For some time, I have been occasionally using a variety of PowerPoint games in the classroom for review. Classroom games can inject some energy into a class and change things up. Used in moderation, review games can add a fun dimension to a course. Starting today, my new “Accounting Review Games” blog is now live. […]
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How will Dropbox’s upcoming initial public offering of its stock impact its balance sheet?
March 27, 2018 
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Dropbox, Inc. has filed an SEC report, indicating that it plans to raise $500 million through its Initial Public Offering (IPO) sometime in 2018. It will be issuing common stock. Dropbox was started in 2007 and is designed to allow people to have their files anywhere they are. There are over 500 million registered Dropbox […]
Continue readingWhat would be the impact of the polysilicon cost increase on Canadian Solar’s gross profit and on its standard variances?
March 23, 2018 0 Comments
Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ) and other solar panel manufacturers are facing a shortage of a key raw material used in the production of solar panels, polysilicon. Environmental regulators in China shut down several factories, triggering the shortage. The cost of polysilicon has risen by as much as 35% in the past several months. A kilogram […]
Continue readingWill the costs of converting UPS trucks from diesel to electric be capitalized or expensed?
March 20, 2018 0 Comments
UPS is working with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to develop new technology that will allow UPS to convert its diesel-fueled delivery trucks to electric-fueled. UPS hopes to have a working model of the converted delivery truck ready sometime in 2018. The plan is to convert 1,500 of the company’s delivery […]
Continue readingWhat impact did Toys “R” Us debt have on its bankruptcy?
March 18, 2018 0 Comments
When privately-held Toys “R” Us filed for bankruptcy in fall 2017, it disclosed that it had $5 billion in debt and was spending about $400 million per year for interest on that debt. Toys “R” Us net debt was $109.0 million in 2005, just before being taken over by private equity buyers in 2005. In […]
Continue readingHow are CVS’s balance sheet and ratios impacted by its $40 billion bond issuance?
March 11, 2018 0 Comments
CVS Health Corporation issued $40 billion in bonds on Tuesday, March 6, 2018. This bond issuance was the third largest US corporate bond issuance in history (the others were Verizon Communication Inc.’s $49 billion deal in 2013 and Anheuser-Busch InBev SA’s $46 billion offering in 2016.) CVS issued the bonds to raise funds to pay […]
Continue reading4 videos covering each of Facebook’s condensed and adapted financial statements
February 8, 2018 0 Comments
Recently, I created some videos about each of the four basic financial statements, using Facebook’s financial statements as the data source for the statements. I condensed and adapted each of Facebook’s financial statements into a shorter, more digestible length for the introductory accounting student. Here are the four videos and the related links: Video topic […]
Continue readingHow will the reservation, purchase agreement, and the delivery of a Model 3 impact Tesla’s financial statements?
February 6, 2018 0 Comments
Since 2016, Tesla has been accepting reservations for its Model 3 car, which is a mid-size all-electric four-door sedan. The long-range battery Model 3 (310 miles on a single charge) starts at $50,000 while the standard range battery Model 3 (220 miles) starts at $35,000. Production cannot keep up with demand for this model. Tesla […]
Continue readingCash basis vs accrual accounting example: A quick video
February 5, 2018 0 Comments
In introductory accounting, students can struggle to understand the difference between cash basis accounting and accrual basis accounting. I created a simple example that highlights the difference between the two basis of accounting. I created a short video (3:30 min.) of this example. Feel free to share the video with your students – the YouTube link […]
Continue readingDoes each Subway $5 Footlong cost the franchisee more than $5?
January 31, 2018 0 Comments
Subway, the fast food restaurant franchise, recently announced it is bringing back the “$5 Footlong” promotion. Hundreds of Subway franchise owners are protesting the promotion, saying that they cannot afford to sell the footlong sub sandwiches for $5. Assume that the costs related to a Subway footlong and a Subway franchisee include the following: Cost […]
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