This week’s Discussion topic is BYP7-7, Ethics Case, on page 330 of your textbook which reads as follows: “Blake Romney became Chief Executive Officer of Peters Inc. two years ago. At the time, the company was reporting lagging profits, and Blake was brought in to "stir things up." The company has three divisions, electronics, fiber optics, and plumbing supplies. Blake has no interest in plumbing supplies, and one of the first things he did was to put pressure on his accountants to reallocate some of the company’s fixed costs away from the other two divisions to the plumbing division. This had the effect of causing the plumbing division to report losses during the last two years; in the past it had always reported low, but acceptable, …show more content…
The loss of jobs can have a devastating impact on a community and on the morale of remaining employees. From a financial perspective, closing a division that is reporting losses will not necessarily increase the reported net income of the company. The reason: if fixed costs that have been allocated to a division that is closed are reallocated to the remaining divisions, the company’s net income might actually decrease. This sounds like it would most likely be the case at Phelps. (b) It is not unusual to reevaluate fixed cost allocations periodically. However, the allocation should be based on the underlying economics of the situation rather than the motives of individuals. (c) Robert should explain to the board of directors that the change in income is due to a reallocation and that closing the plumbing division is not advisable. In this case, being honest is not only the ethical thing to do, but it will also maximize the company’s net
To consider this I will be looking at the Income Statement. If the company’s revenue exceeds its expenses it will report net income or will report a net loss. This will report on the success or failure of the company’s operation by reporting its revenue and expenses.
Macy’s Inc. ratio was .02 and JC Penny Co. Inc. was .00. To improve this ratio, both companies need to improve on their net income. If JC Penny doesn’t continue to improve its net income, then this ratio will begin to lean negative, signaling the company is losing money for every dollar is sales and may not be good investment. Macy’s Inc. still has room before it hits .00, however, if their net income continues to fall, they soon too may have the same profit margin ratio as JC Penny Co. Inc. Shutting down unsatisfactory stores – as each company is doing – may help improve this ratio as well. With less funding going to these stores, such as salary’s, rent, and wasted inventory, they will be able to improve their net income value.
In accounting there is much to be learned, about the financial aspects of a business. In the past five weeks I have learned the importance of financial reports and how they relate to the success of an establishment. These reports may include balance sheets and income statements, which help accountants and the public grasp the overall financial condition of a company. The information in these reports is really significant to, managers, owners, employees, and investors. Managers of a business can take and deduce financial
There are at least 10 significant struggles and/or ethical violations discussed in the book. Read the book, choose three ethical issues or violations, and cover:
6. MB4 Profit and Loss Account 2: A worked example of your solutions to your identified problems in P&L1
In addition to affecting profits by adjusting useful life and depreciation; key ratios will also be affected. The net profit margin can be influenced both ways to fit the purpose of business strategy. It could be increased to make it seem more profitable, or it can be influenced in a negative way to write off as much expenses as possible – if the year held disappointing results – in order to show next year more positively in comparison.
Using a current example of an ethical issue, the definition of what an ethical issue is will be reflected upon as well as how the example case reinforces Plato’s’ quote.
Profitability The company has come to a standstill with profits, in hopes to maintain a more efficient practice and continue expansion, Dynashears continued to borrow substantial amounts of working capital from the bank and ended up falling far short of the predictions for sales. The plant modernization project initially predicted a lot less money as well – and the additional funds requested put a strain on the ability to make profits. The gross profit margin dropped from 22% to14, when the projections hoped it would actually increase. The health of the company is in decline, and now has a slightly
the company’s margins have shrunk by 10% in the past year due to rising costs and growing competition.
In the year 2007, there is a drop in financial performance within the company. Earnings have dropped
a. Identify the ethical dilemma faced by the CIO in this situation using the three normative theories of business ethics. Identify all stakeholders involved. How will each stakeholder group be affected by the decision taken by the management?
The amount shown on the income statement under discontinued operations is the profit made during the period from the businesses that will not be a part of the company in the future. The net profit for the year of Reed Elsevier is higher almost by 50% due to the profit made from discontinued operations. The net profit of the Thompson Corporation has also grown by almost 4 times, which is also due mostly to the earnings from discontinued operations.
Overall, the profit before tax of the Manufacturing Group decreased 13.24%, and the Retail Group decreased 10.77%, for a total decrease of 11.28%. In simple terms, expenses have increased, profits have decreased, and Harrington Collection hasn’t performed very well over the last several years.
Some companies cut off their controllable cost for specific period of time when sales decline. As an example Research and Development cost can be shifted down. Shifting of discretionary costs over the period may not be a good sign for quality of earning. But still company may have good reason.