devry acct304 all weeks discussions

week 1Development of Accounting Standards (graded)Hello Class, Welcome to week 1 Discussion Topic 1.Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) are guidelines for companies to follow as they prepare and issue financial statements.Let’s start by getting an understanding of why the guidelines were developed in the first place? a) Who relies on the financial statements (external users) and why, what are they using the statements for?b) What happens if an External User relies on financial statements that are inaccurate? (what could happen to the corporaton)c) What negative consequences can arise from relying on inaccurate financial statements? (what could happen to the external user)Remember, these discussion threads are supposed to be stimulating conversation, a back and forth discussion among students and teacher.After the first person responds, he or she can respond to the first item, the next person can add a point that maybe the previous discussions failed to point out or answer the second item..I don’t want to see everybody repeating the same answer. You wouldn’t do that if you were in class and I asked a question.You need to respond to each of the two separate discussion topics by Wednesday the latest. And, including Wednesday, you need to respond to each of the 2 discussion threads on 3 different days. For example, you could come in as late as Wednesday and respond to topic one and two. Then do the same for both topics on Thursday and Sunday.They need to be of quality responses. Not “I agree with what you said John.” or Not “Yes, John, you are correct in saying that…..”Prof. MarnellAccounting Conceptual Framework (graded)Hello Class, Welcome to week 1 Discussion Topic 2.A sound foundation is necessary for success in any task from building a house to putting on make-up. In terms of U.S. Accounting Standards, it is also necessary to have a sound foundation, referred to as the conceptual framework.a)What is the conceptual framework, and why is it important?Once students have answered the above thoroughly, lets move on and…b) discuss it step by step starting with the objective. What is the objective of accounting standards?Remember, these discussion threads are supposed to be stimulating conversation, a back and forth discussion among students and teacher.After the first person responds, he or she can respond to the first item, the next person can add a point that maybe the previous discussions failed to point out or answer the second item.. I don’t want to see everybody repeating the same answer. You wouldn’t do that if you were in class and I asked a question. You need to respond to each of the two separate discussion topics by Wednesday the latest. And, including Wednesday, you need to respond to each of the 2 discussion threads on 3 different days. For example, you could come in as late as Wednesday and respond to topic one and two. Then do the same for both topics on Thursday and Sunday.They need to be of quality responses. Not “I agree with what you said John.” or Not “Yes, John, you are correct in saying that…..”Prof. Marnellweek 2Balance Sheet: Purpose and Uses (graded)Hello class;The balance sheet is one of the first financial statements I turn to when reviewing a company. You can learn a lot about a company by looking at its balance sheet.The balance sheet is also called the statement of financial position. Why is this? What is the purpose of the balance sheet?Hello Class;Disclosures are required to elaborate on certain items that are presented in summarized form in the financial statements. There are specific disclosure notes that are required to be present in all financial statements, while others may be unique to the disclosure needs of a particular company. Let’s start by discussing the three required disclosures. Please pick one and explain what information is to be included in the note:a) Summary of Significant Accounting Policiesb) Subsequent Eventsc) Third Party Transactionsweek 4Revenue Recognition (graded)Hello Class;When a company sells a product for cash, it generally recognizes the revenue. However, there are situations when it is not always clear when a company should recognize the revenue. 1) How do you handle a car dealership that sells a warranty contract to its customers for $650 that will cover the next 5 years?Time Value of Money Concepts (graded)Hello Class;You might think of the “time value of money” to be a topic for Finance class, but accountants need an understanding of this topic as well. Let’s discuss where/why an accountant may need to use these skills/calculations.week 3Income Statement (graded)Hello Class;Students often refer to an income statement as the statement that shows how much money a company has made. Money, by definition, is something that is generally accepted as a medium of exchange or means or payment. Keeping that definition in mind, an income statement is not a measure of money, but rather it is a measure of net income (or loss) also known as profit (or loss).Select a publicly held company like Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Hewlett Packard, Home Depot (Note: do not select a company already chosen by your classmate). Go to their website and select Investor Relations and there you will find the company’s annual report.Provide the link to that annual report and based on what you have read about income statements in this chapter and in the Becker materials,tell us what you have learned about the company from reviewing its income statement.Prof. MarnellCash-Flow Statement (graded)Hello Class;The Statement of Cash Flows has historically given students a lot of heartburn, but it really isn’t that scary. A cash-flow statement, simply stated, reports the uses (where the cash was spent) and the sources (where the cash came from) of cash during a period. Let’s start with a very simplistic set of facts. I run a CPA firm, and I billed my clients $50K during the month of February. To earn that $50K, I incurred $20K of wage expense and another $10K of overhead (rent, utilities, insurance, etc.). So I made $20K profit, right? So I am sitting pretty? Not necessarily. What if I now tell you that $40K of my billings have yet to be collected? And my E&O insurance carrier increased my premium and I had to pre-pay $10K of premiums this month.a) How does my cash flow differ from my profit?b) Will these transactions appear on my income statement?c) My cash-flow statement?Prof. Marnellweek 5Cash (graded)Hello Class;Cash is listed first on the balance sheet because it is the asset most readily available to pay off debt or use in operations. Cash is also one of the assets that most often “grows legs” and walks away. Therefore, it is important that any business protect its cash; it does so through Internal Control Procedures. a) Please start by defining Internal Control, b) then discuss specific procedures related to cash.Receivables (graded)Hello Class;When a business extends credit to its customers, we call this Accounts Receivable. Often a business will grant its customers a discount. a)What are the two types of discounts, and b) how does the journal entry to record the sale change when there is a discount granted?week 7Inventories—LCM (graded)Hello Class;The lower-of-cost-or-market (LCM) approach was developed to avoid reporting inventory at an amount greater than the benefits it can provide. The LCM approach records losses in the period the value of the inventory drops below its cost instead of later in the period that the goods are ultimately sold.Is this a conservative or an aggressive approach? What does GAAP say about LCM?Inventory Errors (graded)Hello Class;It is discovered in 2013 that ending inventory from 2011 is understated. What accounts will be affected by this understatement, and how will they be affected?This is a situation that really happens. Start with the 2011 inventory being understated, and track the changes through the inventory account to 2013.week 6Inventory Classification and Systems (graded)Hello Class;Merchandise Inventory is assets held for sale in the ordinary course of business of wholesale and retail companies. Manufacturing inventories are raw materials or WIP (Work In Process) that will be used or consumed in the production of finished goods to be sold.iscussion topic #1explain how inventory is presented on the balance sheet, and what further information you found in the footnote disclosures about the inventory method and “Impairment of Inventory”, if any.Inventoriable Costs/Cost-Flow Assumptions (graded)Hello Class;We read about the Perpetual and the Periodic Inventory System. Regardless of which system is used, under both, we need to assign dollar amounts to the Ending Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold so that we can trace how costs flow through the system. 1) Start by identifying what is included in inventory and then 2) discuss how each item might be treated differently in the Perpetual vs. the Periodic Inventory System.