What is the difference between a note payable and a bond payable? Definition of Note Payable and Bond Payable For accounting purposes, a note payable and a bond payable have the following similarities: Formal written...
What is the difference between a note payable and a bond payable? Definition of Note Payable and Bond Payable For accounting purposes, a note payable and a bond payable have the following similarities: Formal written...
How can a manufacturer determine the precise cost of its products? A manufacturer may never be able to determine the precise cost of its individual products. The reason is that most of the manufacturing costs (other than...
What is capex? Definition of Capex Capex is a shortened form of the term capital expenditure or capital expenditures. Capex is often used when referring one or both of the following: Actual amounts that were spent during...
What are dividends? In accounting, dividends often refers to the cash dividends that a corporation pays to its stockholders (or shareholders). Dividends are often paid quarterly, but could be paid at other times. For a...
Reconciling the Bank Statement When preparing a bank reconciliation, you may find the following tip to be helpful: “Put it where it ain’t.” My now deceased neighbor (Herb) insisted that I share this tip, which he...
What is the gross margin ratio? Definition of Gross Margin Ratio The gross margin ratio is a percentage resulting from dividing the amount of a company’s gross profit by the amount of its net sales. (The gross margin...
What are the typical items reported as current liabilities? Definition of Current Liabilities Current liabilities (also known as short-term liabilities) for most companies are the obligations that must be paid within one...
What is the difference between cost and price? Definition of Cost and Price In accounting, the term cost can mean the cash or cash equivalent amount a company paid to acquire an asset or the amount of an expense it...
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...
Why does a company prepare a bank reconciliation? Reasons for Preparing a Bank Reconciliation There are several reasons for a company to prepare a bank reconciliation: To safeguard the company’s cash. Performing a bank...
Why is manufacturing overhead allocated to products? Definition of Manufacturing Overhead Allocated to Products Manufacturing overhead refers to the indirect production costs of producing goods, products, component...
Which accounts normally have debit balances? Definition of Debit Balance In accounting, a debit balance refers to a general ledger account balance that is on the left side of the account. This is often illustrated by...
What is the accrual method? Definition of Accrual Method The accrual method of accounting reports revenues on the income statement when they are earned even if the customer will pay 30 days later. The accrual method of...
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 does understated mean? Definition of Understated In accounting, understated means that a reported amount is less than the actual, true amount based on the accounting rules. In other words, the reported amount can be...
Is the rental cost of a building considered overhead? Definition of Rent as Overhead The rental cost of a building used in manufacturing is part of manufacturing overhead. Manufacturing overhead is assigned or allocated...
Why is the distinction between product costs and period costs important? The distinction between product costs and period costs is important to: Properly measure a company’s net income during the time specified on its...
What is the difference between the direct method and the indirect method for the statement of cash flows? Main Difference between Direct and Indirect Method of SCF The main difference between the direct method and the...
What is an account payable? Definition of an Account Payable An account payable is an amount owed to a supplier or vendor for goods or services that were provided in advance of payment. However, some people use the term...
What is the earnings per share (EPS) ratio? Definition of Earnings per Share The earnings per share ratio, or simply earnings per share, or EPS, is a corporation’s 1) net income (or earnings) after tax that is...
What are adjusting entries? Definition of Adjusting Entries Adjusting entries are usually made on the last day of an accounting period (year, quarter, month) so that a company’s financial statements comply with the...
Depreciation (Word Scramble) Download PDF To see each answer, press or click on the blue "Unscramble" button. If you have difficulty answering the following questions, learn more about this topic by reading our...
What is the difference between inventory and the cost of goods sold? Definition of Inventory Inventory for a retailer or distributor is the merchandise that was purchased and has not yet been sold to customers. A...
Journal Entries (Word Scramble) Download PDF To see each answer, press or click on the blue "Unscramble" button. 1. The accrual of interest expense is recorded in the _________ journal. GENERAL NERLEAG Unscramble GENERAL...
How do you record bonds that are issued? Definition of Bonds Payable Bonds payable is a form of long-term debt often issued by large corporations especially public utilities when constructing large, expensive power...
Why are bonds payable less costly than common stock? Bonds payable are less costly than common stock because the bonds issued by a corporation contain a formal contract to pay the investor a fixed amount of interest...
What is the advantage of issuing bonds instead of stock? Definition of Bonds Bonds payable are a form of long-term debt, which include a formal agreement to pay interest semiannually and the principal amount at maturity....
How do you record an asset that was partially financed? Example of Recording an Asset that was Partially Financed Assume that your company purchased a car for $10,000 by paying cash of $4,000 and signing a promissory...
How do I write off old outstanding checks? Definition of an Old Outstanding Check We will assume that an outstanding check has appeared on the outstanding check list that is part of the company’s bank reconciliation...
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 is purchase discounts lost? Definition of Purchase Discounts Lost The account Purchase Discounts Lost is a general ledger account used by a company that records vendors’ invoices using the net method. A debit...
What is a compilation? Definition of Compilation A compilation refers to a company’s financial statements that have been prepared or compiled by an outside accountant. A compilation is usually part of an accounting...
What is the difference between income and profit? Definition of Income The term income is used differently by many people. For some, income means the money coming in, such as What is your family income? What is your...
Does a company have to use the IRS years of useful life for depreciation? For the company’s financial statements, the economic life of the asset should be used—not the years of useful life required for income tax...
What is accounts receivable? Definition of Accounts Receivable Accounts receivable is the amount owed to a company resulting from the company providing goods and/or services on credit. The term trade receivable is also...
Is contribution margin the same as operating income? Definition of Contribution Margin Contribution margin is defined as revenues minus the variable costs and variable expenses. Example of Contribution Margin Assume that...
What is the rationale for not reporting plant assets at their liquidation value? I will assume that the plant assets‘ liquidation values are higher than the present carrying values when answering your question. Plant...
How do I compute the product cost per unit? Definition of Product Cost per Unit In accounting, a product’s cost is defined as the direct material, direct labor, and manufacturing overhead. Other costs such as...
What does debit memo mean on a bank statement? Definition of Bank Debit Memo A debit memo on a company’s bank statement refers to a deduction by the bank from the company’s bank account. In other words, a bank debit...
Working Capital and Liquidity Working Capital Working capital is defined as current assets minus current liabilities. Therefore, a company with current assets of $43,000 and current liabilities of $38,000 has working...
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