Equipment is a noncurrent or long-term asset account which reports the cost of the equipment. Equipment will be depreciated over its useful life by debiting the income statement account Depreciation Expense and crediting...
Equipment is a noncurrent or long-term asset account which reports the cost of the equipment. Equipment will be depreciated over its useful life by debiting the income statement account Depreciation Expense and crediting...
Also referred to as operating expenses. These expenses are reported in the period in which they were incurred, not the period in which they were paid.
What is an outstanding check? Definition of Outstanding Check An outstanding check is a check that a company has issued and recorded in its general ledger accounts, but the check has not yet cleared the bank account on...
A current liability account that reports the amounts of cash dividends that have been declared by the board of directors but not yet distributed to the stockholders.
A payment toward the amount of principal owed. Generally when a loan payment consists of only a principal and interest payment, the amount owed for interest is processed first and the remaining amount of the payment is...
One of the financial statements issued by a nonprofit organization which reports expenses according to both function and nature. Learn more about Nonprofit Accounting.
Also referred to as book value or carrying value; the cost of a plant asset minus the accumulated depreciation since the asset was acquired. This net amount is not an indication of the asset’s fair market value....
The average amount of inventory during a period of time. Since the amount reported in the Inventory account is the ending balance on one specific day, it is necessary to compute an average balance when relating this...
Selling expenses are part of the operating expenses (along with administrative expenses). Selling expenses include sales commissions, advertising, promotional materials distributed, rent of the sales showroom, rent of...
This current liability account reports the ”net” amount a company owes its employees as of the date of the balance sheet. The ”net” amount is the amount of the employees’...
Additions or changes to a rented building that are made by the tenant rather than by the landlord. The tenant will record the cost of these changes in the long term asset account Leasehold Improvements. The cost of these...
An asset account which reports the carrying amount of a company’s investment in another enterprise.
Preferred stock that is callable by the issuer at a certain price. The price and other conditions are disclosed in the preferred stock’s indenture.
A current asset representing the cost of supplies on hand at a point in time. The account is usually listed on the balance sheet after the Inventory account. A related account is Supplies Expense, which appears on the...
An employee that must be paid overtime pay when the employee’s weekly hours exceed 40 hours. Some states may have additional requirements. Nonexempt employees include both hourly-paid and salary-paid who are not...
See Accounting Research Bulletin.
A cost or expense where the total changes in proportion to changes in volume or activity. For example, if a company pays a sales commission on all of its sales, commission expense is a variable expense because...
The result after subtracting the income tax associated with a given amount. For example, if a corporation has a gain of $100,000 before tax, and its income tax rate is 30%, its after-tax gain is $70,000. If a corporation...
Factors that are used to convert future cash flows to their present value.
An additional quantity of items held in inventory in order to minimize the chance of an item being out of stock.
The total annual return on a bond investment if held to maturity. For example, if a bond is purchased at less than its maturity value, the yield to maturity includes the annual interest plus the gain as the bond...
Costs that have been used up or consumed. Expired costs are reported as expenses. (Costs that have not yet expired are reported as assets.)
An interest rate that is not explicit. For example, if a business lends its majority owner $100,000 at 0% interest, the IRS might determine that a fair interest rate would be 6% and not 0%. The IRS will impute interest...
Magnetic ink character recognition.
An asset which serves as collateral for a loan.
The time from when goods are ordered until the time when the goods are received.
The ratio of total liabilities to stockholders’ equity. The higher the proportion of debt to equity, the more risky the company appears to be. An indicator of the amount of financial leverage at a company. It...
Cash that can be used only for the purpose intended.
What is a vendor? Definition of Vendor In the context of accounts payable, a vendor is a person or business that supplies goods or services to the company. Another term for vendor is supplier. The term vendor can also be...
Systematically moving the same amount each accounting period from a balance sheet account to an income statement account. For example, if the amount of Discount on Bonds Payable on a 10-year bond is not significant, then...
See common-size balance sheet and common-size income statement.
Life insurance without a cash value.
The interest rate of debt (bonds, loans) after deducting the income tax savings. For example, if a corporation has issued bonds with an interest rate of 8% and the corporation’s income tax rate is 25%, the...
A formal, written promise to pay interest and to repay the principal amount.
A long-term asset which indicates the cost of the constructed improvements to land, such as driveways, walkways, lighting, and parking lots. Land Improvements will be depreciated over their useful life by debiting the...
One of the cost flow assumptions associated with the periodic inventory system. The latest (recent) costs of goods purchased are removed from inventory first and are charged to the income statement as cost of goods sold....
The combined amount of the debit balance in the current asset account Accounts Receivable and the credit balance in the contra asset account Allowance for Doubtful Accounts. The difference between the balances in these...
The net result of combining the discounted cash inflows and the discounted cash outflows of an investment, project, company, etc.
Featured Review
"As a small-business owner, I used to live with a fear of the financial unknown. Bookkeeping and taxes were a black box, and my accountant felt like a translator for a language I didn't even know existed. Then I discovered AccountingCoach PRO. It was like turning on a lamp. The clear explanations and interactive exercises helped me understand debits and credits. I could finally review my bookkeeper, dissect my accountant's reports, and tackle my taxes without a time-consuming headache. AccountingCoach PRO has allowed me to gain confidence in my finances, and sleep soundly knowing I'm in control. It's not just about numbers, it's about peace of mind, and that's priceless." - Douglas W.
Join PRO or PRO Plus and Get Lifetime Access to Our Premium Materials
Read all 2,645 reviewsWe now offer 10 Certificates of Achievement for Introductory Accounting and Bookkeeping: