In accounting this word is often included in the title of liability accounts. It means the amount owed by a company as of the balance sheet date, even if the company did not yet receive an invoice from the supplier. For...
In accounting this word is often included in the title of liability accounts. It means the amount owed by a company as of the balance sheet date, even if the company did not yet receive an invoice from the supplier. For...
Waste, scrap, evaporation, etc. in the manufacturing of products. Normal spoilage is considered unavoidable and is part of the cost of producing the good output. Abnormal spoilage is considered avoidable and is not part...
Cash received. Receipts are different from revenues.
The average time it takes for a retailer’s or manufacturer’s inventory to turn to cash. If a manufacturer turns its inventory six times per year (every two months) and allows customers to pay in 30 days, its...
This could be the difference between cost and the selling price. For example, a retailer may markup its cost by 50% to arrive at a selling price. In the retail method of costing inventory, markup is used to mean the...
The moving average cost of inventory items under the perpetual inventory system. A new average cost per unit is developed after each purchase of an inventory item. To learn more, see Explanation of Inventory and Cost of...
The term used by manufacturers to indicate that the manufacturing overhead applied or assigned to its production is greater than the amount actually incurred.
See Accounting Research Bulletin.
In accounting the qualitative characteristics include relevance, reliability, comparability, and consistency. Qualitative characteristics are discussed in the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s Statement of...
See cost of goods sold.
A quality of accounting information that facilitates the comparison of financial reporting of one company to the financial reporting of another company.
See Explanation of Financial Ratios.
A word to describe whether a company is able to earn more revenues than expenses.
In cost accounting this term means to allocate, apply, apportion, or spread manufacturing overhead costs to the production output. In terms of accounts receivable, assign means to pledge accounts receivable to a lender...
Net sales is the gross amount of Sales minus Sales Returns and Allowances, and Sales Discounts for the time interval indicated on the income statement.
A loss that occurs by holding an asset. Holding losses might be recorded on the income statement or they might not be recorded depending on the asset and the amounts.
In standard costing the difference between the actual cost and the standard cost of direct materials or direct labor. The price variance of direct labor is usually referred to as the labor rate variance.
An estimate of an asset’s market value
For a manufacturer these would include factory supplies and other materials considered to be manufacturing overhead.
Also referred to as the useful life. This differs from the physical life of an asset. For example, a computer may have a physical life of 50 years, but its economic or useful life might be five years.
See sole proprietorship.
See cash surrender value.
A distribution of part of a corporation’s past profits to its stockholders. A dividend is not an expense on the corporation’s income statement.
Usually means to scrap a long-term plant asset and receive no proceeds from its disposal.
A legal entity organized under state laws that is considered separate from its owners. Ownership is evidenced by shares of stock.
The length of time that an asset would last. Instead of the physical life, accountants focus on the useful life. For example, a computer’s physical life is perhaps 50 years. However, its useful life is likely to be...
The acronym for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. This measure is used by some companies as a supplementary disclosure, since EBITDA does not comply with U.S. GAAP (generally accepted...
See contingent loss.
A trademark associated with a service rather than a product.
The generally accepted accounting principles practiced in the United States.
See residual income (RI).
Assets such as Cash, Temporary Investments, and Accounts Receivable.
A statistical tool that uses the least-squares method to estimate the fixed and variable components of mixed costs.
A current or future cost that will differ among alternatives. For example, if a company is deciding whether to expand its sales territory, the real estate tax and depreciation on the company’s headquarters building...
See long-term assets.
A potential loss that is dependent upon some future event occurring or not occurring. If the loss is probable and the amount can be estimated, then the loss and a liability are recorded with a journal entry. If the loss...
A document that indicates the quantity of goods received. This report is often matched in the accounts payable department with the purchase order and the vendor’s invoice prior to paying the vendor.
The dollar amount associated with the goods in a company’s inventory. Initially the cost per unit is the cost to get the inventory items in place and ready for use. However, under certain circumstances the cost may...
Investments in common stock, preferred stock, corporate bonds, or government bonds that can be readily sold on a stock or bond exchange. These investments are reported as a current asset if the investor’s intention...
See International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
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