Ch. 3 The Financial Reporting Process Flashcards
The Financial Reporting Process (34 cards)
Accrual-basis accounting
Record revenues when earned (the revenue recognition principle) and expenses with related revenues (the matching principle)
Revenue recognition principle
- Record revenue in the period in which it’s earned.
- Not necessarily in the period in which we receive cash.
Matching Principle
- Recognize expenses in the same period as the revenues they help to generate.
- Cause-and-effect relationship between revenue and expense recognition.
- In a given period, we report revenue as it is earned, according to the revenue recognition principle.
- It’s logical, then, that in the same period we should also record all expenses incurred to generate that revenue.
- Expenses include those directly and indirectly related to producing revenues.
Cash-basis accounting
- Record revenues at the time cash is received and expenses at the time cash is paid.
- Because cash-basis accounting violates both the revenue recognition principle and the matching principle, it is generally not accepted in preparing financial statements.
- Over the life of the company, accrual-basis net income equals cash-basis net income. The difference is in the timing of when we record revenues and expenses.
Adjusting entries
- Entries used to record events that occur during the period but that have not yet been recorded by the end of the period.
- 2 broad categories:
* Prepayments (prepaid expenses, unearned revenue)
* Accruals (accrued expenses, accrued revenues) - We need to bring several of the accounts up-to-date.
- You adjust downward the balance of the asset (prepaid insurance) and record expense for the amount that has lapsed.
- Prevents assets and net income form being overstated and expenses being understated.
- Necessary part of accrual-basis accounting
Prepaid expenses
The costs of assets acquired in one period that will be expensed in a future period.
Contra account
An account with a balance that is opposite, or “contra,” to that of its related accounts.
- Contra Asset
- accumulated depreciation
- allowance for uncollectible (or doubtful) accounts
- Contra Revenue
- sales discounts
- sales returns
- sales allowances
Unearned revenues
When a company receives cash in advance from a customer for products or services to be provided in the future.
Accrued expense
When a company has incurred an expense but hasn’t yet paid cash or recorded an obligation to pay.
Accrued revenue
When a company has earned revenue but hasn’t yet received cash or recorded an amount receivable.
Adjusted trial balance
A list of all accounts and their balances after we have updated account balances for adjusting entries.
Classified balance sheet
Balance sheet that groups a company’s assets into current assets and long-term assets and that separates liabilities into current liabilities and long-term liabilities.
Operating cycle
- The average time between purchasing or acquiring inventory and receiving cash proceeds from its sale.
- For nearly all firms, the operating cycle is shorter than one year.
Temporary accounts
All revenue, expense, and dividend accounts; account balances are maintained for a single period and then closed (or zeroed out) and transferred to the balance of the Retained Earnings account at the end of the period.
Permanent accounts
All accounts that appear in the balance sheet; account balances are carried forward from period to period.
Closing entries
- Entries that transfer the balances of all temporary accounts (revenues, expenses, and dividends) to the balance of the Retained Earnings account (permanent account)
- Hears how:
- All revenue accounts have a credit balance. To transfer these balances to the retained earnings account, we debit each of these revenue accounts for its balance and credit retained earnings for the total.
- All expenses/dividend accounts have a debit balance. So we credit each of these accounts for its balance and debit retained earnings for the total.
Post-closing trial balance
- A list of all accounts and their balances at a particular date after we have updated account balances for closing entries.
- Helps to verify that we prepared and posted closing entries correctly and that the accounts are now ready for the next period’s transactions.
- Does not include any revenues, expenses, or dividends, because these accounts all have zero balances after closing entries.
Exception to Matching Principle
- Advertising cost: this is recorded as an expense in the period the as are provided.
- This is done because it is difficult to determine in which period(s), if any, revenue will occur.
Accounting Cycle
- Measurement Process
- External Transactions (6 steps) (record and post)
- Adjusting Entries (record and post)
- Reporting Process
- Adjusted Trial Balance
- Prepare Financial Statements
- Closing Process
- Record and post closing entries
Prepayments
- One of 2 broad categories of adjusting entries
- Create future benefits
- Expire in future periods
- Rent, Insurance, Supplies, Equipment (depreciable asset)
- Prepaid Expenses
- Unearned Revenues
Depreciation
- Process of allocating the cost of an asset, such as equipment to expense.
- Depreciation is an estimate based on expected useful life, and is an attempt to allocate the cost of the asset over the useful life.
- (ie. at the time of purchase of $24,000 equipment on January 1, Eagle estimates the equipment will be useful for the next 5 years (60 months)
January 31
Depreciation Expense ………………… 400
Accumulated Depreciation ………………… 400
($24,000 / 60 months = 400)
Accumulated Depreciation
- Contra Asset Account.
- Accumulated Depreciation is an asset. But unlike normal asset accounts, it has a credit balance.
- Accumulated Depreciation is subtracted when calculating total assets.
- In depreciation, we don’t reduce equipment directly by crediting the asset account itself.
- Instead we reduce the asset indirectly by crediting accumulated depreciation
Book Value
- Original cost less accumulated depreciation.
- In the balance sheet, we report equipment at its current book value.
Unearned Revenue Apple
- Most of Apple’s Unearned Revenue comes from sales of the iPhone.
- When you purchase an iPhone, Apple does not immediately record revenue from the sale.
- Instead, the company spreads this revenue over the next 24 months (the life of a typical iPhone contract).
- If you purchase an iPhone today, Apple initially records the entire sale as unearned revenue and then begins to recognize revenue (and decrease unearned revenue) as the company earns this revenue each month for the next 24 months.