Mmmmmmmmm! But watch out for the Mac & Cheese!

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Video Updates.

Some are calling this the new “Cheeseapocalypse” as Kraft Foods Group recalls 260 cases of Velveeta sold to Walmart because the batches lack enough preservatives and could “spoil prematurely and/or lead to food borne illness.” Questions: 1. What states are affected by the recall? 2. What ingredient is causing the recall? 3. What types of… Read more »

Are you Due any Lost Funds?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Fraud Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Video Updates.

Ohio has returned more than $3.4 million in unclaimed funds to Elyria in what it says is the largest such payment in state history. Questions: 1. Where did the funds originate? 2. Are there unclaimed funds in every state? If so, how do you access the list in your state? 3. How do you think… Read more »

Who Holds the Note? A Loaded Question for Credit Scores.

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized.

Before Steven Marks started looking for debt relief on his Reno, Nev. home, he sent a simple request to Bank of America to ask who owned his mortgage.  He also wanted documentation of this.  What he got in return was an initial decline regarding who owned his loan by Bank of America and a lowering of his credit score. … Read more »

Mickey D’s in the News: Which story is right?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized, Video Updates.

According to the Wall Street Journal, McDonald’s Corp. has warned federal regulators that it could drop its health insurance plan for nearly 30,000 hourly restaurant workers unless regulators waive a new requirement of the U.S. health overhaul.  However, less than an hour after that release, ABC News  and Reuters reported that McDonald’s and the Obama administration… Read more »

The Fabulous Fab is Back in the News

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Fabrice Tourre, a controversial personality in the Goldman Sachs Group Inc transaction of 2007, asked a judge to throw out a U.S. regulator’s fraud lawsuit against him.  About two and a half months ago, the bank settled its part of the case for $550 million. In his filing, Tourre asked that the U.S. Securities and… Read more »

A Fee to Visit the U.S.

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized, Video Updates.

Starting Wednesday, September 8, 2010, travelers from 36 nations will be required to pay a new two-year entry or travel fee when they visit the United States — part of which will be used to promote tourism. The travelers will pay $14 to register through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), required for those… Read more »

Power to the Shareholders

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized.

According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, shareholders have won a victory in obtaining greater clout to place directors on corporate boards.  This is part of the the “shareholder rights” movement that has been chipping away the power from top executives in U.S. run corporations. However, the Journal also predicts skirmishes ahead by public… Read more »

Who are the most trustworthy companies and why?

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Who can you trust?  In a recent examination by Audit Integrity, an independent financial analytics company in Los Angeles, the company assessed the true quality of corporate accounting and management practices by looking at more than 100 factors beyond the balance sheet and income statement. Their aim was to identify the measures most highly associated… Read more »

Multi-Million Dollar Swindle of Four Universities

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

In one of the most recently uncovered Ponzi cases, a former hedge-fund manager has pleaded guilty to criminal charges in an investment scam in which he bilked as much as $900-million from investors, including four university endowments. According to investigators, the Paul R. Greenwood and his partner Stephen Walsh spent at least $160-million on mansions, horses,… Read more »

New Revenue Recognition Standards on the Way for Contractors

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

Contractors should be educating themselves on the impact of the new proposed revenue recognition standards and the recently published (June 24, 2010) exposure draft pertaining to revenue from contracts with customers. Public comments are due October 22, 2010, and it is expected the standards will be finalized in 2011. Questions: 1. What are some of… Read more »