> > > > > > > > Chapter 16

Understanding Accounting and Financial Statements

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Explain the functions and importance of accounting, and identify the three basic activities involving accounting.
Describe the roles played by public, management, government and not-forprofit accountants. Identify the foundations of the accounting system, including GAAP and the role of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Outline the steps in the accounting cycle, and define double-entry bookkeeping and the accounting equation.

Explain the functions and major components of the four principal financial statements: the balance sheet, the income statement, the statement of owners equity, and the statement of cash flows.

Discuss how financial ratios are used to analyze a companys financial strengths and weaknesses.
Describe the role of budgets in a business. Outline accounting issues facing global business and the move toward one set of worldwide accounting rules.

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Accounting is the process of measuring, interpreting, and communicating financial information to support internal and external business decision making.

 Open book management - sharing sensitive financial information with employees and teaching them how to understand and use financial statements.

Viewing financial information may help them better understand how their work contributes to the companys success.
Outsiders use financial data to evaluate investment opportunities.

 Financing activities provide necessary funds to start a business and expand it after it begins operating. Investing activities provide valuable assets required to run a business. Operating activities focus on selling goods and services, but they also consider expenses as important elements of sound financial management.

 Public Accountants
Provide accounting services to individuals or business firms for a fee

Management Accountants
Provide timely, relevant, accurate, and concise information that executives can use to operate their firms

Government and Not-for-Profit Accountants

 Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) encompass the conventions, rules, and procedures for determining acceptable accounting practices at a particular time. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is primarily responsible for evaluating, setting, or modifying GAAP in the U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act responded to cases of accounting fraud.
Created the Public Accounting Oversight Board, which sets audit standards and investigates and sanctions accounting firms that certify the books of publicly traded firms. Senior executives must personally certify that the financial information reported by the company is correct. Resulted in increase in demand for accountants.

Accounting process - set of activities involved in converting information about transactions into financial statements.

 Assets - anything of value owned or leased by a business. Liability - claim against a firms assets by a creditor. Owners equity - all claims of the proprietor, partners, or stockholders against the assets of a firm, equal to the excess of assets over liabilities. Basic accounting equation - relationship that states that assets equal liabilities plus owners equity.

Double-entry bookkeeping - process by which accounting transactions are entered; each individual transaction always has an offsetting transaction.

 Simplifies the accounting process by automating data entry and calculations. Available products are customized for businesses of different sizes.
Entrepreneurs and small businesses use: QuickBooks, Peachtree, and BusinessWorks. Larger firms use larger scale software packages like: Computer Associates, Oracle, and SAP.

Software that handles accounting information for international businesses is another option. Offers different country information/language. Some systems offer web-based packages for small medium businesses. and

 Balance sheet - statement of a firms financial positionwhat it owns and the claims against its assetsat a particular point in time.
Photograph of firms assets together with its liabilities and owners equity

Follows the accounting equation

 Income Statement - financial record of a companys revenues and expenses, and profits over a period of time. Firms financial performance in terms of revenues, expenses, and profits over a given time period.
Reports profit or loss. Focus on revenues and costs associated with revenues.

 Statement of Owners Equity - is designed to show the components of the change in equity from the end of one fiscal year to the end of the next. Begins with the amount of equity shown on the balance sheet.
Net income is added, and cash dividends paid to owners are subtracted.

 Statement of cash flows - a firms cash receipts and cash payments that presents information on its sources and uses of cash.
Accrual accounting - method that records revenue and expenses when they occur, not necessarily when cash actually changes hands.

Ratio analysis - tool for measuring a firms liquidity, profitability, and reliance on debt financing, as well as the effectiveness of managements resource utilization.

Total current assets

Current ratio compares current assets to current liabilities.

Total current liabilities

Acid-test (or quick) ratio measures the ability of a firm to meet its debt payments on short notice.

Cash and equivalents + short-term investments + accounts receivable

Total current liabilities

Net sales

Inventory turnover ratio indicates the number of times merchandise moves through a business.

Average of inventory Net sales

Total asset turnover ratio indicates how much in sales each dollar invested in assets generates.
Average of total assets

Profitability ratios measure the organizations overall financial performance by evaluating its ability to generate revenues in excess of operating costs and other expenses.

 Leverage ratios measure the extent to which a firm relies on debt financing.

Total liabilities to total assets ratio > 50 percent indicates that a firm is relying more on borrowed money than owners equity.

 Budget - planning and control tool that reflects a firms expected sales revenues, operating expenses, and cash receipts and outlays. Management estimates of expected sales, cash inflows and outflows, and costs. Budgets are a financial blueprint that serves as a financial plan.

Cash budget - tracks the firms cash inflows and outflows.

 International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) promotes worldwide consistency in financial reporting practices. In 2001, became the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) are the standards. Exchange Rates - ratio at which a countrys currency can be exchanged for other currencies. Consolidated financial statements must reflect gains and losses due to changes in exchange rates. Can have significant impact on financial statement.