Tag Archives: financial accounting

Would the cost of the football field constructed on Bristol Motor Speedway for the UT vs VT game be capitalized or expensed?

On September 10, 2016, a football game was played on Bristol Motor Speedway. The game was the University of Tennessee (UT) versus Virginia Tech (VT.) Bristol Motor Speedway hosts NASCAR races.  About ten years ago, a plan began to come together to host the UT vs. VT game at the track, since it is located […]

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How will Toro account for its two-for-one stock split?

The Toro Company (TTC) is a manufacturer of lawn care products such as lawn mowers and irrigation systems. Toro’s brands include Toro, Lawn Genie, and Lawn-Boy.  Toro’s fiscal year end is October 31. As of October 31, 2015, Toro had authorized 175,000,000 shares of common stock. As of this same date, it had 54,650,916 shares […]

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What information can be calculated from Facebook’s trial balance?

Facebook, Inc., is a publicly held corporation and issued its financial statements for 2015 earlier in 2016. To follow is a condensed and adapted trial balance as of December 31, 2015, that was constructed from those financial statements. Please note that the accounts have been adapted and condensed for educational use and should not be […]

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Would the costs related to Cedar Point’s Valravn roller coaster be expensed or capitalized?

Cedar Point is an amusement park in Ohio and has 18 roller coasters. In 2016, Cedar Point added the Valravn roller coaster. Valravn has a height of 223 feet and a top speed of 75 miles per hour. It has a 4-second pause at the top of its first hill and then it plunges down […]

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What information is provided in Facebook’s basic financial statements?

Facebook, Inc., is a publicly held corporation and is frequently in the news.  For example, in August 2016, it announced a new feature called “Lifestage,” which is an iOS app that emulates Snapchat and is designed to be used by teens. Also in that same month, Mark Zuckerberg sold $95 million of his Facebook shares. […]

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8 revenue recognition exercises for introductory financial accounting featuring LL Bean

In 2015, FASB updated the revenue recognition standards. While most of the impact of the revised revenue standard will impact Intermediate Accounting coverage, some changes will also need to be made to update introductory financial accounting coverage. Using hypothetical examples featuring LL Bean, I have developed a set of classroom exercises (and solutions) that can […]

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What internal controls might have prevented the $1.4 million kickback fraud scheme at Utz?

Utz Quality Foods Inc., a snack food company based in Hanover, Pennsylvania, was recently the victim of a $1.4 million fraud scheme. Utz’s former director of purchasing acting together with an Utz vendor allegedly ran a false invoice kickback scheme. During the several years over which the fraud allegedly occurred, Jonathan Haas was the owner […]

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What internal controls might have prevented a Sea World guest relations supervisor from voiding tickets and pocketing more than $116,000?

A guest relations supervisor at SeaWorld’s Aquatica waterpark in Orlando, Lisa Olivardia, would void ticket sales and put the cash in white envelopes that she then put in her pocket. Investigators estimate that she stole between $55,000 and $75,000 each year from 2013 – 2015. Her voided transactions were about triple the rate of her […]

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What is the impact on Snapchat’s balance sheet from its latest issuance of stock?

Snapchat is one of the fastest growing social media platforms with 16 to 24 year olds. Snapchat is privately-held, which means its stock cannot be purchased on a stock exchange. It may be getting ready for an IPO (initial public offering) sometime later in 2016 or 2017. In the meantime, Snapchat is obtaining funding for operations […]

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How would the Pittsburgh Steelers classify the purchase of robots to use for tackle practice?

The Pittsburgh Steelers, a U.S. professional football team based in Pennsylvania, are experimenting with using a robot, called a Mobile Virtual Player (MVP), during practices so that players do not have to tackle each other and risk injury. Instead, the players can tackle the foam-padded robot that mimics the sensation of tackling a person. The MVP […]

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