9 Chapter 9 – Accounting and Cash Flow

Alternative Approaches to Accounting Systems

The system of double-entry bookkeeping is, perhaps, the most beautiful one in the wide domain of literature or science. If it were less known, it would be the admiration of the learned world. -Edwin T. Freedley^[8]

The evolution of accounting has led to two major systems: the cash basis model and the accrual basis model. Before describing the two systems, we must identify a very important term—accounting transactions. When in business, we either receive money from a sale or spend money, such as in buying a piece of equipment. We can define these as transactions. The manner in which we record transactions defines the difference between a cash basis accounting system or an accrual accounting system.

In most cases, either system can be used by a business (there are situations under which a cash-based accounting system cannot be used, the details of which are discussed later), but regardless of the system used, a business must clearly specify which method is being employed.

In the cash-based accounting system, a transaction is recorded when money is either received or spent. As an example, a business has three sales on June 29 of a particular year. The first sale is for $500, the second is for $1,000, and the third is for $300. However, the three customers use different methods of payment. The first customer pays for the product in cash, the second customer writes a personal check, and the third customer pays by credit card. The second customer’s personal check clears on July 5, while the credit card company transfers the $300 into the business’s account on July 3. Under the cash basis accounting system, the business would list the first sale of $500 as a June transaction, but it would list the second and third sales (totaling $1,300) as July transactions. The same logic is used with respect to expenditures. If the same firm purchased a laptop computer in July but did not have to pay for two months, then the transaction would be recorded in September.

Under the Accrual accounting system, transactions are recorded when they occur. If the aforementioned business was functioning under the accrual basis accounting system, then all three sales (totaling $1,800) would be recorded as June transactions, and the purchase of the laptop would be designated as a July transaction.

Generally, though, with some few exceptions, businesses must use the accrual basis accounting method if they have inventory of any component of items that they sell to the public and if the sales are more than $5 million per year. Other conditions under which the cash basis accounting system may not be used include C corporations, partnerships with at least one C corporation partner, and tax shelters.^[9] The major benefit of cash basis accounting is its simplicity. It greatly reduces the demand on bookkeeping. The cash basis system also provides a much more accurate indication of a company’s current cash position. This approach may be used to affect taxable income, which can be done by deferring billing so that payments are received in the next year.^[10] However, there are drawbacks to the cash basis approach—the most serious being that it may provide a distorted or an inaccurate indication of profitability. The reality is that cash basis accounting systems are really only appropriate for businesses with sales under $1 million and that function basically on a cash basis.

Accrual basis accounting is in conformance with IRS and generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) regulations. Although more complex and generally requiring greater bookkeeping with a more sophisticated approach to accounting, the accrual basis provides a more accurate indication of the profitability of a business. The major drawback of the accrual basis system comes with respect to understanding the business’s cash position. A firm may look profitable under this system, but if customers have not paid for the goods and services, the cash position might be dire.^[11] A summary of the pros and cons of the two systems is provided below.

Comparative Accounting Systems

The Balance Sheet Statement

One should think of the balance sheet statement as a photograph, taken at a particular point in time, which images the financial position of a firm. The balance sheet is dominated by what is known as the accounting equation. Put simply, the accounting equation separates what is owned from who owns it. Formally, the accounting equation states the following:

assets = liabilities + owner’s equity.

Assets are “economic resources that are expected to produce a benefit in the future.”^[13] Liabilities are the amount of money owed to outside claims (i.e., money owed to people outside the business). Owner’s equity—also known as stockholders’ equity—represents the claims on the business by those who own the business. As specified in the accounting equation, the dollar value of assets must equal the dollar value of the business’s liabilities plus the owner’s equity. Before proceeding with any numerical example, let us define some important terms.

Current assets are assets that will be held for less than one year. They include cash, marketable securities, accounts receivables, notes receivable, prepaid expenses, and inventory. These are listed in a specific order. The order is based on the degree of liquidity of each asset. Liquidity measures the ease in which an asset can be converted into cash. Naturally, cash is the most liquid of all assets. All firms should have cash readily available. The exact amount of the desirable amount of cash to be held at hand will be determined by the sales level of the anticipated cash receipts and the cash needs of the business.

Marketable securities are stocks and bonds that a business may hold in the hope that they would provide a greater return to the business rather than just letting cash “sit” in a bank account. Most of these securities can be easily turned into cash—should the need arise.

Accounts receivables represent the amount of money due to a business from prior credit sales. Not all firms operate on a strictly cash sales basis. Many firms will offer customers the opportunity to purchase on a credit basis. As an example, a furniture store sells a bedroom set worth $6,000 to a newlywed couple. The couple puts down $2,500 to fix the sale and then signs a contract to pay the remaining $3,500 within the next year. That $3,500 would be listed as accounts receivable for the furniture firm.

Prepaid expense is an accrual accounting term that represents a payment that is made in advance of their actual occurrence. Insurance would be an example of a prepaid expense because a company is paying premiums to cover damages that might occur in the near future. If a year’s worth of rent were paid at one time, it too would be viewed as a prepaid expense.

Inventory is the tangible goods held by a business for the production of goods and services. Inventory can fall into three categories: raw materials, work-in-process (WIP), and finished goods. Raw materials inventory represents items or commodities purchased by a firm to create products and services. WIP inventory represents “partially completed goods, part or subassemblies that are no longer part of the raw materials inventory and not yet finished goods.”^[14] The valuation of WIP should include the cost of direct material, direct labor, and overhead put into the WIP inventory. Finished inventory represents products that are ready for sale. Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) require that a business value its inventory on either the cost price or the market price—whichever is lowest. This inherent conservative approach to valuation is due to the desire to prevent the overestimation of inventory during inflationary periods.

Total current assets are the summation of the aforementioned items and are defined as follows:

total current assets = cash + marketable securities + accounts receivable + prepaid expenses + inventory.

The next set of items in the asset section of the balance sheet is long-term assets. Long-term assets are those assets that will not be turned into cash within the next year. Long-term assets may include a category known as investments. These are items that management holds for investment purposes, and they do not intend to “cash in” within the upcoming year. They might consist of other companies’ stock, notes, or bonds. In some cases, they may represent specialized forms—money put away for pension funds. The next major category of long-term assets is fixed assets. Fixed assets include plant, equipment, and land. Generally, these are valued at their original cost. The value of these assets will decline over time. As an example, you purchase a new car for $25,000. If you were to sell the same car one, two, or five years later, its value would be less than the original purchase price. This recognition is known as depreciation, which is a noncash expense that specifically recognizes that assets decline in value over time. Accumulated depreciation is a running total of all depreciation on assets. Depreciation is also found on the income statement. Its presence in that financial statement enables a business to reduce its taxable income. There are many methods by which you can compute the depreciation value on fixed assets. These methods can be split into two broad categories: straight-line depreciation and accelerated depreciation. Straight-line depreciation is fairly easy to illustrate. In the example of the car, assume you purchased this car for company use. You intend to use it for five years, and at the end of the five years, you plan on scrapping the car and expect that its salvage value will be zero.

Depreciation Calculations

Because the useful lifetime of the vehicle was five years, the original value of the vehicle was divided by five; therefore, the annual depreciation would equal $5,000 ($25,000/5 = $5,000 per year). The accumulated depreciation simply sums up the prior years’ depreciation for that particular asset.

Accelerated depreciation methods attempt to recapture a major portion of the depreciation earlier in the life of an asset. Accelerated depreciation yields tax-saving benefits earlier in the life of any particular fixed asset. The appropriate method of depreciating an asset for tax purposes is dictated by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). One should look at the IRS publication 946—How to Depreciate Property—to get a better understanding of the concept of depreciation and how to properly compute it.

The last category of long-term assets is intangible assets—assets that provide economic value to a business but do not have a tangible, physical presence. Intangible assets include items such as patents, franchises, copyrights, and goodwill. Thus the value of long-term assets can be calculated as follows:

long-term assets = investments + fixed assets − accumulated depreciation + intangible assets.

The last element on the asset side of the balance sheet is the total assets. This is the summation of current assets and long-term assets.

On the other side of the balance sheet, we have liabilities plus owner’s equity. The elements of liabilities consist of current liabilities and long-term liabilities. These represent what a business owes to others. Current liabilities are debts and obligations that are to be paid within a year. These include notes payable, accounts payable, other items payable (e.g., taxes, wages, and rents), dividends payable, and the current portion of long-term debt. In equation form,

current liabilities = notes payable + accounts payable + other items payable + dividends payable + the current portion of long-term debt.

Notes payable represents money that is owed and which must be repaid within a year. It is fairly inclusive because it may include lines of credit from banks that have been used, short-term bank loans, mortgage obligations, or payments on specific assets that are due within a year.

Accounts payable are short-term obligations that a business owes to suppliers, vendors, and other creditors. It may consist of all the supplies and materials that were purchased on credit.

Other items payable can include items such as the payroll and tax withholdings owed to employees or the government but which have not as of yet been paid.

Dividends payable is a term that is appropriate for businesses structured as corporations. This category represents the amount that a business plans to pay its shareholders.

The current portion of long-term debt represents how much of the long-term debt must be repaid within the upcoming fiscal year. This would include the portion of the principal that is due in this fiscal year.

The other portion of liabilities is represented by long-term liabilities. These are debts payable over a period greater than one year and include long-term debt, pension fund liability, and long-term lease obligations. In equation form,

long-term liabilities = long-term debt + pension fund liabilities + long-term lease obligations.

Total liabilities is the sum of current liabilities and long-term liabilities.

The other major component of the right-side of the balance sheet is owner’s (or stockholders’) equity. Owner’s equity represents the value of the shareholders’ ownership in a business. It is sometimes referred to as net worth. It may be composed of items such as paid in capital and retained earnings. Paid in capital is the amount of money provided by investors through the issuance of common or preferred stock.^[15] Retained earnings is the cumulative net income that has been reinvested in a business and which has not been paid out to shareholders as dividends.^[16]

The Balance Sheet

Below you can see six years’ worth of balance sheet statements for a hypothetical small business—Acme Enterprises. It is obviously important to have such information, but what exactly might this tell us in terms of the overall success and operation of the business? We will return to these statements later in this chapter to show how those questions can be addressed with ratio analysis.

Acme Enterprises’ Balance Sheet, 2005–2010 ($ Thousands)

The Income Statement

Whereas the balance sheet looks at a firm at a particular point (date) in time, the income statement examines the overall profitability of a firm over a particular length or period of time. Normally, there are several time periods that may be used: fiscal year, fiscal quarter, or monthly. The income statement is also known as a profit and loss statement. It identifies all sources of revenues generated by a business and all the expenses incurred. The income statement provides the best insight into whether a business is profitable.

The income statement begins by identifying the sales or income for the designated period of time. Sales would be all the revenues derived from all the products and services sold during that time. The term income is sometimes used and represents all revenues and additional incomes produced by a business during the designated period. The next item in the income statement is the cost of goods sold (COGS), which is composed of all costs associated with the direct production of goods and services that were sold during the time period. It would include the costs of the raw materials used to produce the goods and those costs associated with production, such as direct labor. With these two values, the first measure of profit—gross profit—can be calculated:

gross profit = income − COGS.

The next element in the income statement is operating expenses—expenses that are incurred during the normal operation of a business. Operating expenses can be broken down into four broad categories: selling expenses, general and administrative expenses, depreciation, and other overhead expenses. Selling expenses would include all salaries and commissions paid to the business’s sales staff. It would also include the cost of promotions, advertising expenses, and other sales expenditures. Promotion costs might consist of costs associated with samples or giveaways. Advertising expenses would include all expenditures for print, radio, television, or Internet ads. Other sales expenditures would include money spent on meals, travel, meetings, or presentations by the sales staff. General and administrative expenses are those associated with the operation of a business beyond COGS and direct-selling expenses. Expenditures in this category would include salaries of office personnel, rent, and utilities. Depreciation was covered in the previous subsection. The balance sheet has a component designated accumulated depreciation. This is the summation of several years’ worth of depreciation on assets. In the income statement, depreciation is the value for a particular time period. If you look back at our depreciation calculations table, the annual depreciation on the vehicle was $5,000. If a business was developing an income statement for one particular year, then the depreciation would be listed as $5,000. It is a noncash expenditure expense. The last component of operating expenses would be other overhead costs—a fairly generic category that may include items such as office supplies, insurance, or a variety of services a business might use. Having identified all the components of operating expenses, one is now in a position to compute a second measure of profitability—operating profit, which is sometimes referred to as earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT):

operating profit (EBIT) = gross profit − operating expenses.

The next section of the income statement is designated other revenues and expenses. This segment would include other nonoperational revenues (such as interest on cash or investments) and interest payments on loans and other debt instruments. When the other revenues and expenses are subtracted from the operating profit, one is left with earnings before taxes (EBT):

EBT = operating profit − other revenues and expenses.

Taxes are then computed on the EBT and then subtracted. This includes all federal, state, and local tax payments that a business is obligated to pay. This brings us to our last measure of profitability—net profit:

net profit = EBT − taxes.

If a business does not pay out dividends, the net profit becomes an addition to retained earnings. The format of the income statement is summarized below. The income statement is the item that most individuals look at to determine the success of business operations.

The Income Statement

The Cash-Flow Statement

The third component of financial statements is the cash-flow statement. There are two types of cash-flow statements—one examines cash flows for a given period (historic), and the other is a projection of future cash flows. The historic cash-flow statement is similar to the income statement in that it looks at cash inflows and cash outflows for a business during a specified period of time. Like the income statement, these periods of time can be the fiscal year, the fiscal quarter, or a month. The cash-flow projections statement attempts to identify cash flows into a firm and cash flows from a firm for some future period. This projection is extremely important because it may identify future subperiods in which a firm is producing a negative cash flow—where cash outflows exceed cash inflows.

From the standpoint of a small business owner, cash-flow statements provide insight into where cash flows are coming and going. The cash-flow projections statement may be the most important component of all the financial statements. Its importance stems from the fact that the flow of cash into a firm may not be synchronized with its cash outflows. Should there be a significant mismatch with cash outflows being significantly higher than cash inflows, a business may be in great difficulty with respect to meeting its current obligations, such as payroll, paying suppliers, and meeting short-term creditors. As we will see, cash-flow projection statements require several forecasts. These are discussed later in this section.

At some point, many businesses will experience negative cash flow. In fact, a negative cash flow is quite common in start-up operations and high-growth businesses where there is a pressing need for capital expenditures, research and development expenditures, and other significant cash outflows. One can also see the recurring presence of negative cash flows in businesses with seasonal sales. Negative cash flows can be covered by short-term borrowing. However, this type of borrowing brings up two important issues. First, any type of borrowing raises the overall debt level of a business, which might have an impact on the interest rate on the debt. Second, when a negative cash flow exists either because of an unforeseen exigency or because a business owner has failed to properly conduct a cash-flow projection analysis, a lender might look at a business in a jaundiced manner, which could have long-term consequences for a business.

A careful examination of the cash-flow statement could illustrate a point that has been mentioned several times in this book: there can be a significant difference between positive cash flow and profit. In looking at the income statement, one could find a positive net income (profit) and then examine the cash-flow statement and discover that a business has a significant negative cash flow. The cash-flow statement specifically maps out where cash is flowing into a firm and where it flows out. A properly developed cash-flow statement will show if a business will be generating enough cash to continue operations, whether it has sufficient cash for new investments, and whether it can pay its obligations. As previously stated, many of the uninitiated will look singularly at profits, while those who have greater expertise in business will always believe that cash is king.

As a way of visualization, the cash-flow statement bears some similarity to the bank statement you may receive at the end of the month. A bank statement shows the beginning cash balance, deposits (cash inflows), and checks you have written (cash outflows) for that month. Hopefully, you have a positive cash flow—cash inflows are greater than cash outflows—and you have not bounced any checks. Unlike the bank statement, the cash-flow statement is broken into three major categories: operations, financing, and investing. Cash flow from operations examines the cash inflows from all revenues, plus interest and dividend payments from investments held by a business. It then identifies the cash outflows for paying suppliers, employees, taxes, and other expenses. Cash flow from investing examines the impact of selling or acquiring current and fixed assets. Cash flow from financing examines the impact on the cash position from the changes in the number of shares and changes in the short and long-term debt position of a firm.

Cash inflows from operating activities consist of the following:

• Cash derived from the sale of goods or services
• Cash derived from accounts receivable
• Any cash derived from interest or dividends
• Any other cash derived that is not identified with financing or investments

The cash outflows from operating activities consist of the following:

• Cash outlays for goods purchased in the creation of goods and services
• Cash outlays for payment to suppliers
• Cash outlays to employees
• Cash paid for taxes or interest paid to creditors

Financing focuses on the cash flows associated with debt or equity. Some of the cash inflows associated with financing activities consist of the following:

• Cash from the sale of a company’s stock
• Cash received from borrowing (debt)

Cash outflows associated with financing consist of the following:

• Cash outlays to repay principal on long- and short-term debt
• Cash outlays to repurchase preferred stocks
• Cash outlays to pay for dividends on either common or preferred stock

The third category is investing. The sources of cash flow from investing activities consist of the following:

• Cash received from the sale of assets
• Cash received from the sale of equity investments
• Cash received from collections on a debt instrument

Cash outflows associated with investing activities consist of the following:

• Cash outlays to acquire a debt instrument of another business
• Cash payments to buy equity interest in other businesses
• Cash outlays to purchase a productive asset

A schematic of the cash-flow statement’s three areas of analysis is presented in the table below:

Cash Flow Breakdown

Cash-flow projection statements are about the state of future cash flows, which means they require forecasts. This translates into multiple forecasts—sales forecasts, forecasts of expenses, forecasts for necessary investments, and forecasts for a business’s financing requirements. The importance of forecasts for planning is discussed in Chapter 5.

The most common approach for cash-flow forecasting in small businesses centers on projections of cash receipts and disbursements. These projections are often based on recent past data. We will demonstrate—shortly—this approach through an extensive example. This approach is generally limited to short and midterm forecasts (i.e., three to twelve months). There are other approaches to cash-flow forecasting; however, given the relative complexity of these approaches, they are often used only by larger and more sophisticated businesses. These other approaches include the adjusted net income method, the pro forma balance sheet method, and the accrual reversal method.^[17]

The concept of cash-flow projection forecasting can be illustrated by using an example. Alex McLellan runs Soft Serve Services—a business that repairs and services soft-serve ice cream machines. His clients include ice cream parlors, resorts, and outlets at malls. Alex is a former engineer and somewhat methodical in developing his calculations for future budgets. He will be operating on the assumption that his business will be limited to his current locale. Alex has followed the same pattern for forecasting cash flows for years. First, he gathers together from his records his monthly and annual sales for the last five years, which are provided in the table below.

Sales Data for Soft Serve Services

Using these data, Alex was able to calculate the growth rate in sales for the last four of the five years. As an example:

growth rate 2007 = (sales 2007 − sales 2006) / (sales 2006) = ($315,252 − $302,706) / ($302,706) = ($12,546) / ($302,706) = 4.14 percent.

Although the average of the four annual growth rates was 6.8 percent (the annual growth rates were 4.14 percent in 2007, 4.71 percent in 2008, 8.34 percent in 2009, and 9.99 percent in 2010, thus having an average of 6.8 percent), Alex believes that the last two years were unusually good, and the growth rate for 2011 would be slightly lower at a rate of 6.5 percent. This rate of growth would mean that his estimate for sales in 2011 would be $418,937, which comes from the following:

annual sales 2011 = annual sales 2010 × (1 + growth rate 2011) = $393,368 × (1.065).

He knows from experience that his sales are quite seasonal, as illustrated below. Alex believes that there is a high degree of consistency in this seasonality of sales across the years. So he computes (using a spreadsheet program) what percentage of annual sales occurs in each month. This calculation for January 2006 would be given as follows:

percentage of annual sales for January 2006 = (January 2006 sales) / (annual sales 2006) = ($20,135) / ($302,706) = 6.65 percent.

Seasonality in Sales

Alex was able to estimate sales for January 2011 in the following manner: because Alex was using spreadsheet software, the monthly averages were computed out to more than two decimal places. This explains why the calculations are not exact. As in the case of January, the actual monthly percentage was closer to 6.3821 percent, which provides the monthly forecast of $26,737.

January 2011 sales = annual sales 2011 × January percentage = ($418,937) × (6.38 percent) = $26,737.

Using the same approach, he was able to compute forecasted sales for February and March. To maintain sales, Alex offers his customers a rather generous credit policy. He asks them to pay 50 percent of the bill in the month in which the work is done; another 35 percent of the bill in the following month, and the remaining 15 percent of the bill two months after the work has been completed. For Alex to project cash inflows for January, he would need to consider sales from the two prior months—December and November. His projected cash inflows for January would be determined as follows: (These calculations have been rounded to the nearest dollar.)

November 2010 sales = $23,466 December 2010 sales = $33,583 January 2011 sales = $26,737 cash inflow from November 2010 sales = ($23,466) × 15 percent = $3,520 cash inflow from December 2010 sales = ($33,583) × 35 percent = $11,754 cash inflow from January 2011 sales = ($26,737) × 50 percent = $13,368 total cash inflows from operations = sum of cash inflows for three months = $28,642.

Alex then estimates his cash outflows from operations. From past experience, he knows that the purchases of parts and materials run approximately 50 percent of the dollar value of his sales. However, because of delays in acquiring parts and materials, he must order them in advance. He has to anticipate what sales would be the following month and has to place a purchase order predicated on that value. Further, 60 percent of that dollar value is in that month and the remaining 40 percent is in the following month. This can be illustrated for January 2011. To determine the purchases of parts and materials in January, he begins with his forecast for sales in February 2011.

February 2011 sales = $25,637 parts and materials purchases in January 2011 = 50 percent of February 2011 sales = 50 percent × $25,637 = $12,819.

He is obligated to pay 60 percent of this amount in January 2011 and the remaining 40 percent in February 2011. This also means that his cash outlay in January 2011 must include a payment for 40 percent of December’s purchases.

parts and materials purchases in December 2011 = 50 percent of January 2011 sales = 50 percent × $26,737 = $13,369 parts and materials cash outlay in January 2011 = 60 percent of purchases January 2011 + 40 percent of purchases December 2010 parts and materials cash outlay in January 2011 = (60 percent × $12,819) + (40 percent × $13,369) = $13,038.

In addition to purchasing parts and materials, Alex has to consider his operational expenses, which include wages, payroll taxes, office supplies, repairs, advertising, and expenses related to automobiles, phone bills, rent, utilities, expenses associated with accounting services, and taxes. These are itemized in the table below. Adding in these expenses brings his total cash outflow $19,864.

For January 2001, he has no cash inflows or cash outflows with respect to either investment activities or financing activities. This means that his total cash flow for January 2011 represents the difference between cash inflows and outflows for operational activities. His cash flow for January 2011 was a positive value of $8,778. Because he ended December 2010 with a cash position of $3,177, the addition of this $8,778 brings his cash position at the end of January 2011 to $11,955. His bank, with which he has an open line of credit, requires that he maintain a minimum of $2,500 in his cash account each month. Should Alex drop below this amount, his bank will lend him—automatically—up to $5,000.

It is useful to examine the rest of his projections. February 2011 follows much as January 2011. Alex was able to produce a positive net cash flow in February of $5,669, which brought his ending cash position at the end of February 2011 to $17,624.

Unlike the other months of 2011, Alex planned on producing cash flows with respect to investment activities in March 2011. He planned on selling an asset to a friend and anticipated a positive cash flow of $500 from this sale. He also planned on purchasing a used van in March 2011 and estimated that the price would be $21,000. His intention was to pay for the van from his cash account and not take out a car loan. His cash outflows for March 2011 were a negative $16,075. With the bank’s requirement of maintaining a $2,500 minimum balance, this meant that Alex activated the automatic borrowing option from his bank to the amount of $950. It required some effort on Alex’s part to build the cash-flow spreadsheet, but it enabled him to examine various options, such as the impact of deferring the purchase of the van until May 2011. Although any cash-flow spreadsheet is dependent on the accuracy of forecasts, it is a mechanism by which a small business owner can examine various scenarios and determine the possible impact of those scenarios on his or her overall cash flow.

Cash-Flow Projections for the First Quarter of 2011