Note: This article is a special guest post written by Dr. John Dexter, Jr., CPA, CGMA, Associate Professor, Edinboro University, jdexter@edinboro.edu. Thanks, John, for the contribution! In its Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) reported diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $5.88, an increase of $0.13 from the prior […]
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What does Home Depot’s 2015 Form 10-K communicate about its inventory?
September 23, 2015 
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Home Depot (HD) is a retailer of home improvement and construction products. Home Depot is currently the world’s largest home improvement retailer with revenues exceeding $83 billion in its fiscal year ending February 1, 2015. The most commonly used inventory valuation methods are first-in first-out, last-in first-out, and average or weighted average cost. See the […]
Continue readingWhat costs are included for a bottle of water at the JFK International airport if activity-based costing (ABC) is used for product costing?
May 5, 2015 1 Comment
In a recent Wall Street Journal article (“The Price You Pay for Water at the Airport,” Scott McCartney, April 22, 2015), the cost of a bottle at various airports was compared to the cost of that same bottle of water at a convenience store. A 20-ounce bottle of Dasani water typically costs about $0.99 at […]
Continue readingWhat internal control principles were violated at a Texas school district that allowed its superintendent to embezzle more than $750,000?
April 28, 2015 0 Comments
Beaumont Independent School District (BISD) is a public school district in Beaumont, Texas. It has three high schools, six middle schools, and 16 elementary schools, serving approximately 21,000 students. In February 2015, Patricia Lambert, former BISD Assistant Superintendent, was indicted for theft connected with her position in the school district. Lambert allegedly defrauded the school […]
Continue readingHow does Square account for the amounts it loans to small businesses?
April 24, 2015 0 Comments
Square, the mobile payments company, allows small businesses to take credit cards by swiping customer credit cards using a small square device attached to the audio jack found on mobile devices. Since its founding in 2009 and the launch of its first app in 2010, Square has found its way into many small businesses – […]
Continue readingWhat are the accounts payable turnover ratios at Kellogg, Post, and General Mills?
April 22, 2015 0 Comments
In a recent New York Times article (“Big Companies Pay Later, Squeezing Their Suppliers,” April 6, 2015), it was reported that several large companies are forcing their much-smaller suppliers to extend longer payment terms. Several large companies, such as Procter & Gamble, Heinz, and Anheuser-Busch, have told their suppliers that they want three or four […]
Continue readingWhat does Kohl’s 2015 Form 10-K communicate about its stockholders’ equity?
April 14, 2015 2 Comments
Kohl’s Corporation (KSS) operates department stores in 49 states in the U.S. and has annual sales in excess of $18 billion. Its fiscal year ends on the Saturday closest to January 31 each year. Kohl’s has several line items comprising its stockholders’ equity. See the excerpts to follow from Kohl’s 2015 Form 10-K: its Consolidated […]
Continue readingHow does shifting the sales mix from Budweiser macrobrew beer to Elysian and other craft beers affect Anheuser-Busch’s break even sales volume?
April 7, 2015 0 Comments
Overall, there is flat demand in the beer industry. Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD), based in Leuven, Belgium, is pursuing a “premiumization” strategy in the alcohol market to more aggressively market higher-priced brands. It is working to expand its sales of regional and national craft brands, including Shock Top and Goose Island. It is also acquiring […]
Continue readingWhat is the accounting impact of Dunkin’ Donuts’ dividend declaration?
March 31, 2015 0 Comments
Dunkin’ Brands (NASDAQ: DNKN) declared a dividend of $0.265 on February 5, 2015, to be paid on March 18, 2015, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on March 9, 2015. This dividend is a 15% increase over the prior quarter’s dividend. Questions On which date will Dunkin’ Brands record a liability […]
Continue readingWhat information is in the auditor and management letters in The J.M. Smucker Company’s Form 10-K?
March 27, 2015 0 Comments
The J. M. Smucker Company (SJM) was started in 1897 by Jerome Monroe Smucker in Orrville, Ohio. The J. M. Smucker Company has several well-known brands in its lineup, including Jif, Folgers, Pillsbury, and Hungry Jack. Since The J. M. Smucker Company is publicly-held, it issues a Form 10-K each year. It is also required […]
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Accounting in the Headlines 