose financial statements. In this regard, the accounting cycle enables a business to keep track of its expenses and revenues based on its different transactions during a specific timeframe.
Since it’s a step-by-step procedure, the accounting cycle is characterized by various steps beginning with identifying and analyzing business transactions that pertain to the business entity (Porter & Norton, 2007). For example, a business transaction could be money…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting in Module 2 the 35 000

Financial Accounting

In Module 2, the $35,000 worth of goods was never purchased, so that figure is irrelevant. Now with Module 3, we begin with a balance sheet that does not balance. To this, several changes are to be made. The company raised an additional $225,000, which balances because Common Stock increases by that amount, and the company receives that much Cash. The dividends represent a decline in cash of that amount, and a decline in Retained Earnings. The asset is covered by $400,000 in the land less $50,000 in cash, and the other $350,000 goes to Notes Payable. The result is as follows:

The first major adjustment that needs to be made, based on Module 2, is that the company needs to add back the $35,500 worth of inventory. This should never have been removed. The second adjustment is that the profit would have been higher, by $35,500 because…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting the Question Is Missing a

Financial Accounting

The question is missing a clause. "…is more conducive to ethical behavior" than what? The word "more" invites comparison but there is nothing to compare the current environment to. Well, the current environment is not much different than any past environment. The regulatory environment does not dictate ethics, as ethics exist distinct from laws. Ethical behavior rests on how society itself defines ethics, and is only loosely related to the regulatory environment. So while there is definitely a tighter regulatory environment at least with the introduction of Sarbanes-Oxley and the PCAOB, these laws do not dictate ethics, just behavior (Lennox & Pittman, 2010). Indeed, an increasingly complex regulatory environment only serves to complicate the issue of individual ethics, and creates confusion among business practitioners between legal/illegal and right/wrong, the two operating entirely different conceptual spheres (Jennings, 2004).

The "business" environment is quite vague -- there are many facets…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Concepts Financial Statements Regulatory Oversight

Financial Accounting

Accounting Concepts

Financial Statements (Regulatory oversight)

The rapid failure and bankruptcy of Enron has prompted severe criticism of the nation's financial reporting and auditing systems, which are fundamental to maintaining investor confidence in U.S. capital markets; there are four areas in which the Enron failure revealed serious problems: corporate governance, the independent audit of financial statements, oversight of the accounting profession, and accounting and financial reporting issues (GAO, 2002). The financial statements are the frontline in determining a company's integrity and accountability. hen a company makes its financial statements public, then they can be scrutinized by many external entities to be used in the market.

However, before financial statements are made public, they should be examined by an external auditor. Auditing is one of the most essential functions in the entire accounting business function and mistakes made in accounting can cost an organization everything. Therefore the auditing process…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Personal Financial Situation This Essay

Financial Accounting

Personal Financial Situation

This essay examines the personal financial statements of Manny Harris, part-time student and part-time sales associate at Wal-Mart. Manny is considering three significant life events that will affect details of his financial statements.

The first significant change in his personal circumstances that Manny is considering is whether to apply for a loan so that he can afford to attend college full-time. Manny is concerned with the trade-offs involved; he wonders whether a bachelor's degree will help him obtain a job with sufficient compensation to justify the burden of paying back student loans. According to Oloffson in her Time magazine article, Manny's concerns are well-founded. The cost of average tuition rose by 6.5% during the fall of 2009, and the average amount of student debt rose to $23,200 in 2008. However, the unemployment rate for recent graduates rose as well, and stood at a record high…… [Read More]

Accounting Financial Accounting Is an

The management accounting leads candidates into finance, risk management and even production management. hile CMA certification is not necessary to pursue a career in management accounting, it is recommended. The IMA claims that certified management accountants earn on average $25,000 more per year than non-certified peers (IMA, 2011).

As with the accounting profession in general, there is increased demand for management accountants. CMAs are in demand because of their ability to contribute to the profitability of businesses, and demand for CMAs is expected to grow in coming years. Because CMA job duties are less structured than those of financial accountants or auditors, CMAs enjoy greater career flexibility.

Both types of accounting positions are poised to enjoy significant growth. There is also a trend in business, particularly since Sarbanes-Oxley, of looking to accounting professionals to lead firms. More CEOs are coming from the accounting stream than ever before, which highlights the…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Case Study

Financial Accounting Case Study

Industry Attributes

Despite its large size and established market position, General Mills, like any other company, has to grapple with those factors that, if not properly addressed, could have a negative effect on performance. Market demand is one of those factors. In order to effectively address the issue of demand, the company has to determine and respond to two major demand-related issues. First, there is need to understand the factors influencing demand. These include the prices of products, the availability and prices of substitutes produced by competitors, and government regulation - especially with regard to the promotion of healthy foods. Secondly, there is need to analyze the outlook of this demand in the near future. General Mills offers for sale a wide range of food items such as snacks. The demand of these could fall significantly in future, mainly due to the government's effort to ensure…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Nybrostrand Company Had a Moderately

Financial Accounting

Nybrostrand Company had a moderately successful year last year. Correcting the bookkeeper's error brings the revenue down to $421,500. It also brings the cost of goods sold down to $219,500, since those goods were never sold and need to be deleted from that line. The company's net income after these adjustments is $70,650. This represents a net margin of 16.7%, which could be a good number or a mediocre one, depending on the nature of the company's business.

This income statement gives the same bottom line as the previous income statement. The matching principle means that an adjustment to the credit side must be offset with an equal adjustment to the debit side. Thus, in this situation, the cost of goods sold (debt side) was lowered $34,500 as was the revenues (credit side) $34,500. It is not indicated whether or not the bookkeeper made a separate entry to…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Company Overview Microsoft

he only observation that could be made here is that one would expect a larger proportion of the total expenses to be allocated to research and development, given the fact that this is such an important part of Microsoft's activity and essential in order to obtain a competitive advantage on the market.

Asset and Capital Structure

2008

Cash and cash equivalents

$10,339

Accounts receivable

$13,589

Inventories

$985

otal fixed assets

$29,551

he asset structure at Microsoft reflects some of the particularities in the industry, notably the fact that the inventory levels tend to be quite low, as compared to the other assets. his means that the I industry is not one supporting production on stock. At the same time, the value of the total fixed assets is significantly high, which can be partly explained by the size of the company and the investments in land, buildings and equipment.

Part III…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting the Reasons Companies Create and

Financial Accounting

The reasons companies create and maintain accounting systems

Accounting is the language of business. The ability to record transactions is critical for companies in regards to keeping track of critical performance metrics. The subsequent management of revenues and expenses is critical for the sustainability of the business. Accounting systems, therefore, are needed for accurate assessment of business progress. Businesses create these systems to help facilitate their overall strategic objectives. For instances, if accounts receivables are high, management may be inclined to increase credit terms to discourage customers from borrowing. A natural reaction from this strategic move could possibly be an increase in customers paying in cash. Through tightening credit, management was able to avoid potential delinquencies while increase the cash on hand. These decisions can be made through accurate and timely accounting systems.

In addition, accounting systems can help businesses determine methods by which to improve operations. Aspects…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting a Ratio Analysis

The industry average current ratio is 2.5 (MSN Moneycentral, 2009), so the Gap has less capacity to meet its current obligations than many of its peers. However, in the retail industry most firms have a large portion of their current assets tied up in inventory, which distorts the current ratio figures higher. The Gap's figure of 1.855 is strong and indicates that the company will have little difficulty in meeting its upcoming obligations.

Overall, the liquidity measures provide an indication of the company's short-term health. Low amounts of working capital or a poor current ratio can indicate that the firm is in short-term distress. The figures for the Gap in 2008 do not indicate a firm in financial distress. Rather, they indicate that the company will have little difficulty in meeting its upcoming financial obligations. The company has strong working capital figure and a high current ratio. The latter is…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting vs Managerial Accounting

Financial Accounting

Financial accounting is mainly concerned with the financial statements that are given to the stockholders, lenders, financial analysts as well as other important factions outside the company. The accounting principles come hand in hand with financial accounting since they are used in reporting the results of the corporation's past transactions. These transactions are reported on balance sheets, the statement of changes, the statement of cash flow, and the income statement. Financial accounting is mainly used as a representation of the financial health of an organization to the stakeholders. The audience of financial accounting includes board of directors, financial institutions, and the stakeholders. The financial accounting presents a specific period in the history of the organization. The information helps the audience to review the performance of the company (Needles, Powers, & Crosson, 2013).

Managerial Accounting

In contrast, managerial accounting focuses on the provision of information inside the company to…… [Read More]

Accounting Several Terms and Definitions Are Valuable

Accounting

Several terms and definitions are valuable to understand financial statements. In the United States, financial statements of public corporations are produced in accordance with the U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. These principles govern how the information for financial statements is compiled and presented. The purpose of these principles is so that all stakeholders can easily understand the statements and make comparisons across both time and across different companies, because the statements are produced and presented in a consistent manner. The International Financial eporting Standards (IFS) are the international equivalent of GAAP. While several countries utilize a national version of GAAP (U.S., Canada, UK, etc.), more than 100 countries use IFS, making this set of standards the most widely-adopted in the world. There is a move to converge national GAAP standards with IFS, including a multi-year project to converge U.S. GAAP with IFS. For now, however, IFS represents a different…… [Read More]

Financial Accounting Business Report

Lease Accounting Changes

The author of this report is asked to answer to three major questions, all relating to the recent changes in accounting for leases under the Australian accounting standard both before and after the country's adherence of the IFS (IFS, 2013). The first point to answer to is the standard prior to the IFS update relating to accounting for leases. The second point is to provide for the present approach taken by the Australian IFS on the question of recognition, measurement, and presentation of leases and the reasoning behind said approach. Finally, a summary of future global developments relating to the changes with the current IASB standard for accounting for leases and how this all might affect the Australian standards going forward is also requested.

Questions Answered

Per a recent publication by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, there is a clear and precise explanation of the changes at hand and how things…… [Read More]

Accounting for Partnerships Businesses Can Be Classified

Accounting for Partnerships

Businesses can be classified into various forms of ownership. In this text, I concern myself with partnerships. In so doing, I will discuss partnerships and the various advantages as well as disadvantages associated with this form of business ownership. Further, I will also highlight the Financial Accounting Standards (FAS) governing accounting for this form of business ownership from creation and operation to liquidation. Partnerships' tax consequences will also be discussed.

Partnerships: Advantages and Disadvantages

Just like any form of business ownership, partnerships also do have several advantages and disadvantages. A partnership according to Needles, Needles and Powers (2010) is "an association of two or more persons to carry on as co-owners of a business for profit." In that regard, a partnership is formed when two or more people come together with an aim of initiating a business activity. Individuals may be motivated to start a partnership form…… [Read More]

Financial Standards and Reporting Process of Germany and Its Effects on Deutsche Bank

Financial Standards

eporting standards for financial transactions have been varied with regard to countries and companies across the globe for many years. This fact has made it difficult for transactions to be reported with any great degree of accuracy. This was especially true in Germany where there was no true German GAAP. What the rest of the world has considered the German GAAP, the GoB, was actually comprised of here say and opinion gleaned from many different sources. With the advent of the IASB that the European Union adopted in 2007, Germany has finally decided on a single standard with which to govern financial reporting. Large companies within the country, such as Deutsche Bank, have had to make adjustments to the new standards, but this does not seem to have caused a problem. Since the country has loosely used international standards for many years, the new IASB is not new…… [Read More]

Financial Management Content Find Articles Address Financial

Financial Management

Content Find articles address financial reporting practices ethics standards health care finance, including * generally accepted accounting principles * corporate compliance, ethics, and fraud abuse

Financial management: Literature review

Healthcare institutions, like all organizations, are continually confronted with the four basic elements of financial management: deciding what to invest in or produce; how to finance those investments or products; how to manage assets, and how to report those assets in a manner that is useful and also complies with all necessary regulations. This paper will provide an overview of two recent articles, one on the necessity of uniform accounting procedures to ensure ethical and legal compliance amongst healthcare institutions and the other on the financial consequences of failing to do so for the institution itself.

Article 1: Maintaining the strength of your convictions

According to Larry Tyler's 2004 article "Maintaining the strength of your convictions" "Most financial executives…… [Read More]

Financial Resource Management Reaching a Financial Decision

Financial esource Management

eaching a financial decision regarding heath care services

All forms of industries deemed financial management as expressive in origin till the 1960's. Its basic and sole role was to ensure financing for completing the business's operatives and functions. The department for business planning or marketing would project a net total for meeting the services and meeting daily demands; managers would calculate the assets required to complete a given project needed, equipment's, supplies and building. Financial management is a field which focuses on business securities as well as the markets in which they are in key demand. Also, more emphasis is made on how businesses can tap new markets and unlock their hidden potential. As a result, financial management books were pretty explanatory and predictable in origin during those times. (Sandrick, 2008).

These days, financial management plays a pivotal role in day-to-day operations of a business. The responsibility…… [Read More]

Accounting Is the Basic Function

Yet, financial statements and managerial accounting reports can be highly effective nonetheless. Sometimes they will merely confirm what the proprietor already knows, but there are inevitably going to be times when they will reveal that the proprietor's assumptions about the nature of the business are false. Moreover, accounting can act as essentially a second opinion. The proprietor may feel one thing is true, but the numbers can reveal something different.

Overall, accounting is an essential component of any business. Sole proprietorships often make less use of accounting, in part because the law does not obligate them to engage in any more than the most rudimentary accounting. However, proprietors should not overlook the value of accounting. Accounting helps to reveal the business' past performance, but can also be used to enact organizational controls today and to help plant for more effective operations in the future. By understanding the firm's cost structure…… [Read More]

Accounting for Pensions

Accounting for Postretirement Health Care and Life Insurance Benefits necessitates disclosures regarding an employer's accounting. These include a delineation of the provision of benefits and the groups of employees given coverage, a delineation of the employer's prevailing accounting and financing policies for such benefits and lastly the cost of such benefits acknowledged for the period. In particular, this is effective for the financial statements prepared by organizations for the financial period ending subsequent to December 15, 1984 with respect to postretirement health care and life insurance benefits that are provided not only in the United States but also international nations. Nonetheless, for financial periods prior to June 15, 1985 that lack data and information regarding benefits provided in foreign nations, it is not mandatory to include them (FASB, 2017).

Moreover, the net pension liability or net pension assets have to be included in the financial statements as an asset or…… [Read More]

Accounting Discontinued Operations Depreciation and

As required under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 144, Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets, WB must evaluate the carrying value of PC and T. against the fair value, as determined by the market capitalization of the two companies at the official spin-off date. In this case, both PC and T. will qualify as discontinued operations because after the confirmation of the transaction neither will be a part of the business or parent company.

WB maintains a March 31 end of year and the stock sale was dated May of 2000 which may cause a reporting concern. It is crucial that WB reports these events properly for the sake of accuracy. WB will be responsible to verify if any changes occur in their end of year reporting under SFAS No. 131. "The registrant, in consultation with its counsel, is responsible for determining whether a fundamental change…… [Read More]

Accounting Finance Repo 105 and Lehman

By re-characterizing the epo 105 dealing as a sale, Lehman detached the account from its balance sheet (Durden, 2010).

Lehman frequently augmented its utilization of epo 105 transactions in the time previous to reporting interludes to decrease its openly reported net leverage and balance sheet. Lehman's intermittent reports did not reveal the money borrowing from the epo 105 transaction, even though Lehman had in reality borrowed tens of billions of dollars in these dealings, Lehman did not reveal the acknowledged responsibility to pay back the liabilities. Lehman utilized the money from the epo 105 dealings to pay off other dangers, thus dropping both the entire debts and the entire assets accounted for on its balance sheet and decreasing its power percentages. Therefore, Lehman's epo 105 dealing was made up of a two-fold procedure: performing epo 105 dealings followed by the utilization of epo 105 cash borrowings to pay down debts,…… [Read More]

Accounting Function for a Chosen

"Management believes that the accounting estimates employed are appropriate and the resulting balances are reasonable; however, due to the inherent uncertainties in making estimates actual results could differ from the original estimates, requiring adjustments to these balances in future periods."

ased on the data retrieved and the projections made, the accounting division will proceed to the development of the consolidated statements for all of GM subsidies and the overall group. There are 24 consolidated statements, as follows: Discounted Operations; Asset Impairment; Investment in Nonconsolidated Affiliates; Marketable Securities; Variable Interest Entities; Finance Receivables and Securitization; Inventories; Equipment on Operating Leases; Income Taxes; Property - Net; Goodwill and Intangible Assets; Other Assets; Accrued Expenses, Other Liabilities and Deferred Income Taxes; Long-Term Debt and Loans Payable; Pensions and Other Postretirement enefits; Commitments and Contingent Matters, Stockholders' Equity; Earnings per Share Attributable to Common Stocks; Derivative Financial Instruments and Risk Management; Fair Value of…… [Read More]

Financial Fraud Fannie Mae Review of Fraud

Financial Fraud Fannie Mae

eview of Fraud Schemes within Fannie Mae 1998-2004

Scope

The agency found the fraud understatements of earnings and illegal gratuities that led to accounting violations and inability to meet Wall Street goals.

The investigation of Lee Frakas, executive of a major mortgage company which had dealings with Fannie Mae with hundreds of fake mortgages. The Securities Exchange Commission cited that Fannie Mae had to repay earnings and correct their books for the period 2001 through 2004. This major undertaking will cost the company over $11 billion by SEC estimates. In addition the Department of Justice has conducted a criminal investigation on the board members.

Summary

The top executive managing Fannie Mae were found guilty of illegally reporting accounting information that led to their receiving million dollar payments. Under Fraudulent Financial Statement Schemes this case is one of corruption and financial fraud. The specific areas include Illegal…… [Read More]

Accounting Profession Towards a More

However, when a shock happens that changes that pattern, the information is no longer relevant. In periods of turmoil, only the most up-to-date information is relevant. The usefulness of the information wanes quickly as the behavior of the company becomes more erratic. After a period of erratic behavior and change, the company may be forced to make internal changes that affect the way they do business. They may make changes that affect their inventory management, sales cycle, stock levels, supply chain, distribution network or other fundamental business functions. New patterns may emerge and the old information no longer applies.

The term "relevancy" can have many different meanings depending on what is happening with the company. A new accounting regime may need to be instituted when a change takes place. Looking at the most recent historical information is one way to determine the relevancy of the accounting information. The analyst needs…… [Read More]

Accounting Information a Senior Executive in a

Accounting Information

A senior executive in a Fortune 500 firm along with their colleagues on the company's management team are dependent on accurate, timely, and pertinent financial information regarding the health of the organization. Accounting information has aptly been described as "the language of business, which is used in the management, planning, control, and decision- making processes integral to achieving organizational objectives" (Marshall, D. & McManus, W. 1996). In this regard accounting information falls into distinct categories: financial and managerial accounting; yet with considerable overlap in their utilization by management. Explication of these accounting areas provides considerable insight into their utility in providing effective quantitative data for analysis.

Financial and Managerial Accounting

Financial accounting concerns itself with the "preparation and reporting of financial statements for an entity" (Marshall, D. & McManus, W. 1996); while managerial accounting "is concerned with providing information to managers- that is, to those who are inside…… [Read More]

Financial Management Both Economics and

The ratios that derive from the financial accounting statements are used frequently in finance to determine the health of a company (Russo, n.d). hen a lender wants to know what interest rate to charge a borrower, it looks at the liquidity and solvency ratios of the company to determine the likelihood of default, and assigns the interest rate based on that analysis. This is just another example of how the information that accountants compile and audit is used in financial management.

The same can be said for the investments side of finance. For example, when one wants to invest in a company, or in derivatives relating to that company, accounting information is critical. Usually this is financial accounting information, but if managerial accounting data can be found then that is also sometimes used. Formulas such as Black-Scholes are used to value derivate holdings of companies for the production of financial…… [Read More]

Financial Analysis and Management at

Had the organization employed the techniques of activity-based costing, they would have realized the need to change their approach and had started manufacturing small size and fuel efficient engines, as most of the customers were requiring these items. "If Ford [...] had used activity-based costing, they would have realized early on the utter futility of their competitive blitzes of the past few years, which offered new-car buyers spectacular discounts and hefty rewards" (Drucker, 2003).

Unlike absorption costing, marginal costing uses the traditional division into direct, indirect, fixed and variable costs. The accounting method sees that the final marginal cost of a product will be calculated by summing up the direct costs of labor, the direct costs of materials, the direct expenses and the variable overheads (Brown). The applications of marginal costing revealed that Ford was able to support a price advantage relative to General Motors and Chrysler due to its…… [Read More]

Accounting Choosing the Right Structure

, 2010). Where there is the sale of shares, there is also a great potential that the existing owners will have little control over who the shares are subsequently sold to, especially in a quoted company. The firm will also be subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), which was also known as the "Company Accounting eform and Investor Protection Act," in the Senate (Libby et al., 2010).

3.

Decision for the Business

As the business is a new idea, and will initially only involve a single person, the idea of a partnership may be eliminated. This leaves sole proprietorship and corporation. If there is to be only one owner the S-corporation may be used, as this may accommodate a single shareholder. This structure may be attractive as the business will be a separate entity, especially as the owner will not carry any personal liabilities for the business debts. However this…… [Read More]

Financial Management Ratios Risk and Diversification Financial

Financial Management: atios, isk and Diversification

Financial atios elevant to Small Businesses and Large Corporations

In an attempt to determine the performance of his or her business, a small business owner can utilize ratios such as the current ratio and the profit margin ratio. The profit margin in the words of Needles and Powers (2010) "shows the percentage of each sales dollar that results in net income." For a small business owner, this ratio would be an appropriate measure of the profitability of his or her business. The current ratio as Stickney et al. (2009) point out helps in the measurement of a firm's ability to settle its short-term debts/obligations. A small business owner interested in determining the ability of the business to settle its everyday bills and other obligations would find this ratio useful. On the other hand, a manager of a large corporation would be interested in ratios…… [Read More]

Financial Analysis There Is Little

Thus, the Board ultimately had little control over this particular cost, which is how it is found itself in a difficult financial position this year. The general lack of control over the budget is a definite weakness for the Bridgeport Board of Education.

In lieu of financial statements, there were two main resources available to help assess this organization's health. Its budget book was the primary source, as it detailed the Board's financial situation with respect to its inflows and outflows. News items are also helpful. Since the Board is not a public company, it is not required to disclose items of financial significance, but such items may come to light through the local news media.

The organization's approach to creating shareholder value is to spend its money on the programs that deliver on its strategic objectives. These include graduating students at a college-ready level, reducing the dropout rate to…… [Read More]

Accounting Software Inherent in the

Further, Oracle also has templates and process definitions for the electronics components market as well. Lastly the financial modules with Oracle can also be used for local government reporting in addition to SOX compliance.

For the small business of $2M their needs are drastically different than the $100M distributor that has offices across multiple geographies. The $2M company for purposes of this example is a manufacturer of air conditioning spare parts and is heavily manufacturing based. Their customer base is primarily throughout the U.S. Their primary need is for an accounting system that can has Accounts eceivable, Accounts Payable, General Ledger, Billing, Inventory Management, distributed order management and sales order management, all core functions of an accounting system (Collins, 2006). In addition this small manufacturer also needs support for Debt Collection, electronic payment processing, online payroll, timesheets and purchase requisition as well. All of these features can be found in…… [Read More]

Accounting There Are Several Principles

These are considered to be unrealized gains, but for hold-to-maturity securities these gains/losses are not expected to be realized at any point. The company will note the fair value change in a footnote, but will not record such a change on either the income statement of balance sheet (Spiceland, et al.).

If, however, it becomes necessary to sell investments previously classed as hold-to-maturity, then the following adjustments are made. The cash received from the sale is recorded along with any discount on bond investment is sitting as an asset. The investment in the bonds will be recorded at face value. Any profit above face value will be recorded as gain on investments. This essentially ensures that the asset for discount on bond investment is reversed as a result of the sale. FASB No. 115 lists six conditions under which a change of security status from HTM could occur, including deterioration…… [Read More]

Accounting Merchandise Inventory Merchandise Inventory

To do otherwise would create problems with the company's accounting.

Cosigned goods are also included in the merchandise inventory (Elliot & Elliot, 2004). Even though they are out on consignment, they are still a part of the goods that belong to the company (Elliot & Elliot, 2004). If these goods have not been included in the company's inventory, it becomes difficult to account for their sales and can cause serious problems with accounting. Not including cosigned goods would make it appear as though those goods have already been sold, but there would be no income for them. When they did sell, the income would appear to come from goods that were not shown in inventory. That can take time and effort to sort out, and can leave the company looking as though it was trying to hide something when, in fact, it simply listed its goods incorrectly. By making sure…… [Read More]

Financial Derivative the Aim of

eport: 2

The developments of credit derivatives began in 1980s as a new financial innovation after the swap market started. Swap market provided derivative organizations with profit due to their intermediary position while the credit margins for borrowers were reduced. As the swap market developed there was the development of new interest derivatives so that there were additions to the list of products. Credit derivatives are relatively recent introductions and these are mechanisms for the credit institutions to separate the credit risk from their loans and treat market risk as a separate category so that their pricing efficiency could be more competitive and the concerned organizations could be more competitive in the market. (Credit Derivatives Move Beyond Plain Vanilla)

Thus one can say that credit derivatives are a recent form that can be used by bankers to reduce risk, or increase risks and thus meet their corporate objectives. The general…… [Read More]

Accounting Tootsie Ratio Analysis in

46. So far the firm looks to be a good potential candidate for a loan.

3.

Solvency

The current and quick ratio looks at the short-term ability of a firm to meet its obligations. A lender will also want to look at the longer term position and the ability to repay the entire debt plus interest and fees (Libby et al., 2010). The solvency ratio assesses the level of cash generated in a year as a percentage of the debt. The cash generated is calculated by taking the net profit after tax and adding back the depreciation. The total liabilities are calculated by adding together the current and the long-term (non current) liabilities.

Table 3; Solvency ratio for Tootise oll Industries Inc.

2006

2007

Net profit after tax (a)

65,919

51,625

Depreciation (b)

15,816

15,859

Adjusted net profit (a + b) (c )

81,735

67,484

Current liabilities (d)

62,211

57,972…… [Read More]

Financial and Accounting at a Hospotal

It is, in this sense, a question of security and risk avoidance. In a financially insecure environment, an environment where state budgeting and financing for hospitals may be influenced by issues such as a change in the governing party, a change in the state priorities or anything like this, it is important to know that, while on one hand your sources of financing are variable, including here the possibility that sponsorship contacts may be less important in some years, your financial obligations remain stable and are not subject to modifications.

A second important advantage for the two types of conventional mortgage schemes I have mentioned is the fact that they seem to be more addressed to long-term activities than the adjustable rate conventional mortgage. Indeed, the adjustable rate advantages people who will prefer to change their asset after the first years and will benefit form the lower interest rate and…… [Read More]

Accounting for That Quite Likely

They then proceed to detail their selected sample (76 NYSE firms that reported at least three annual losses in period's 1980-1985 and that reduced cash dividends. They then implemented various conditions to test their hypothesis that it is the troubled firm's aim to retain preservation of their company, rather than to make a bonus, that causes them to select a certain accountancy plan.

In section 2, the authors describe their methods used in selecting a sampled population and their bias controls. There is a great deal of numerical data, and the material is dense particularly when they elaborate on the earnings and cash flow performance of the various firms. Each unit is broken up into subunits. Scholarly tables condensed with data that for instance report accrual levels and changes for the 76 firms support their written text and the Tables are alluded to in the text. Statistical analysis of these…… [Read More]

Financial Statements of Marriott Hotels and Discusses

financial statements of Marriott Hotels and discusses measurement bases they employ. The essay also surveys the literature for current thinking on fair value measurement.

According to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), measurement "involves assigning monetary amounts at which the elements of financial statements are to be recognized and reported" (Deloitte, 2011). Accounting measurement consists of quantifying financial information in dollars or units. These measurements are then used to report information to internal and external users through the use of financial statements that accountants prepare. Financial accounting measurements may be recorded at historical cost or adjusted to reflect current market values (Conjecture Corporation, 2011).

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) require companies to record balance sheet information using a fair value accounting measurement. Companies must therefore use this measurement technique to value assets and equity investment at the current market rate which thee items would bring if they sold in an…… [Read More]

Accounting Process and Financial Statements A Reliable

Accounting Process and Financial tatements.

A reliable internal system of accounting is an essential element of a solvent profit or nonprofit business entity. By recording virtually every business activity or endeavor, with regards to the creation of monetary inflows of sales revenue and monetary outflows of expenses resulting from operating activities; an accounting system should provide the financial information needed to evaluate the profitability or effectiveness of past and operations. Along with maintaining data for reporting purposes, an effective accounting system will effectively report the status of asset resources, creditor liabilities, and ownership equities of the business entity. With today's rapid and ever expanding technological developments have lead to increasing operating speeds, convenient data storage capabilities, reliability and significantly reduced costs.

Historically, maintaining an effective accounting system involved extensive manual labor which was described as tedious, aggravating, and time exhaustive. Recording transactions, adding subtracting, summarizing, and checking for errors were…… [Read More]

Financial Statements Generally Accepted Accounting

MICOSOFT: No terrorist is going to try to blow up Microsoft; no oil products are needed to run computer hardware and software; computers run the world of commerce; and Bill Gates owns a huge percentage of all things computer software-related, so the Microsoft steamroller is a great investment and not as vulnerable to world conditions as are the first two companies reviewed in this section.

One final conclusion: for EXXONMOBIL, albeit their fortunes can change because of the war and oil's vulnerability to war, their earnings for the 4th quarter of 2004 were their highest ever ($8,420 million), and they have friends in the White House in Bush and Cheney, so their financial picture remains very bright; for FOD, they experienced a $5 billion pre-tax profit from their "financial services" (auto loans) division, which is very impressive; moreover, car sales are booming and Ford will, in the near future, realize…… [Read More]

Financial Statements Are the Income

The statement of cash flows separates out the cash flows from the non-cash flows on the income statement. This gives the reader a better indication of the cash position of the company, rather than the position with regards to accounting profit. The statement of cash flows separates cash flows into three categories -- operations, investing and financing. This can help analysts to determine where profits and changes in cash position come from -- do they come from successful operations or from other activities.

The statement of changes to owner's equity explains the changes in retained earnings. It illustrates how the company's activities over the period have impacted the value of the owners' stake in the firm.

These statements are all interrelated. The income statement and the statement of cash flows work together to explain not just profits but the sources of positive and negative cash flows. The statement of changes…… [Read More]

Financial Statements in This Text

Balance sheet items can also be used by investors to determine the financial health of a given company. This can be done through the analysis of the relevant financial ratios including but not limited to liquidity ratios.

4. The Cash Flow Statement

Of the financial statements discussed in this text, the cash flow statement is typically the last financial statement prepared. A cash flow statement in the opinion of Cunningham et al. (2011) "shows the changes in a business' cash during an accounting period by listing the cash inflows and outflows from its operating, investing and financing activities..."

easons for Preparing the Financial Statements in the Order Above

One of the main reasons why financial statements have to be prepared in a prescribed logical order has got to do with the need to transfer some pieces of information from one financial statement into the next. In this case, entries in…… [Read More]

Accounting Code of Conduct The

It also publishes interpretations about certain rules.

WHEN AN ACCOUNTANT FAILS

The AICPA's Code of Professional Conduct is considered to be a binding agreement for every CPA in America.

As with other professions most accountants are ethical and honest in their dealings with their clients, however every so often a problem arises that must be disciplined. This can happen in a purposeful attempt to be deceitful, or it can happen by an error in judgment or an error in practice. egardless of how or why it happened a review is called for and a sanction or discipline course of action is decided upon (Badawi, 2002).

Most of the violations that occur are ethical dilemmas that are relatively easy to solve but some of the problems become quite in depth and resolution is more difficult to reach.

A study of conduct violations in a ten-year period produced the following result.

The…… [Read More]

Accounting Allows Managers to Better

d.). The methods by which this information is gathered will differ based on the type of production that is being undertaken. Cost flow assumptions relates to how costs flow through inventory accounts. This can include FIFO, LIFO, weighted average and other methods. This impacts the costs because it helps to determine which costs are counted for which period. Recording interval capability refers to the points in time when a company takes inventory. Many firms use perpetual inventory, but some firms will take inventory periodically in order to provide this information.

Overall, cost accounting systems provide the information that managers need with respect to the costs of a product. By using a specific system, wherein decisions about methodology are made about each of the five parts of the cost accounting system, the system will be consistent through different products and through different time periods for the same product. This will ensure…… [Read More]

Accounting GAAP and IFRS

Accounting includes recording, summarizing, and reporting of the economic activities and events of an organization. It is pertinent in business decision-making and the management and control of operations. The financial statements reported by a company include the income statement, balance sheet, statement of retained earnings and statement of cash flows. Globally, there are two sets of accounting standards, the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). In particular, the GAAP are more often than not employed in the United States whereas IFRS are more often than not employed in Europe and international expanses. IFRS are regarded as being more principles-based and U.S. GAAP as being more rules-based. The establishments responsible for setting the IFRS and GAAP are the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) respectively (Gaspar et al., 2016). The purpose of this paper is to discuss the difference between GAAP…… [Read More]

Accounting Questions and Answers

financial crisis was abusive off-balance sheet accounting. Abusive off-balance sheet accounting led to a daisy chain of ineffective and dysfunctional decision-making because it removed transparency from regulators, investors, and markets. Spread of derivative transactions, bad loans, and securitizations brought a once stable financial system to the edge of ruin. While improvements have been made, the FASB's guidelines suffer from two main flaws. The first is lack of congressional mandate. With no clear congressional mandate, FASB and SEC guidelines remain subject to the same type of interpretation that led to the growth of 'regulatory arbitrage' or what others may pen as financial engineering, meaning shifting debts off-balance sheets. This means a company must consolidate a VIE only when it possesses 'control' and has the right to receive benefits and access to VIE's 'most pertinent activities' making the design of the guidelines qualitative in nature (Stickney, 2010).

The guidelines then require assumptions…… [Read More]

accounting for a lease

FASB Accounting Case

New Standards for Capital Leases

Case Overview and Key Issues

Sable., a company located in San Fransico, CA, specializes in the manufacturing of heavy equipment and have different financing options for clients to own or lease the heavy equipment that they produce. The first option is to purchase the machinery in a traditional standard sale for a lump sum price of $135,000 in which the customers purchases the equipment outright. Another option is for a client to lease the equipment for a period of ten years and pay the lease payment on an annual basis. Sable has been charging $16,000 annually each year to lease the equipment during the ten-year period. However, both options are being effected by the economic conditions that loom in the external environment and some of the company's competitors are reducing their fees for similar equipment options and charging an average of $125,000.…… [Read More]

Accounting for a Loss Contingency for a Verdict Overturned on Appeal

Loss Contingency

A transaction between Company M. And Company W. has caused some serious accounting problems and a complex legal scheme and law set is necessary to figure out how to resolve this issue. Company M. And Company W. have been tied up in a long and drawn out legal battle over some copyright and patent infringement argument. In May 2007, W filed a claim against M. And a verdict was reached in September of 2009. This jury found that M. must pay W $18.5 for their mistakes. M did not like this and called for an appeal in November of 2009. More than one year later, the appeals court ruled in favor of M. And the jury's verdict was overturned. W was still upset and filed a petition for a rehearing the next month. That request for appeal was denied and the matter was over according to all legal…… [Read More]

Financial Statements Importance of Financial Statements the

Financial Statements

Importance of Financial Statements

The Importance of Accurate Financial Statements to Outside Business Interests

The four financial statements are the balance sheet, income statement, statement of cash flow, and statement of owner's equity. All of these statements are interactive even though they each serve a unique purpose. They are intended to assess the health of a business and their accuracy is vitally important to investors, creditors and other outside interests. The income statement, statement of cash flow, and statement of owner equity, close out at the end of each year. The balance sheet amounts are carried over from year to year (Kurtz, 2010).

Discussion

Both internal and external entities use these statements in order to inform the decision making process. These documents provide pertinent information on the financial position (balance sheet), profitability (income statement), and operating, investing, and financing activities (statement of cash flow and statement of owners…… [Read More]