What increases a break-even point? Definition of Break-even Point The break-even point is the volume of sales in units or in dollars that is equal to a company’s total expenses (including the cost of goods sold). In...
What increases a break-even point? Definition of Break-even Point The break-even point is the volume of sales in units or in dollars that is equal to a company’s total expenses (including the cost of goods sold). In...
What is a contingent liability? Definition of Contingent Liability A contingent liability is a potential liability that may or may not become an actual liability. Whether the contingent liability becomes an actual...
What is the difference between a bookkeeper and an accountant? Before I provide a distinction, you should be aware that some people use the words interchangeably. Even though I was the accountant, treasurer, and CFO of a...
What is an implicit interest rate? Definition of Implicit Interest Rate An implicit interest rate is one that is not stated explicitly. Example of Implicit Interest Rate Assume that I lend you $4,623 and you agree to...
What is responsibility accounting? Definition of Responsibility Accounting Responsibility accounting involves the internal accounting and budgeting for each responsibility center within a company. The objective of...
What are semivariable costs? Definition of Semivariable Costs Semivariable costs are costs or expenses whose behavior is partially fixed and partially variable. That is, part of the total cost does not increase or...
What is historical cost? Definition of Historical Cost Historical cost is a term used instead of the term cost. Cost and historical cost usually mean the original cost at the time of a transaction. The term historical...
Where do worker compensation insurance costs get reported on the financial statements? Worker compensation insurance costs (also referred to as worker comp) should appear on the income statement and also on the balance...
Should receipts be recorded using the date the money was received or the date the money was deposited in the bank accounts? Cash receipts should be recorded with the date the money was received. For example, a church...
What is the FISH inventory method? FISH is the acronym for first-in, still-here. FISH is an attempt to bring humor to the fact that some items have been sitting in inventory for years. Unlike FIFO and LIFO, which are...
How do you calculate the gain or loss when an asset is sold? Definition of Gain or Loss on Sale of an Asset The gain or loss on the sale of an asset used in a business is the difference between 1) the amount of cash that...
What is the difference between actual overhead and applied overhead? Definition of Actual Overhead In the context of actual and applied overhead, actual overhead refers to a manufacturer’s indirect manufacturing costs....
What is the difference between bad debt and doubtful debt? Definition of Bad Debt and Doubtful Debt In accounting, the terms bad debt and doubtful debt usually refer to the amounts owed by a company’s customers who...
What is goodwill? Definition of Goodwill In accounting, goodwill is an intangible asset associated with a business combination. Goodwill is recorded when a company acquires (purchases) another company and the purchase...
Are LIFO inventory amounts ever written-up to their market value? LIFO inventory amounts will not be written-up, even when the current market value of the inventory is far greater than the amount reported on the balance...
Are dividend payments shown as an expense on the income statement? Definition of Dividend Payments The cash dividends paid to stockholders are a distribution of the corporation’s earnings. Dividends are not an expense...
What is net realizable value? Definition of Net Realizable Value Net realizable value (NRV) is the cash amount that a company expects to receive. Hence, net realizable value is sometimes referred to as cash realizable...
What would cause a decrease in accumulated depreciation? Definition of Accumulated Depreciation Accumulated depreciation is the cumulative amount of depreciation taken since a depreciable asset was put into service. The...
What are external financial statements? Definition of External Financial Statements External financial statements are those distributed outside of the company’s management. Some of the recipients of the external...
What is the production volume variance? Definition of Production Volume Variance The production volume variance is associated with a standard costing system used by some manufacturers. This variance arises when there is...
What is a variable cost? Definition of Variable Cost A variable cost is a constant amount per unit produced or used. Therefore, the total amount of the variable cost will change proportionately with the change in volume...
What is present value? Definition of Present Value In accounting, present value refers to the amount after discounting future cash amounts to the present. The present is depicted on a timeline as the point 0, which is...
What is the difference between a ledger and a trial balance? Definition of a Ledger A ledger is often defined as a book of accounts. Today the ledger and its accounts are likely to be an electronic record or file....
What does it mean to check the extensions and to foot an invoice? To check the extensions on a purchase invoice means to verify that the number of units of each item multiplied by its unit cost agrees with the total...
Should a cash discount be recorded as a reduction to an expense? Yes, a cash discount should be a reduction to an expense. After all, accountants define cost as the cash amount (or cash equivalent amount) at the time of...
What is a customer deposit? Definition of Customer Deposit A customer deposit could be money that a company receives from a customer prior to the company earning it (by providing the customer with goods or services). In...
Where do dividends appear on the financial statements? Definition of Dividends Cash dividends are a distribution of a company’s profits. Financial Statements of a Corporation The main financial statements of a...
What is the difference between the Cash Flow and Funds Flow statements? Definition of Cash Flow and Funds Flow Statements The cash flow statement, known formally as the Statement of Cash Flows, reports a company’s...
What is OEM and EOM? OEM is the acronym for original equipment manufacturer. EOM is the acronym for end of month. Join PRO to Track Progress Mark the Question as Read Must-Watch Video Learn How to Advance Your Accounting...
What does a bookkeeper do? Definition of Bookkeeper A bookkeeper’s role at a company varies by the size and nature of the business. At a very small company without an accountant, the bookkeeper’s duties are likely to...
Why does a cost system developed for inventory valuation distort product cost information? The cost system for inventory valuation may have been developed to provide a reasonable total cost of inventory and a reasonable...
What is an independent variable? In accounting, an independent variable is ideally a factor that causes a change in the total amount of the dependent variable. In other words, an independent variable should be something...
What are nonmanufacturing overhead costs? Definition of Nonmanufacturing Overhead Costs Nonmanufacturing overhead costs are the business expenses that are outside of a company’s manufacturing operations. In other...
What is the difference between net cash flow and net income? Definition of Net Cash Flow Net cash flow is the combination of the cash received and the cash disbursed. In other words, it is the combination of the debit...
How do I calculate IRR and NPV? Definition of IRR The internal rate of return (IRR) method or model determines the interest rate that discounts all cash inflows and cash outflows to a net present value of $0. In other...
What is process costing? Definition of Process Costing Process costing is a term used in cost accounting to describe one method for collecting and assigning manufacturing costs to the units produced. A processing cost...
What is the difference between correlation and cause and effect? Definition of Correlation Correlation refers to the association between two or more variables. The association is measured by a statistic known as the...
What is a product cost? Definition of a Retailer’s Product Cost In accounting, a retailer’s product cost is the cost paid to a supplier plus any other costs that are necessary to get the product in place and ready...
Why do companies use cost flow assumptions to cost their inventories? Cost flow assumptions are necessary because of inflation and the changing costs experienced by companies. If costs were completely stable, it...
What is a basis point? A basis point is a hundredth (1/100) of a percentage point. Expressed another way, one percentage point is equal to 100 basis points. This means that if an interest rate drops by 1/2 of a...
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