The rate that will discount all cash flows to a net present value of zero.
The rate that will discount all cash flows to a net present value of zero.
A financial ratio that expresses the income statement effect from employing an asset as a percentage of the asset’s cost on the balance sheet.
The actual cost incurred for manufacturing costs other than direct materials and direct labor which increase as production volume increases. Examples include manufacturing supplies and electricity to operate the...
This is a long term asset account that accumulates the cost of a project that has not yet been placed into service. When the project is finished and placed into the service, the cost is removed from this account and is...
An effort to have materials delivered by suppliers just as the materials are needed, thereby eliminating the need for the buyer to store inventories of component parts. Obviously, the buyer is relying on the...
Also known as income from operations, which excludes discontinued operations, extraordinary items, and nonoperating items such as interest expense, investment income, gains, and losses.
The statement of comprehensive income covers the same period of time as the income statement, and consists of two major sections: Net income (taken from the income statement) Other comprehensive income (adjustments...
Accounting estimates include the estimated salvage value and the estimated useful life of depreciable assets, estimated percentage of bad debts expense, estimated percentage of units to be repaired or replaced during a...
What are indirect manufacturing costs? Definition of Indirect Manufacturing Costs Indirect manufacturing costs are a manufacturer’s production costs other than direct materials and direct labor. Indirect manufacturing...
An income statement account used to record the amount that the asset Inventory is reduced during the accounting period because the net realizable value of the inventory is less than its cost.
This current liability account reports the amount a company owes the U.S. government as of the balance sheet date for the federal income taxes withheld from its employees’ salaries and wages.
The amount by which the proceeds from the sale of investments exceeded the carrying amount of the investments that were sold. It is reported as a non-operating or “other” item on a multiple-step income...
What is comprehensive income? Definition of Comprehensive Income Comprehensive income for a corporation is the combination of the following amounts which occurred during a specified period of time such as a year,...
What is inflation accounting? In the U.S., inflation accounting has resulted in optional supplementary disclosures on the effects of 1) general inflation, and 2) changes in the prices of specific types of assets. In...
What is cost incurred? Definition of Cost Incurred A cost incurred is a cost that a company (or other organization) becomes liable for. Example of Cost Incurred Assume that a retailer begins operations on December 1 and...
Are estimates allowed in bookkeeping? While bookkeeping involves mostly precise amounts from sales and purchase invoices, cash receipts and checks written, etc. there are situations when estimates need to be entered....
What is periodicity in accounting? Definition of Periodicity Periodicity is an accounting assumption made by accountants so that a company’s complex and ongoing activities can be divided up into annual, quarterly, and...
This current liability account reports the amount a company owes the state governments as of the balance sheet date for the state income taxes withheld from its employees’ salaries and wages.
See Explanation of Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold.
What is accrued income? Definition of Accrued Income Accrued income is an amount that: A company has earned The company has a right to receive The collection is probable Has not yet been recorded in the general ledger...
The second major section of the statement of cash flows. To learn more, see Explanation of Cash Flow Statement.
The accounting term that means an entry will be made on the left side of an account. To learn more about debits and credits, see our Debits and Credits Outline.
Why is inventory turnover important? Definition of Inventory Turnover A company’s inventory turnover is often expressed as the company’s cost of goods sold for a year divided by the average cost of inventory during...
What is self-insurance? Self-insurance means no insurance. For example, if a retailer decides to self-insure its buildings, the retailer will not have an insurance policy to pay for losses that may occur to its...
What is an incremental cost? Definition of Incremental Cost An incremental cost is the difference in total costs as the result of a change in some activity. Incremental costs are also referred to as the differential...
What is an intangible asset? Definition of Intangible Asset An intangible asset is an asset that you cannot touch, since it lacks physical substance. Accountants record intangible assets at their cost when they are...
A predetermined dollar amount that a pound of material or an hour of labor should cost during an accounting period.
A parody of FIFO used to describe a very slow-moving item in inventory.
The independent organization based in the UK which develops the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The IASB has been working with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), which is based in the...
What is income smoothing? Definition of Income Smoothing Income smoothing involves reducing the fluctuations in a corporation’s earnings. The reductions in fluctuations can result from some legitimate business methods...
See exchange of similar nonmonetary assets.
What is an indirect cost? Definition of Indirect Cost An indirect cost is a cost that is not directly traceable to a cost object (product, department, etc.). Rather, the indirect cost is sometimes referred to as a common...
What is an invoice? Definition of Invoice An invoice is a dated bill prepared by the seller of goods sold (or services provided) which includes brief descriptions of the items, quantities of items and their unit prices,...
What are goods in transit? Definition of Goods in Transit Goods in transit refers to inventory items and other products that have been shipped by a seller, but have not yet reached the purchaser. When goods are in...
A method for estimating the inventory of a retailer. This method requires that the retail amounts and the related cost amounts are available for beginning inventory and purchases. An illustration of this technique is...
What do negative variances indicate? Definition of Negative Variances on Accounting Reports Negative variances are the unfavorable differences between two amounts, such as: The amount by which actual revenues were less...
Featured Review
"I am currently employed at a food distributor as an account specialist. I have been using your website for about a year now. When I started here, I didn't know very much about accrual accounting, as I had always used the cash accounting method. In my position, I am responsible for entering the company’s JE. I was hired as an account specialist, with the opportunity for a promotion to Staff Accountant. For that promotion to be fulfilled, I needed to learn more about accounting procedures. My manager set goals for me to fulfill and went online to find some online accounting courses. That's when he found your website. At the time, we didn't know how useful the site would be, so we chose not to purchase the PRO Plus option. After using it for some time now, I found the site to be extremely useful. It is very user friendly and has a lot of valuable information. I have learned a great deal from your site. The biggest thing I learned was how the accounting equation works. I've been able to learn more about accruals, deferrals, adjusting journal entries, and more. I also understand more about how the JEs I enter affect our financial statements here. This has proven to be invaluable to me because it has helped me move closer to the promotion of Staff Accountant, which includes a pay raise. I know I have a lot more to learn." - Kim B.
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: