Accounting theory and practice, Volume 2 (of 3) : a textbook for colleges and…

CHAPTER XX

817 words  |  Chapter 113

FIXED LIABILITIES—BONDS AND MORTGAGES Nature of Fixed Liabilities Fixed liabilities, called also capital, bonded, long-term, and funded liabilities or debts, comprise all debts of which the date of maturity is some distance ahead and considerably longer than that of current liabilities. Government regulating boards, for purposes of standardization, may set a minimum life-period for this group of liabilities and any kind of debt falling within the period is so classified. Thus, the Public Service Commission for the First District of the State of New York says: “Funded debt comprises all debt which by the terms of its creation does not mature until more than one year after date of creation.” Private undertakings do not need such exact uniformity. Any debt the maturity of which extends beyond the period adopted within that business for current liabilities will usually be grouped with the fixed liabilities, there seldom being an intermediate group. Purpose of Fixed Liabilities Fixed liabilities, as distinguished from current, are those issued distinctively for the purpose of raising capital. Due to insufficient original capitalization, funds may be needed for one or more of many purposes. Working capital may be required; extensions of plant and market may be desirable; additional equipment and improvement within the plant itself may be advisable; the control of the plant of a competitor may prove advantageous; it may be deemed wise to fund floating liabilities; the refunding of liabilities soon to mature may become necessary; the financial policy may dictate the unification of several diverse forms of debt—these and other purposes may be served by the assumption of long-term debts. Corporation Bonds The most common type of fixed liability is the bond. As an instrument of credit the bond is limited almost exclusively to corporations. The purchasing public, interested in securities of this kind, looks with suspicion on a long-term promise to pay issued by either a single proprietor or by a partnership. Such businesses are almost wholly dependent on the health and ability of individual owners. During a long period of years so many contingencies may arise and seriously cripple the business that the long-term debts of a partnership or sole ownership have no market, although isolated instances of such issues exist. The corporation, however, has continuity of life, is not so dependent on individuals, and therefore has avenues for the raising of funds open to it which are closed to other types of organization. Nature of Bonds A bond may be defined as an instrument under seal promising to pay a certain amount of money at a definite or determinable future time. From a legal standpoint, a bond is a contract setting forth the terms and conditions under which the obligation is assumed. Furthermore, it is a negotiable contract transferable from hand to hand, though in some cases registration is necessary to prove ownership in the eyes of the issuing corporation. From a financial standpoint, a bond is essentially a long-term promissory note. Bonds, as here used, are to be distinguished from the old real estate bond and mortgage. Bonds are usually secured by a lien on some definite property or prospect of property, just as the real estate bond and mortgage. The corporation bond, however, is a separate instrument, divisible into small parts, whereas the bond and mortgage is not usually an instrument of that type. Corporation bonds are also to be distinguished from the surety bonds mentioned in the preceding chapter. These latter, as already noted, are instruments whereby individuals, firms, or corporations bind themselves as guarantors for the conduct of others or for the payment of sums of money for which the guarantor is not directly liable. Difference between Bond and Real Estate Mortgages With regard to the mortgage covering the bond issue, points of difference from the ordinary real estate mortgage are to be noted. To the ordinary mortgage there are two parties, viz., the party obligated and the party accommodated, the obligor and obligee. To the bond mortgage, the obligee is a trustee standing in the stead of the numerous bondholders who could not conveniently act individually. In this trustee the title to the property liened is vested for the benefit of the bondholders. The mortgage instrument itself is often a model of completeness and comprehensiveness, defining with minute care the relations, duties, rights, interests, and status of the issuing corporation, the bondholders, and the trustee under present circumstances and all possible future contingencies. Kinds of Corporation Bonds Since bonds were first issued, perhaps one hundred different kinds have been placed on the market. They all have the same fundamental characteristics but differ in minor particulars. No universally recognized basis exists for their classification, nor is such a basis possible, the use which they are to serve determining always the basis of analysis into classes. Thus, in the opinion of a leading authority[50] on the subject bonds may be classified under the following heads, according to:

Chapters

1. Chapter 1 2. Introduction of System 3. 1. PROPORTIONAL METHODS 4. 2. VARIABLE PERCENTAGE METHODS 5. 3. COMPOUND INTEREST METHODS 6. 4. MISCELLANEOUS METHODS 7. 1. PROPORTIONAL METHODS 8. 2. VARIABLE PERCENTAGE METHODS 9. 3. COMPOUND INTEREST METHODS 10. 4. MISCELLANEOUS METHODS 11. Introduction 12. Introduction 13. CHAPTER I 14. 5. Debenture 15. CHAPTER II 16. Introduction of System 17. Chapter XXXVI, a cash discount is usually treated as a financial 18. 6. Indexing vouchers. 19. 4. It localizes responsibility by showing authority for 20. 5. It secures a receipted bill for all disbursements of cash. 21. 1. Clumsy provision for returns and allowances, partial 22. 3. The giving out of information about the business 23. CHAPTER III 24. CHAPTER IV 25. 2. Deferred Charges to | 2. Deferred Income 26. 5. Fixed Assets | 27. 4. For publication or report to regulating or 28. 6. For advertising purposes to float new issues 29. CHAPTER V 30. 12. Liquidation or forced-sale value, etc. 31. 1. For the current assets, the principle of valuation may be stated 32. 2. The principle of valuation involved in deferred charges to operation 33. 3. For the fixed assets, the principle of valuation generally 34. CHAPTER VI 35. 2. The managerial policy as to repairs, maintenance, 36. 3. The past performance and expected future performance 37. 4. All other factors locally present which may affect 38. Chapter XIII.) 39. CHAPTER VII 40. 5. Crystallization[25] 41. CHAPTER VIII 42. 2. Rates of depreciation and their relation to repairs, 43. 5. Financing depreciation and some related problems. 44. Chapter IX. 45. 4. Normal climatic conditions. 46. 5. Probable misuse and neglect brought about by the 47. 6. Probable change in ownership and consequent 48. 7. Probable change in the requirements of the market, 49. 2. Installed operating and generating machinery 50. 3. Fixed equipment including boilers and piping 51. Chapter X of the effect of the various methods used for calculating 52. CHAPTER IX 53. 4. Miscellaneous Methods 54. 4. Under some methods, an arbitrary interest rate 55. 1. PROPORTIONAL METHODS 56. 2. VARIABLE PERCENTAGE METHODS 57. 3. COMPOUND INTEREST METHODS 58. 4. MISCELLANEOUS METHODS 59. CHAPTER X 60. 2. Inadequacy, which is lack of capacity to do the 61. 3. Obsolescence, which represents the inability to 62. 1. PROPORTIONAL METHODS 63. 2. VARIABLE PERCENTAGE METHODS 64. 3. COMPOUND INTEREST METHODS 65. 4. MISCELLANEOUS METHODS 66. Chapter XI. 67. CHAPTER XI 68. 2. Estimate of life in periods, working hours, service 69. 5. Periodic appraisal value. 70. 3. Profits of the past may be reserved in the business 71. CHAPTER XII 72. Introduction 73. 4. Bank 74. 1. Cash deposited to cover breakage or damage to 75. 2. Moneys advanced to subsidiaries, salesmen, and other 76. 3. Claims against creditors for returned or damaged 77. 4. Prepayments on purchase or expense contracts, as 78. 5. Unpaid calls or instalments on stock subscription 79. 6. Claims against absconding officers for property 80. 1. In the case of a new concern where there is no past 81. 2. In the case of an outsider—a professional auditor 82. 3. Periodically, in any business, as a check on the 83. 1. The amount of outstanding trade debt at the time 84. 2. The amount of sales on credit made during the 85. 3. The total sales, both cash and credit, for the present 86. CHAPTER XIII 87. 1. Carry the market valuation, whether more or less 88. 2. In case market value is less than cost, set up a reserve 89. 3. Carry in an inner column in the body of the balance 90. Chapter XXVI of this book, where a full presentation of the case for 91. CHAPTER XIV 92. CHAPTER XV 93. 1. By practically full ownership of the subsidiary 94. 3. Through the agency of advances, particularly when, 95. CHAPTER XVI 96. Chapter IX, is the one most widely employed. It is to be preferred to 97. CHAPTER XVII 98. 1. If the building is purchased outright for cash, whatever costs 99. 2. If the building is bought by the issue of stocks or bonds, the 100. 3. When buildings are put up by the concern itself, full cost may 101. Chapter XVI, any increase or decrease in the value of the land cannot 102. CHAPTER XVIII 103. 1. _Time Lapse._ There is no such thing as wear and tear on a patent 104. 2. _Supersession._ If no other causes than time lapse were operative, 105. 3. _Obsolescence._ Akin to the element of supersession is that of 106. 1. Lump sum payments to the state or some division 107. 2. The full purchase price paid another company for 108. 3. Legal and other fees in connection with securing 109. 4. Any other legitimate expenses, such as the cost of 110. CHAPTER XIX 111. 6. Merchandise Inventory 112. Chapter XX, in the discussion of the liability, bonds. 113. CHAPTER XX 114. 1. The character of the issuing corporation under 115. 2. The security of the bonds under which come: 116. 3. The purpose of the issue, as: 117. 4. The conditions incident upon payment of principal 118. 4. A bond sold at par to be redeemed at a premium on maturity. 119. CHAPTER XXI 120. CHAPTER XXII 121. 2. Profits realized on sales of fixed assets should be first applied 122. 3. A sufficient surplus should be accumulated (in addition to the 123. CHAPTER XXIII 124. Chapter XXII, have their proper place of record direct into some margin 125. Chapter XXV on sinking funds for a full discussion of the merits and 126. 2. Reserves created to provide an additional capital 127. 3. Reserves created to provide for equalizing dividends 128. 1. Valuation Reserves 129. 5. Market Fluctuations Reserves, etc. 130. 2. Proprietorship Reserves 131. 3. Reserves for Working Capital, etc. 132. CHAPTER XXIV 133. Introduction 134. CHAPTER XXV 135. 1. The sinking fund, then, under suitable title, may appear only among 136. 2. The balance sheet may record the sinking fund status among the 137. 3. There may appear on the balance sheet as the only evidence of a 138. 4. There may be no record of the sinking fund transactions shown on 139. 1. Those dealing with the original and subsequent 140. 2. Those required to book the trustee’s periodic 141. 3. Those to show the redemption of the debt and the final 142. CHAPTER XXVI 143. 1. The difficulty of determining the rate at which 144. 2. Inasmuch as the amount of investment in current 145. 3. If interest is to be charged, how shall the offsetting 146. 4. The introduction in production costs of a more or 147. 5. As the business world is accustomed to consider 148. CHAPTER XXVII 149. Chapter XXIII on “Reserves and Surplus.” There the illegitimate use of 150. CHAPTER XXVIII 151. 1. To convey, transfer, conceal, or remove, or to permit 152. 2. To transfer while insolvent any portion of the property 153. 3. To make a general assignment for the benefit of 154. 4. For the debtor to admit in writing his inability to 155. 5. To suffer or permit, while insolvent, any creditor to 156. 1898. The courts of the Federal Government have jurisdiction in these 157. CHAPTER XXIX 158. 1. Agreement by the directors of the various companies 159. 2. Assent of the stockholders of each company to the 160. 3. Filing of certified copies of the agreement, with the 161. 4. The exchange and issuance of new stock for the 162. 1. A uniform accounting system for all the companies 163. 2. The reserves for depreciation should be based on 164. 3. Costs should be determined in the same way if the 165. 4. The apportionment of labor, factory expense, and 166. 5. Only real items of cost should be included under the 167. 6. The same methods of inventory-taking, both of 168. 7. The amount of orders on hand should be considered. 169. CHAPTER XXX 170. 2. A proper rate of turnover on the merchandise 171. 3. Economical management. 172. 3. Facilities for centralizing and comparing such

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